The website Heavens-above.com is a treasure trove of information for those interested in the sky, from casual backyard observers to professional astronomers. There are many areas of particular interest, including the whereabouts of satellites, including the International Space Station and Tiangong 1 (Chinese Space Station), iridium flares, sky charts, kids’ astronomy and information in planets and constellations.

At the home page on the left, three links down, click on “Change your observing location” to place yourself accurately on the globe. If you’d like to know when the International Space Station will be visible from your location, click on the ISS link. ISS is a dramatic human achievement well worth observing. The station will be very brightly lit by reflected sunlight, and Heavens-above.com can calculate when and where it will be visible, as well as its brightness, maximum height above horizon and more. In orbit about 260 miles high, ISS travels at 17,100 mph circling Earth every 92.89 minutes.

Use the same procedure for iridium flares, also spectacular. These satellites start out looking comparatively dim and ordinary, but their highly reflective panels act much like mirrors, sending dramatic bright shafts of sunlight down to Earth before they dim and wink out.

Amateur astronomers can use the site to set exact location and time to achieve best telescopic pointing accuracy. (If you simply want to reset clocks in the house, you can use this resource, too.) Visit the site’s FAQ section to clear up uncertainties you may encounter. Consider a donation if you want to support the work of the site.

— Kent Fairfield is a volunteer with Pine Mountain Observatory and a lifelong amateur astronomer. He can be reached at kent.fairfield@gmail.com. Other PMO volunteers also contributed to this article.