Venus To Transit the Sun In June, Not Again Until 2117

revealingheart writes with this quote from ScienceDaily: "On 5 and 6 June this year, millions of people around the world will be able to see Venus pass across the face of the Sun in what will be a once-in-a-lifetime experience. It will take Venus about six hours to complete its transit, appearing as a small black dot on the Sun's surface, in an event that will not happen again until 2117. ...Transits of Venus occur only on the very rare occasions when Venus and Earth are in a line with the Sun. At other times Venus passes below or above the Sun because the two orbits are at a slight angle to each other. Transits occur in pairs separated by eight years, with the gap between pairs of transits alternating between 105.5 and 121.5 years — the last transit was in 2004." You can check this chart to see whether it'll be visible at your location, and when you should look. You'll need a safe way to watch unless you are Vulcan. And yes, there's even a phone app to help you out.

Comments

Re:More than once

[janeil]

Well, opinions differ. I watched that last transit on a cheapo telescope with a sun filter and would rank it very high as an astronomical experience. The perfect circle of venus moving across the sun, the speed of movement, just knowing what you were looking at was happening RIGHT NOW, blew me away. But I paid nothing, it was visible where I live. I wouldn't travel halfway across the world for a total eclipse, probably wouldn't do so to see another transit of venus, either. So, it's pretty cool, if you can watch it from your backyard.