Monday, June 4, 2012

Once In A Lifetime Event For Stargazers

A very cool event is coming up Tuesday, June 5th called the Venus Transit. It's when the so called Morning and Evening Star passes between the Sun and the Earth, similar to an eclipse. Unlike an eclipse, however, Venus only covers a very small portion of the sun. This is literally a once in a lifetime event... the next time it happens is in 2117. If you want to check it out, the Rockford Amateur Astronomers will host a viewing event at Lockwood Park Observatory from 4 pm until sunset Tuesday night. Just a safety reminder: If you plan to view the transit yourself, DON'T STARE DIRECTLY AT THE SUN. There are ways of watching the transit without hurting your eyes, including watching it online. NASA will be broadcasting the transit here. Happy viewing!

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