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June 8th, venus crosses the sun!!

Crystal

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Anyone interests in astronomy? The last conjunction ocurred in 1882,100 years ago. And the next conjuction will happen in another 100 years later, in 2012. but I don't know whether I can see it. going to find it. :)

The following news is from The Stars:

A rendevous between sun and Venus
June 7, 2004

By Patricia Reaney

London - More than three centuries ago on a cold afternoon in the tiny English village of Much Hoole, a British astronomer witnessed for the first time an event that would not happen again for more than 100 years.

Jeremiah Horrocks, a 20-year-old farmer's son who was completely self-educated in astronomy, calculated correctly that on November 24 1639 Venus would align between the sun and Earth and could be seen as it moved across the solar disc.

The event, first predicted by German astronomer Johannes Kepler in 1627, has occurred only six times since the invention of the telescope.

Amateur astronomers and the general public in most of Africa and Asia and throughout Europe will have the chance to observe the phenomenon, the first for 122 years, tomorrow. The next transit will not take place until June 6 2012.

"Horrocks got it dead right," said scientific historian Dr Allan Chapman of the University of Oxford.

Beginning at 5.19am GMT (7.19am SA time) for six hours, Venus will cross the path of the sun and, weather permitting, appear as a dark black dot about one-thirtieth the sun's diameter. The event will be visible for all of the morning in most of Africa and Europe, in the middle of the day in the Middle East and across Russia and India, and during the late afternoon from the Far East and Australia.

Just as Horrocks used the transit to formulate fundamental facts about the solar system, including calculating the astronomical unit, or distance of the Earth from the sun, amateur astronomers and schoolchildren around the globe can take part in a transit observation experiment organised by the University of Central Lancashire in England.

Using a transit calculator on the university's website (www.transit-of-venus.org.uk) they will be able to measure the distance from the Earth to the sun just as Horrocks did.


When the transit starts, Venus will appear as a dot on one side of the sun. By taking measurements as the planet tracks its way across the sun and using the transit calculator, they will be able to take measurements of the time it takes Venus to get from one end to the other.

Although Kepler had predicted that Venus would transit the sun in 1631, he never lived to see it.

He had not calculated that it would occur again in 1639.

"This is put down entirely to Horrocks's own originality," said Chapman. "From a mixture of his own meticulous observations of Venus, the sun and the planets ... he realised that the inferior conjunction of 1639 when Venus passes between the Earth and the sun would neither be above it or below it but bang across its middle."

He told his friend, a cloth merchant named William Crabtree, that it would happen.

By the time of the 1769 transit, more than 100 years later, co-ordinated international expeditions had been organised to witness the event across the globe.

When the next ones occurred in the 1870s and 1880s observatories and powerful telescopes were used to witness the event that happens four times in every 243 years.

There are two December transits, eight years apart, and then 121,5 years later there are two June transits, also with an eight year gap.

After another 105,5 years the cycle begins again.

Scientists have told anyone who plans to witness the transit of Venus not to try to view it with the naked eye, or through a telescope or camera because it can cause damage to the eyes and blindness.

They said indirect projection is the safest way to observe the sun.

"The transit of Venus will be a spectacular and memorable event.," said Professor Gordon Bromage, head of the University of Central Lancashire's Centre for Astrophysics. - Reuters
 
i have always been very found of the skies, stars, the planets.
i myself have always had a moon issue, full moons get me in werid moods, i sometimes get stomach aches, or headaches. or even forget more. you seem to have lots of info in astronomy, what do you think my problem could be? other than im crazy or weird. lol
 
Yes, i'm interested in astronomy!

This is from taken a web site

"Canberra (SPX) Jun 07, 2004
On Tuesday afternoon (June 8), one of the rarest celestial events will occur – a transit of Venus across the Sun. It will be the first time since 1882 that this has occurred.
To help people in Australia, and around the world, view the event safely, CSIRO and Telstra will be hosting a webcast of the transit live from Canberra.

"Observers will be able to 'see' the transit begin in the mid-afternoon," says Darren Osborne of CSIRO's Double Helix Science Club. "Hopefully, we may see the famous 'black-drop' effect that was observed more than a century ago."

During the transit, the disc of Venus will appear to move across the face of the Sun. The full transit of Venus across the disc of the Sun will not be visible from Australia, but amateur astronomers are still looking forward to this unique event.

Mr Osborne explains that a transit is not as spectacular or as 'science-worthy' as a total solar eclipse, but it is still expected to capture the public's imagination.

"It is the first time in more than 120 years that this has occurred – no one alive today has ever seen this event. The transit of Venus is also special to Australians because it was the initial reason Lieutenant James Cook travelled to the South Pacific," says Mr Osborne.

In 1769, Cook observed the transit of Venus from Tahiti before he opened a new set of orders that directed him to chart the east coast of Australia.

Visitors to the Transit of Venus website will have access to the only live video feed from Australia. They will also find information on the history of transits of Venus, as well as demonstrating safe techniques for observing this event.

Additional material on the website highlights the role CSIRO plays in astronomy, and the chance for visitors to contribute their own photos and stories from the event.

The webcast will begin at 2:50 pm (Eastern Australian Time), and be available at different speeds to optimise the quality for dial-up and broadband users. It will be accessible via Windows Media Player and Real Media Player, and will be archived so people can view the transit after the event.
"

You can watch it happen live here

Enjoy :)
 
Thank you for the link, Wabbit!

Of course, now I'm going to have to be at 1:00 am to watch this. Oh well, who needs sleep? lol
 
Thanks for the link, wabbit! Helps a lot!!!!. 'cause I cannot see here, and I DO NOT want to miss it! But in London, and Glasgow, people can see!

BESt wishes,
:)
 
Yeah, think you can see it up till 12pm here :) I will try and see it if I can!!!

And you are welcome for the link :)
 
Speaking of celestial happenins

We had an honest to goodness meteroid zip over last week. It was early morning, so I missed it, while I counted zzzzzz's. But I saw all of the pix on the telly. It was BIG! It lit up the whole area bright as daylight for just a flash, then it was gone. Scared the bejeebers outta some guys leaving a tavern. The survelliance camera caught them running for cover. The best pic was the reflection of the thing in a car window, again captured on a camera. Strange doings.
 
Jenna said:
The best pic was the reflection of the thing in a car window, again captured on a camera. Strange doings.

:eek: :rolleyes:
wondering do you have those pic, Jenna. Would you like to show me. I am very curious about those stuff. :)
 
Jenna said:
We had an honest to goodness meteroid zip over last week. It was early morning, so I missed it, while I counted zzzzzz's. But I saw all of the pix on the telly. It was BIG! It lit up the whole area bright as daylight for just a flash, then it was gone. Scared the bejeebers outta some guys leaving a tavern. The survelliance camera caught them running for cover. The best pic was the reflection of the thing in a car window, again captured on a camera. Strange doings.

BTW, welcome your back, Jenna!! ( :rolleyes: Have you ever left? ^&^)
 
Wow, I looked at those short clips of flashes, and it looks impressive!

Must've been quite a sight!

Cheers, Martin
 
My spelling of 'cloaked' or the actual cloudiness of the morning?

Cheers, Mile-O! :D

~
In a haze, a stormy haze
I'll be round, I'll be loving you, always
~

dogrun.gif
 
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