Space shuttle expected to be visible from Detroit area

The International Space Station will be visible from metro Detroit at specific times Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday, and you don't have to be a rocket scientist to catch a glimpse. With almost an acre of solar panels and an interior volume equal to a five-bedroom house, the station -- and the STS-119 Shuttle, piloted by Detroit native Dominic Antonelli -- will be easily visible for Detroit residents. "When it's actually visible ... it just looks like a bright little glimmer going across the sky," said spokesman Joshua Fluegel of the NASA Johnson Space Center. Though the speed of the station makes viewing through a telescope impractical, NASA does recommend a good pair of field binoculars for the best view. Assuming clear skies, the shuttle should be visible at the following local times: • Friday at 5:10 a.m. for one minute • Saturday at 5:37 a.m. for four minutes • Sunday at 5:32 a.m. for less than one minute • Sunday at 7:04 a.m. for four minutes • Monday at 5:50 a.m. for one minute This won't be the first space shuttle sighting in Detroit. Expedition 17 passed over the motor city in May 2008 and Expedition 13 in August 2006, taking photos of the region. The 2006 venture produced views from a station altitude of 220 miles while traveling at a speed of 17,400 miles per hour -- nine times the speed of a bullet, according to information released by NASA. At that speed, the station could orbit the Earth every 90 minutes. "Astronauts have taken more than a half-million images of Earth in the almost 50 years since space flight began," according to a NASA release. "Those images contribute to studies of geography, the environment, climate, oceanography and many other fields."