Can you see a bus on the ground from 40,000'?
No? Then why in the holy fuck would you think you could possibly see a satellite that is over 350,000', and nowhere near the size of a bus?
Now, a high altitude balloon, the size of an shiny bus, at 60,000', that you could probably see
No but from the top of Mauna Kea you can be told and shown timing and trajectories of satellites and the ISS and then watch them both with naked eye and telescope depending on projected brightness minutes later.
Have humans ever passed the van Allen belts? Maybe, but not until very recent times. Moon landing, thank Kubrick for that one.
But satellites? Not fake and gay. Real as fuck.
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