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| Transit of Venus – live coverage | Transit of Venus – live coverage |
| (40 minutes later) | |
| 5.20pm: About 43 minutes to go now until the transit begins. Time to introduce a towering figure in astronomy in general and in the history of observation of the transit of Venus in particular: Edmond Halley. | |
| Halley is best known to the layperson for having predicted the return of the comet that bears his name. Halley's comet decorates the heavens every 75-76 years (the last time was February 1986; the time before that was April 1910; the next time is July 2061). | |
| The historian Andrea Wulf, author of the lovely book "Chasing Venus: The Race to Measure the Heavens," spoke to the Guardian about Halley's role in launching the world expeditions to view the transit – after his death: | |
| IN 1716, almost 50 years before the 1761 transit happens, Halley sits down and he writes an essay, in Latin, because that's the international language of science.. ... and in this essay, he says, 'This is what we have to do. In 1761, you all have to work together.' And he very much emphasizes that all the different European nations should make use of their colonial possessions. The English would send someone out to India, the Dutch to Jakarta. He's using the trading empires to have this idea. | |
| He knows that this can only happen if everybody works together. That's why he writes it in Latin. And what's so visionary about it is he knows that he's not going to see this, unless he would be 104, which he knows he's not going to be. So it's like a call of action for a future generation. | |
| You can listen to the full interview with Wulf here. | |
| 5.05pm: Note to our readers: Scientists believe that the planet Venus has not been live blogged on any of its previous transits. It is unknown whether other activity on Venus or by Venus has previously been subject to blogging elsewhere in the universe not on Earth. Suffice it to say that until we hear differently, and possibly even after we hear differently, we are going to claim the mantle of live blogger pioneers in the realm of cosmic phenomena. | |
| Both Capt. James Cook and the botanist Joseph Banks kept extensive diaries on their 1769 voyage to Tahiti to view the transit, but they forgot to upload them upon their return to London. | |
| 4.45pm: Transits of Venus occur in pairs. The pairs are separated by alternating chunks of either 121.5 or 105.5 years. The two transits making up a pair are separated by eight years. The current transit is the second of a pair; its counterpart occurred in June 2004. | |
| Guardian science correspondent Ian Sample has assembled a list of questions about the transit, asked and answered. We're not calling them FAQs; with hundred-year chunks of downtime, we just don't think the word "frequently" applies. Here's a bit from Sample's Q&A: | Guardian science correspondent Ian Sample has assembled a list of questions about the transit, asked and answered. We're not calling them FAQs; with hundred-year chunks of downtime, we just don't think the word "frequently" applies. Here's a bit from Sample's Q&A: |
What have scientists used the transit for? | What have scientists used the transit for? |
| In the 18th century astronomers set out to far-flung corners of the globe to time the transit of Venus. Combined, their results gave them the first accurate measurement of the distance between the Earth and the sun, a figure they calculated to be between 93 million and 97 million miles (172-180 million kilometres). Today, the accepted distance is 93 million miles. The result allowed astronomers to calculate the size of the solar system. | In the 18th century astronomers set out to far-flung corners of the globe to time the transit of Venus. Combined, their results gave them the first accurate measurement of the distance between the Earth and the sun, a figure they calculated to be between 93 million and 97 million miles (172-180 million kilometres). Today, the accepted distance is 93 million miles. The result allowed astronomers to calculate the size of the solar system. |
| Read the whole Q&A here. | Read the whole Q&A here. |
| Nasa has produced a video explaining the transit of Venus, embedded below, with this to say about the historical importance of the transit: | Nasa has produced a video explaining the transit of Venus, embedded below, with this to say about the historical importance of the transit: |
| "Astronomer Sir Edmond Halley realized that by observing transits from widely spaced locations on Earth, it should be possible to triangulate the distance to Venus. The idea galvanized scientists, who set off on expeditions around the world to view a pair of transits in the 1760s. The great explorer James Cook himself was dispatched to observe one from Tahiti, a place as alien to 18th-century Europeans as moon or Mars." | |
| 4.15pm: Hello and welcome to our live blog coverage of the 2012 transit of Venus. We are unduly excited to bring you live updates of the action overhead. As the evening progresses we'll add tidbits of history, snatches of science and scraps of literature in an effort to enhance enjoyment of and do justice to what we are about to see: the last transit of our lifetimes. | 4.15pm: Hello and welcome to our live blog coverage of the 2012 transit of Venus. We are unduly excited to bring you live updates of the action overhead. As the evening progresses we'll add tidbits of history, snatches of science and scraps of literature in an effort to enhance enjoyment of and do justice to what we are about to see: the last transit of our lifetimes. |
| Let's start with the basics: | Let's start with the basics: |
| • What's the transit of Venus? It's Venus crossing the sun, and it is one of the most celebrated spectacles in all of astronomy. That's because a pair of such transits in the late 18th-century allowed astronomers to calculate for the first time how big the solar system is. Also it looks cool. | • What's the transit of Venus? It's Venus crossing the sun, and it is one of the most celebrated spectacles in all of astronomy. That's because a pair of such transits in the late 18th-century allowed astronomers to calculate for the first time how big the solar system is. Also it looks cool. |
| • Can I watch it? Yes. Local viewing times are here. In the eastern US it begins at 6.03pm and ends at 12.51am. Astute readers will note that viewing in the east will necessarily be cut short; the sun is not visible at midnight. True, but thanks to Nasa, you can watch the entire breathtaking transit here. Nasa's live coverage begins at 5.45pm ET. | • Can I watch it? Yes. Local viewing times are here. In the eastern US it begins at 6.03pm and ends at 12.51am. Astute readers will note that viewing in the east will necessarily be cut short; the sun is not visible at midnight. True, but thanks to Nasa, you can watch the entire breathtaking transit here. Nasa's live coverage begins at 5.45pm ET. |
| • Do I need special eye protection to view the transit? If you're old enough to read this live blog (which after dark will feature 19th-century nudes of the goddess Venus), you're old enough to know that the answer to that question is yes. To stare into the sun is to risk grave eye damage without the guarantee of sympathy. Nasa has a guide to safe solar viewing here. | • Do I need special eye protection to view the transit? If you're old enough to read this live blog (which after dark will feature 19th-century nudes of the goddess Venus), you're old enough to know that the answer to that question is yes. To stare into the sun is to risk grave eye damage without the guarantee of sympathy. Nasa has a guide to safe solar viewing here. |
| • A dot on the sun. What's the big deal? Three quick answers: the transit of Venus set in motion one of the greatest quests of all time, a race across the seas to measure the heavens; the transit produced one of the greatest breakthroughs in the history of science; and it won't happen again till 2117, 105 years from now. (The last one occurred in 2004; there were none in all the 20th-century.) Join us! | • A dot on the sun. What's the big deal? Three quick answers: the transit of Venus set in motion one of the greatest quests of all time, a race across the seas to measure the heavens; the transit produced one of the greatest breakthroughs in the history of science; and it won't happen again till 2117, 105 years from now. (The last one occurred in 2004; there were none in all the 20th-century.) Join us! |