Transit of Venus
 

On June 8th, 2004 a celestial event of historical scientific importance will occur when the silhouette of the planet Venus once again crosses the face of the Sun as seen from the Earth. This event or transit of Venus last occurred in 1882, so no one alive today has ever witnessed the transit of Venus For detailed maps and transit times for hundreds of cities, visit NASA's "Prediction's for the 2004 Transit
of Venus" web site

...all info linked from here:

http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/sunear...dex_vthome.htm

I will be viewing this dramatic event.
I've always been in the habit of staring directly into the sun.
It's not advisable to do so.

I've also used all of the indirect or filtered methods.

You may take any precaution you believe necessary.

...safe viewing techniques listed here:

http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/sunear...serve_2004.htm

Wow, thanks for the info! I've read through some of the background information and it's really something!

I just hope it'll be a nice day on June 8th

I will definately have to check it out! thanks,art.

June 8th..Ok, I'll mark my calendar...thanks :thumbsup:

thanks for the tip art, keeping my peepers peeled.

Thanks Art, keep the astronomy links coming! I missed the last big meteor shower but I'll try to check this out. There's a lot of cool stuff out there!

Hmm, I wonder if I'll be able to see it from my smoggy little suburb back in CT. Hell, I hadn't even seen a constellation in my life until I saw the Big Dipper and Orion's Belt on a drive to Indiana.

Looks like a webcast for those of us down here but will dust off the welding mask just in case.

Thanks Art.

np cchris - your love of astronomical realities is matched by my own.

Here's an update:

http://www.breakfastwithvenus.org.uk/

Scientists launch web site to view Transit of Venus
4/6/2004

Scientists at the University of Wales, Aberystwyth have launched a new website which will feature live images of the transit of Venus on the morning of Tuesday 8 June, as well as providing safety advice on how to view the event.

Members of the public are also invited to see the transit using specialist equipment at the Aberystwyth Arts Centre. For the first time since 1882 the planet Venus will pass between the Earth and the Sun, appearing as a black circle drifting across the face of the Sun. Only six of these transits have ever been observed - the first in 1639.

According to Dr Andy Breen, a solar-terrestrial physicist at the Institute of Mathematical and Physical Sciences at UWA, transits of Venus have been of enormous importance in increasing our understanding of the solar system in which we live.

“Until high-powered radars were available the only way of measuring the distance between the planets was by observing transits of Venus from many different places on Earth, when the difference in the times when Venus crossed the disc of the Sun could be used to calculate how far Venus was from the Earth and - with further calculation - how far the Earth was from the Sun.

“The expeditions to observe the Venus transits during the 18th and 19th centuries were the first great international scientific programmes, sending scientists from many countires out across the whole of the world to make measurements – one expedition even travelled to Tahiti with Captain Cook to observe a transit.

“Today the size of the solar system is well-known, but this year's transit is still important for science as astronomers and space scientists use the change in the spectrum of light from the Sun as Venus passes in front to test instruments which will be used in the next generation of planet-hunting telescopes”, he added.

The Institute of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, at UWA will be observing the transit of Venus on the morning of 8th June, using two computer-controlled telescopes mounted outside Aberystwyth Arts Centre. The views from the telescopes will be streamed live to the Institute's Venus Transit website and will be shown on screens in the Arts Centre.

The transit of Venus begins shortly after 6:20am, and from 9am - weather permitting! - the Institute will be streaming images of Venus passing across the face of the Sun to the website http://www.breakfastwithvenus.org.uk/ and to screens in the cafe and foyer of Aberystwyth Arts Centre.

The transit lasts until shortly before 12:30pm, and from 11am the streamed images of the transit will also be screened in the theatre bar in Aberystwyth Arts Centre. If the sky is cloudy staff from the Institute will show the view of the transit from the Transition Region and Coronal Explorer Spacecraft - one of several spacecraft members of the Aberystwyth team use to study activity on the Sun.

Source: http://www.aber.ac.uk/

Seems like the skies are always clear here in Denver, except for when rare astronomical events occur. Hopefully it will be clear on the 8th.

Some history:

Captain Cook's 1769 expedition actually went to Tahiti because it was an ideal southern hemisphere location to observe the transit and, from the resulting data, help most accurately measure the distance from the earth to the sun.

Once the scientists had made their astronomical observations, Cook then proceeded to open sealed orders instructing him to discover and claim for the British a rumored Terra Australis, a great south landmass.

Both of these missions were, of course, successful.

So, I set my alarm for 6:00 am after setting up the telescope, directed my drawing board with a sheet of paper on it. I even borrowed a tripod for my camera.

Unfortunately mother nature has other plans.

Thunder and lightning. Unbe-fucking-lievable.

I'll have to make-do with following it here: http://www.transit-of-venus.org.uk/

or here: http://webcast17.uio.no/trheim1_eng.html

down here in melbourne it was a very clear sky and we got a great view, me on the otherhand waited for the replay on the news as it gives a much clearer picture :p

I watched it on a webcast from James Cook Uni (up near Sydney, I think). Was pretty cool to watch, until about 5:30pm local time, when we lost visual (clouds, I think).

Clear sky all the way, neat to look at.

A local radiostation moved their whole studio to the roof so they could enjoy the great weather and comment on the transit at the same time.
(or as their boss said when he paid a visit: Are we doing all of this because of that little pimple?? :) )


And I just used 2 CD's one on top of the other to cover up my binocs. Works great as a filter, but I wouldn't advise using it for very long, not sure whether it's totally safe...

darn!!
just coz i dont open tfp for 2 days...i miss the sight of a hunderd lifetimes :(

I set my alarm for 5:30 and woke up to a gray sky filled with clouds. Couldn't see the sun until 7:30, and by that time, all I could see was a big yellow spot that blinded me for a couple of minutes. Damn, damn, damn.

haha yeah I just clicked on this thread and noticed that this was today, so I tell my mom whats happening and she tells me it already happend earlier in the morning lol

Here is an awesome pic I found on MSN- this view is captured in Alabama:
http://www.space.com/images/040608_VT_hayes_03.jpg

Got this off AOL. Don't know where they got it from.
<img src=http://img1.photobucket.com/albums/0903/Fremen/_afieryvenus1x.jpg>

June 8:

http://us.news2.yimg.com/us.yimg.com...nus_isl102.jpg

Don't beat yourself up-it'll happen again June 6, 2012. ;)

Pheww...I also missed that because I over slept...good good to know that it'll happen again in my life time...even if it's 8 years...

How is it I didn't even know about this until just now... so too late to say I slept in or something. Oshnsoul- that you found is awesome!

http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ima...estlake_c1.jpg


This view looks across the Atlantic from Tybee Island near Savannah, Georgia, USA

http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap040609.html

Awesome pics.

I had to settle for the TV replay due to work but amazing times we live in.

I MISSED IT!:( Good thing the next one is only 8 years away!