Miss tomorrow's transit of Venus — next chance in 105 years

By MOOK Travel Life Chen Guanxin, compiled and reported

Following the once-in-a-century annular solar eclipse on May 21, an equally spectacular astronomical event — the transit of Venus — will occur early on June 6. The Taipei Astronomical Museum and the National Museum of Natural Science in Taichung will host free observation events tomorrow morning, providing several telescopes and solar viewers. Through projection, filtered dimmed viewing, and image capturing, with expert commentary, the public will be able to witness the last astronomical marvel of the 21st century. For those wishing to observe on their own, Wu Fu-he, head of the Taipei Astronomical Museum, said that due to distance, Venus’s disc will appear about the size of a 10 NT coin placed one kilometer away — not as easily observable as a solar eclipse. Those who wish to use telescopes should ensure proper light filtering to avoid eye damage. In addition, the public can also use the pinhole imaging principle to project and observe the transit. Both observation events require no registration and are free to attend. The next transit of Venus will not occur until 2117.

The transit of Venus occurs when Venus passes directly between the Earth and the Sun, blocking sunlight heading toward Earth — much like a solar eclipse when the Moon blocks the Sun. Although Venus is larger than the Moon, its greater distance from Earth means it cannot completely cover the Sun to create a similarly dramatic eclipse. Furthermore, because Venus’s orbit around the Sun does not perfectly align with Earth’s, a transit doesn’t happen every time Venus passes between the two. Transits of Venus occur in pairs, with each pair separated by eight years, and then not again for over 120 years. This transit is the second of the current pair; the first occurred on June 8, 2004, and the next will be on December 11, 2117.

The transit of Venus will last approximately 6 hours and 36 minutes. The general public wishing to view this phenomenon must use proper solar filters and related equipment to avoid eye damage.

Venus Transit Observation Events

Date: June 6

Time: Taipei Astronomical Museum 06:00–13:00; National Museum of Natural Science (Xitun Road entrance plaza) 07:30–12:30

Fee: Free participation

● Related reading: New ways to explore Shei-Pa National Park — go salamander watching together！

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