Watch this once-in-a-lifetime transit of Venus at UTM!

Amateurs astronomers and curious sky watchers will gather tonight at 6 p.m. on the front lawn at U of T Mississauga to watch a transit of Venus, the last time this phenomenon will be visible until 2117.

While a few clouds are expected, the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada will be on hand with filter glass and specially adapted telescopes to allow visitors to view the transit safely.

“This is an ideal family outing that doesn’t cost you anything, “ says Randy Atwood, the past president of the RASC Mississauga Centre. “What could be more interesting that exploring the universe together?”

A transit of Venus takes place when the planet Venus passes directly between the Sun and Earth, becoming visible as a small black disk moving across the face of the Sun, usually lasting for several hours.

“The historical aspect catches out attention because transits of Venus are so rare,” says Atwood.  They occur in a pattern that repeats every 243 years, with pairs of transits eight years apart separated by long gaps of 121.5 years and 105.5 years. That means that the next transits of Venus will be in December 2117 and December 2125.

Venus transits have also been historically important for scientists, as they were used to calculate the first realistic estimates of the size of the Solar System.

For more information, visit the RASC Mississauga Centre website, and join us tonight at the viewing of the transit of Venus!