Youngsters excited for Christmas can get a glimpse of what looks like Santa's sleigh flying overhead as the big day gets ever nearer.

Of course, it's really the International Space Station going past in the sky – but don't let the kids know that.

Although we won't see it go by on Christmas Eve this year, it will be visible several times during December.

The International Space Station goes past in the skies over a house in Hampshire in December 2000

When to see 'Santa's sleigh' aka the International Space Station near Burton

  • Thursday, December 14, 5.48pm for 3 minutes
  • Friday, December 15 - 4.56pm for 3 minutes
  • Saturday, December 16 - 5.40pm for 1 minutes
  • Sunday, December 17 - 4.49pm for 2 minutes
  • Tuesday, December 26 - 7.20am for 1 minutes
  • Thursday, December 28 - 7.11am for 2 minutes

The space station orbits the earth every 91 minutes, reports the Birmingham Mail.

All sightings occur within a few hours before or after sunrise or sunset. This is the optimum viewing period as the sun reflects off the space station and contrasts against the darker sky.

Weather permitting, it should be easily visible as a bright dot, like a fast-moving plane or shooting star.

The International Space Station is NASA's orbiting research facility. It's the largest man-made object in the sky, travelling around our planet 15 times a day.

At 357ft end to end, it's almost as long as a football field. It weighs 925lb, the equivalent of 320 cars, and draws its power from an acre of solar panels.

The station has a crew of six living there and moves at four-and-a-half miles per second, or 17,500 miles per hour, at an altitude of more than 200 miles above the earth.

Tell us if you spot the International Space Station in the skies over Burton and share your pictures with us on social media.