Venus to give stargazers once-in-a-lifetime treat as it crosses Sun

The Independent
By Helen Johnstone
10 May 2004

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Millions of people around the world will watch a once-in-a-lifetime event next month when the planet Venus, the Earth's closest neighbour, crosses the Sun's path.

Scientists believe that at 6.19am on 8 June, Venus will appear as a tiny speck at one side of the Sun and will slowly transverse the fiery ball for the next six hours.

A transit occurs when Venus and Earth, whose paths round the Sun tilt at slightly different angles, line up exactly where their orbits cross.

No living person has seen a transit of Venus as the last occurred on 6 December 1882, during the reign of Queen Victoria. That was one of merely five events of its kind ever watched by Man.
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http://news.independent.co.uk/world/science_technology/story.jsp?story=519709

Isn't there another Venus transit in 2012?

:thumbsup:

NO ONE has ever personally witnessed this phenomena, as they would burn their eyes looking at the sun that long.

Projection!

Lots of ways to see this happen without blinding yourself. :-)

Peter

http://sohowww.nascom.nasa.gov/data/latestimages.html

You can catch comet passes there too. Impressive stuff.