If you are out in the garden tonight watching for the flyover of the International Space Station you may just be in luck.

At about 10pm tonight, the 357ft-long craft - the equivalent to the length of a football pitch - will be at its optimal brightness allowing it to shine brighter than any star.

Although the International Space Station can easily be spotted with the naked eye because of its size, it also reflects a large amount of sunlight. And typically the station will appear dim and then as it rises in elevation it will get brighter.

Some space fans have already taken to Twitter after seeing the spectacle last night.

Adam Cann, of Norfolk, said: 'It's quite a regular sight. I've seen it many times but still get that sense of awe.'

Ben Clarke, of north Norfolk, said: 'The view of the station last night was spectacular. Worth staying up for.'

The International Space Station, which launched in 2000, has been visited by 204 individuals, and at the time of its tenth anniversary the station's odometer read more than 1.5b statute miles - eight round trips to the Sun - over the course of 57,361 orbits around the Earth.

As well as being an orbiting laboratory, it is also a space port for a variety of international spacecraft and the complex now has more livable room than a conventional six-bedroom house, with two bathrooms, a gymnasium and a 360-degree bay window.

Terry Owen, of Sutton, has logged the visual passes in the evening for people in Norfolk.

He said: 'The day times is when the International Space Station appears on the western horizon. It takes ten minutes to pass over from the west to the eastern horizons.

'People need to look for a moving bright star moving from west to east and if you can see the stars you will be able to see the International Space Station - you do not need a telescope.'

• Did you see the International Space Station last night? Email your photos and comments to reporter donna-louise.bishop@archant.co.uk or follow @donnaloubishop on Twitter.