An unknown flying object

I just happened to see a bright red dot that was speeding away. This was while I was taking more astrophotography due to the clear night sky. Any ideas on what it is? The two photos are 4 second exposure at 55mm. It looks like it was speeding away. I suddenly noticed it in the sky and turned the camera round and then it seemed to start moving quickly. I think it's a satellite, but why did it speed up?

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Oh that's strange. Did it have a trail or just disappear?

weather balloon.. haha

Possibly an aircraft that changed altitute/angle rather than speed.

Satellites don't change direction, they'd be an arc. It's a plane, the streak is red/orange from the lights on the plane.

There was no streak in the sky. The streak is from the fact that both are 4 second exposures. It was a very bright dot speeding away towards the south. Also, with a plane, the light will be flashing as I have seen in some other photos that I have taken. This was a continuous bright reddish orange. Also with an aeroplane the colours will alternate.

naddieuk, where in the UK are you? There have MANY reports of fast moving orange lights in the sky in the south-east. Many of these were reported (and I saw one too) during the complete closure of UK airspace, so definitely not commercial aircraft. The light I saw was large and really fast.

I am up in North Wales and I saw the light at just after 10pm. I have been looking at the heavens-above website after being told by someone about it. It says that there was an iridium flare at 23:07, which is about an hour after I saw this. Also, looking at photos of Iridium flares, they look white, not red. Also, the camera was pointing towards the south west. Any clues as to what it may be?

03 May 23:07:19 -6 25° 33° (NNE) 10.2 km (E) -7 Iridium 80

naddieuk wrote in post #10117243
There was no streak in the sky. The streak is from the fact that both are 4 second exposures. It was a very bright dot speeding away towards the south. Also, with a plane, the light will be flashing as I have seen in some other photos that I have taken. This was a continuous bright reddish orange. Also with an aeroplane the colours will alternate.

I know it was a streak from the long exposure, I was saying the color of it was due to the planes lights. Some trails from planes can be dots and some can be long streaks, it depends on how their lights flash or if they have a set of lights on all the time. We've had bright orange lights around here, it's aircraft of some sort. Being near a military base explains it around us. It's a planer most likely.

The US just recently sent up a hypersonic glider and another vessel that they lost control off a few weeks ago:
http://www.space.com …pons-heats-up-100505.html

I agree that a plane wouldn't illuminate red without flashing. And I'm sure naddieuk would have heard it in the distance. Would be interesting to find out what this is.

Just to let you know, I did not see any smoke in the vicinity of the bright blob, nor did I hear any sounds. It wasn't windy that evening either. The bright blob suddenly appeared as I was photographing Venus and co. While waiting for the 4 second shutter, I was looking round and then suddenly noticed the bright blob, so I turned the camera round to face it and pressed the shutter quickly with the home made shutter release cable. I had to press it twice as the mirror lock up was enabled.

That's really weird. If you zoom in close, the object is moving slightly erratically. Not a smooth line or arc with a kink in the middle as if it's steering, but it's changing direction slightly one way and then the next. Maybe one of those chinese lanterns...was it a windy night?

zeldaboy101 wrote in post #10115688
Satellites don't change direction, they'd be an arc. It's a plane, the streak is red/orange from the lights on the plane.

Agreed. A Satellite looks like a star just moving across the sky. If you want to see one (well, the international space station) check out this link:
See the International Space Station Tonight then click the Javascript utility for a schedule in your area and directions on when and where to look.

Adrena1in wrote in post #10132002
.... Maybe one of those chinese lanterns...

This is the correct answer. They are now very common in UK and have been the cause of many stories of fireballs, re-entering spacecraft, and burning aircraft. Most people are disappointed to find it turns out to be something so mundane.

Thanks for the answer. I guess it was those Chinese lanterns. It was Bank Holiday Monday after all and some people were enjoying the weather and the clear sky.