[General] Transit of Venus TOMORROW

[John Kelly]

UPDATE:
It has come to my attention that shade #14 lenses can be a pain in the rear
to find.
Shade #12 is sufficient to protect your eyes from damage, but can be a bit
uncomfortably bright.
If you can't find a #14,  I'd suggest stacking a shade #12 with another
welding lens, like a second #12, a #10, or even a #8 (commonly used for the
welding "goggles" used for torch/plasma cutting).
Heck, two #10's should do the trick too. The important part is that the
material you are using blocks the entire spectrum.

-John Kelly, purveyor of questionably useful advice



On Mon, Jun 4, 2012 at 2:53 PM, John Kelly <candleknight at gmail.com> wrote:

> HEY EVERYBODY!
>
> This is your friendly neighborhood mad scientist, just trying to get the
> word out in case you haven't heard:
> there is a *Solar Transit of Venus* tomorrow afternoon, from about 5pm
> (Central Time) until sunset.
>
> A solar transit is when an object (in this case Venus) crosses between the
> earth and the sun. It's like a solar eclipse, but with a *whole other
> freakin' planet!*
> Get your butts outside and see it, 'cause the next Venus transit won't be
> until *2117*!
> Holy once in a lifetime event, Batman!
>
> http://www.transitofvenus.org/
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transit_of_Venus,_2012
>
>
> If you're in or near the Huntsville area "*the Von Braun Astronomical
> Society, will host a free public viewing for the Transit of Venus, on June
> 5, 2012 from 4:30-8 p.m. outside the Davidson Center for Space Exploration
> *"
> http://www.rocketcenter.com/mu/calendar/051112/transit-venus
> They should have all the equipment and whatnot that we'll need to view it
> there, as well as people who actually know what they are talking about, and
> an "*astronomy-themed activity for children starting at 5:30 p.m*"
>
>
> If you aren't in Huntsville, then you can still easily view the transit in
> several ways:
> ♦Google "Venus Transit <your area>" and find your own local astronomical
> society.
> ♦Build a pinhole camera.
>     -It takes about 137 seconds to make, and will run you roughly $0.23 to
> $0.27 cents to make.
> ♦Use a welding helmet and/or lens to look directly at the sun.
>     -If you don't have a welding helmet, you can go to Lowes, Home Depot,
> etc. and buy just the lens for around $5 - $10.
>     -You need to use at least a shade #14 or higher lens
>     -*Do not* use sunglasses, polaroid filters, smoked glass, exposed
> color film, x-ray film, photographic neutral density filters, etc.  Just
> because a filter makes the sun look dim for visible light does *not* mean
> that it's blocking the invisible infrared or ultraviolet radiation that can
> burn the ever-lovin' bajeezes out of your eyes quicker than you can say
> "OH GOD! MY EYES!!! WHY?!? WHY didn't I listen to John when he told me not
> to do that very stupid thing which I just did despite the fact that he told
> me not to in extremely specific and unambiguous terms!?!
> WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY?!?".
>
> ♦More info on safe viewing and additional methods at:
>     http://www.exploratorium.edu/eclipse/how.html
>     http://www.transitofvenus.org/june2012/eye-safety
>
>
> Also, there's this:
> *"Transit not visible from your location, or clouds interfering?  Watch
> the live webcast <http://sunearthday.nasa.gov/2012/transit/webcast.php>from atop Mauna Kea in Hawaii, with expert commentary brought to you by the
> fun team at NASA EDGE.  Don't miss the 2012 transit of Venus!*"
>
>
> Observations of Venusian Solar transits were one of the earliest methods
> scientists used when they were originally trying to figure out the size of
> our solar system way back in the 1700's, so this should be pretty cool!
> Personally, I'm super excited, and I hope y'all are too!
>
> HAVE FUN!!!
> -John "that guy who tells your kids it's OK to stare at the sun" Kelly
>
>
>
>
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