A once-in-lifetime celestial event takes place today (in the Western Hemisphere) and tomorrow (Eastern Hemisphere – that’s for us in Malaysia) when Venus will cross the sun. This is the last time the transit will occur this century and will be visible for people alive today; the next one will occur in 2117.
You can watch this rare event live now at Space.com.
Meanwhile, learn more about this rare event from the infographic below.
The 2012 transit of Venus across the face of the sun will be the last time the event will ever be visible to people alive today. The next time the celestial sight will occur is in 2117. Learn more about the rare Venus transit, which last occurred in 2004, here in the SPACE.com infographic below.
While this rare transit of Venus will take place on June 5 for Western Hemisphere observers, it will be June 6 local time for skywatchers in the Eastern Hemisphere. It will last about 6.5 hours as Venus crosses the solar disk from our perspective, appearing in silhouette as a slow-moving tiny black dot, weather permitting.
Venus transits come in pairs that are eight years apart, but these dual events take place less than once per century. The last one occurred in 2004, and the next won't come until 2117.
More resources for the 2012 Venus Transit:
Top image: This still from a NASA video shows the position of Venus on the sun's disk in Pacific Daylight Time on June 5, 2012 during the last transit of Venus for 105 years (source).
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