Yahoo Answers is shutting down on May 4th, 2021 (Eastern Time) and beginning April 20th, 2021 (Eastern Time) the Yahoo Answers website will be in read-only mode. There will be no changes to other Yahoo properties or services, or your Yahoo account. You can find more information about the Yahoo Answers shutdown and how to download your data on this help page.

Red blinking light around Venus?

I was looking through my telescope at Venus and saw a red blinking light right next to it, then it disappeared. You think that could of been one of our satellites? Do satellites even have lights on them?

6 Answers

Relevance
  • Paula
    Lv 7
    6 years ago
    Favorite Answer

    Satellites don't have lights on them. Even ISS has no lights on its exterior.

    Well -- satellites have no need for lights -- and it would just cause an unnecessary drain on the power supply.

    Satellites can reflect sunlight and they can be illuminated by the sun. In both cases they are star-like white objects that move across the sky.

    Red flashing lights occur on planes and helicopters. It is possible you saw one in your field of view. And it may have actually been too far away for you to see it with your eyes. And Venus is never far above the horizon -- so this makes it more likely you'd see a distant airplane.

  • ?
    Lv 7
    6 years ago

    You saw an airplane, helicopter, maybe a blimp. Every single aircraft has at least one blinking red light on it (called a rotating beacon even if it just flashes instead of rotates)..... In addition to other non-blinking marker lights of various colors. That's an international aviation standard. Though it is not uncommon at all to see satellites if the sunlight catches them just right, none have any lights on them at all. For what?

    The light disappearing just means that the plane became obscured behind a cloud you couldn't see because it was dark.....or it simply turned a different direction and the blinking light was no longer visible to you. Most aircraft have the rotating beacon on the top of the vertical tail, or on the top somewhere. If it banked away from you the beacon would be blocked by the aircraft's tail surfaces and fuselage.

    Source(s): Private pilot, airplane, single engine, land.
  • Anonymous
    6 years ago

    A red blinking light is an aircraft of some sort.

  • ?
    Lv 7
    6 years ago

    Satellites don't have blinking lights. Aircraft do, and through a telescope you might see only one flash.

  • How do you think about the answers? You can sign in to vote the answer.
  • 6 years ago

    I would say its a plane but it wouldn't disappear and I don't think you'd be able to see red lights on a satellite even if they had red lights

  • 6 years ago

    You saw an plane or helicopter.

Still have questions? Get your answers by asking now.