NASA discontinued Spot the Station email alerts — we kept the idea alive
For years, NASA’s Spot the Station emailed you when the ISS was about to fly over. That service was retired in June 2025. LookToSpace sends the same alert, free: an evening email when the station will be visible from your location: when to step outside, which way to look, and how bright it will be.
What you get, free
- An evening email before visible ISS passes over your saved location, only on nights with a pass actually worth stepping outside for.
- The step-outside time in your local time, so you're not staring at a countdown site.
- Direction and height: where it rises (e.g. "look northwest"), how high it climbs, and how long it stays in view.
- The vanish moment: the exact minute the station slips into Earth's shadow and blinks out mid-sky, the part most trackers skip.
Three steps: create a free account, save your location, switch on "ISS & satellite passes" in the Alerts tab. No card, no trial timer; the free plan is free forever.
The honest Pro line
ISS pass emails for one location are free, full stop. Pro ($19.99/yr) is for the rest: Starlink-train pass alerts (the "string of pearls" in the weeks after each launch), push notifications, SMS text alerts, up to five saved locations, and precise launch-viewing tools. If you only want the ISS emails NASA used to send, you never have to pay us anything.
Check tonight first
Want to see what the alert would say before signing up? The ISS pass tables cover 94 US cities with tonight’s exact times, updated daily; pick your city and compare the sky.
Get a free email when the ISS will pass over your location
Enter your ZIP or city and we’ll email you the pass time: when to step outside and where to look. Only on evenings with a visible pass. Free, no account needed.
Check your inbox for one confirmation email from LookToSpace: ISS pass emails start after you confirm. One-click unsubscribe.
Free nightly pass-time email for one saved location ✓ what you’re signing up for now
Pro Starlink-train passes · push + SMS alerts · 5 saved locations · $19.99/yr
Free · no account needed
Free ISS alerts FAQ
Did NASA discontinue Spot the Station email alerts?
Yes. NASA retired the Spot the Station email and SMS alert service in June 2025 and now points people at its mobile app. If you liked the emails, ours work the same way: tell us where you are and we email you before the ISS is visible, free.
What does a free ISS alert email include?
One evening email when the ISS will be visible from your saved location: the step-outside time in your local time, the direction it rises from, how high it climbs, roughly how long it stays in view, and the exact moment it vanishes into Earth’s shadow mid-sky.
Is it really free? What’s the catch?
ISS pass emails for one saved location are free with a free account: no card, no trial clock. The paid part is everything around it: Starlink-train pass alerts, browser push notifications, SMS text alerts, up to five saved locations, and the morning launch digest are Pro ($19.99/yr). That split is what keeps the free alerts free.
When do the alert emails arrive?
Early evening, before the pass window: one email per evening at most, and only on evenings with a genuinely watchable pass (high enough, dark enough, station in sunlight). Pass times are recomputed daily from the latest published orbital elements.