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Most of the time, the International Space Station (ISS) is orbiting the Earth at an altitude of approximately 220 miles (354 km), which places it in low Earth orbit (LEO). This distance can change, however, and has varied from 205 miles (330 km) to a planned maximum of 248 miles (400 km).
This was my first attempt to video an ISS transit in which I had to go mobile. Since the ISS was going to be at a range of only 264 miles (that's twice as close as the event on July 12, 2003, below), I decided I would attempt it. The predicted center line was only about 10 miles from my home in Livermore, CA.