Community Corner
How to Watch the Transit of Venus Today
It's truly a last-chance experience: The next time Earth dwellers may see Venus pass between our planet and the sun is in 2117. But don't let your eagerness to see this historic event lead you to endanger your eyes. Here are some tips for safe viewing.
On Tuesday afternoon, given clear skies, we should be able to observe one of the rarest planetary alignments known to astronomy: The transit of Venus, which will not take place again until 2117.
The transit occurs when Venus passes directly between Earth and the sun, appearing as "a small dot gliding slowly across the face of the sun," according to the TransitofVenus.org website.
Find out what's happening in Napa Valleywith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Retired Napa Valley College astronomy professor John Charlesworth tells the , in an interview published last week, that the transit will begin a few minutes after 3 p.m. and that Venus will reach the middle of its passage across the sun at 6:26 p.m.
The college is holding a viewing party with telescopes set up at the south end of the track, with parking available at the ball fields by Kennedy Park at the west end of the campus, according to the Register interview.
Find out what's happening in Napa Valleywith free, real-time updates from Patch.
The telescopes will be equipped with solar filters for safe viewing, Charlesworth said.
Viewers risk serious eye damage if they try to observe the transit of Venus without safety equipment. If a solar filter is not available, a or other safety device will allow you to observe this historic event.
The TransitofVenus.org website includes tips for safe viewing and links to more information about the transit of Venus, including a NASA map also available on the NASA Eclipse Website.
The transit of Venus will also be streamed online; watch Napa Patch in early June for updates.
For more information on creating a pinhole projector, please see "."
To see people using pinhole projectors during the annular solar eclipse May 20, and photos they captured, please turn to "."
Do you subscribe to the Napa Patch newsletter? It brings our latest stories, blogs, announcements and the day's calendar events to your in-box early each morning. If you haven't signed up yet, you can do so by clicking here.
