THE TRANSIT OF MERCURY 2019!
JAMES: WELCOME TO STAR GAZERS.
I'M JAMES ALBURY, DIRECTOR OF THE KIKA SILVA PLA PLANETARIUM IN GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA.
DEAN: AND I'M DEAN REGAS, ASTRONOMER FOR THE CINCINNATI
OBSERVATORY.
WE'RE HERE TO HELP YOU FIND YOUR WAY AROUND THE SKY.
THE LAST GREAT ASTRONOMICAL EVENT OF 2019 IS HAPPENING NEXT WEEK.
AND WE'VE BEEN WAITING THREE YEARS TO SEE IT!
JAMES: ITS NOT A PLANETARY CONJUNCTION AND ITS NOT
A LUNAR OR SOLAR ECLIPSE.
BUT IT IS SOMETHING SO RARE THAT IT ONLY OCCURS 13 TIMES EVERY CENTURY.
DEAN: THE TINY PLANET MERCURY WILL GO DIRECTLY BETWEEN
US AND THE SUN.
YOU'LL BE ABLE TO SEE MERCURY COMPLETELY SILHOUETTED BY THE FUSION-Y FURNACE THAT IS OUR SUN.
JAMES: ITS CALLED A TRANSIT OF MERCURY AND WE'LL
GET YOU READY TO VIEW THIS RARE EVENT SAFELY, ON NOVEMBER 11TH.
LETS SHOW YOU!
DEAN: OK, THE DATE IS MONDAY NOVEMBER 11TH, AND
IT IS JUST BEFORE SUNRISE.
IF WE'RE GOING TO SEE MERCURY PASS IN FRONT OF THE SUN, THAT MEANS WE HAVE TO LOOK DURING
THE DAYTIME.
SO WE'LL GO THROUGH SEVERAL HOURS OF THAT
DAY TO SEE WHAT HAPPENS.
JAMES: FIRST LETS APPRECIATE THE SUNRISE.
THE SUN WILL RISE IN THE SOUTHEAST, MOVE UP AND TO THE RIGHT, CUT SLOWLY AND SURELY ACROSS
THE SOUTHERN SKY, AND THEN SET IN THE SOUTHWEST.
DID YOU NOTICE ANYTHING?
DEAN: I SURE DIDNT.
I THOUGHT THIS TRANSIT OF MERCURY WAS SOME AWESOME EVENT!
I DIDN'T SEE ANYTHING OUT OF THE ORDINARY.
JAMES: THATS BECAUSE A TRANSIT OF MERCURY IS A SUBTLE
ALIGNMENT THAT TAKES A SKILLFUL, SAVVY OBSERVER TO WITNESS.
AND ONE NEEDS ACCESS TO SOME EXTRA EQUIPMENT.
REMEMBER, MERCURY IS VERY SMALL, AND STARING AT THE SUN TOO LONG WILL BLIND YOU.
DEAN: FIRST YOULL NEED A SAFE, SOLAR FILTER.
ONE THAT IS APPROVED BY ASTRONOMERS TO LOOK AT THE SUN.
DO NOT USE SUNGLASSES, FOIL, CDS, FILM NEGATIVES, MYLAR,
X-RAYS, OR ANY HOMEMADE FILTER.
THEY WILL NOT PROTECT YOU.
JAMES: SOLAR ECLIPSE GLASSES AND #14 WELDERS GLASS
CAN PROTECT YOU FROM THE SUN, BUT YOU'LL NEED MORE THAN THAT TO SEE MERCURY THAT DAY.
YOU'LL NEED MAGNIFICATION!
DEAN: MERCURY IS SO SMALL COMPARED TO THE SUN, THAT
YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE TO SEE IT WITH THE NAKED EYE.
THAT MEANS YOU'LL NEED TO PUT SAFE FILTERS ON YOUR BINOCULARS AND TELESCOPES
O SEE IT.
PROPER FILTERS GO IN FRONT OF THE LENSES OR MIRRORS AND BLOCK
OUT THE LIGHT BEFORE IT ENTERS THE TELESCOPE.
JAMES: ONCE YOURE PROPERLY OUTFITTED, HERE'S WHAT
THE SUN WILL LOOK LIKE WITH A ZOOMED-IN VIEW.
YOU'LL FIRST SEE MERCURY AT AROUND 7:36 AM EASTERN STANDARD TIME AS A LITTLE
BLACK SPOT GROWING ALONG THE EDGE OF THE SUN.
BY 7:38 MERCURY WILL APPEAR COMPLETELY INSIDE THE SUN'S DISC.
DEAN: TO PARAPHRASE
A CERTAIN SONG, THERE'LL BE A LITTLE BLACK SPOT ON THE SUN THAT DAY!
JAMES: INDEED…
THEN YOU CAN WATCH MERCURY SLOWLY CONTINUE IN ITS ORBIT AROUND THE SUN, AND SEEM TO PASS
THROUGH IT, MINUTE BY MINUTE, HOUR BY HOUR.
AT 10:30 AM IT WILL BE ABOUT HALFWAY THROUGH.
DEAN: THEN AT 1:02 PM MERCURY STARTS HEADING OFF
THE SUN AND TWO MINUTES LATER, MERCURY IS INVISIBLE ONCE MORE.
SO A TRANSIT OF MERCURY CAN LAST MORE THAN FIVE HOURS, WITH THE MOST EXCITING PARTS AT
THE BEGINNING AND THE END.
JAMES: IF YOU DONT HAVE A SAFE SOLAR FILTER AND A
TELESCOPE, CONTACT YOUR LOCAL ASTRONOMY CLUB OR PLANETARIUM.
CHANCES ARE, THEY WILL BE WELCOMING GUESTS TO VIEW THIS RARE EVENT.
ASTRONOMERS, WHETHER AMATEUR OR PROFESSIONAL, LOVE SHARING THE HEAVENS WITH OTHERS.
SO SEE IF YOUR COMMUNITY IS PLANNING A TRANSIT OF MERCURY PARTY ON
NOVEMBER 11TH.
DEAN: FINALLY, NOTICE THAT THE TRANSIT LASTS FROM
7:36 AM TO 1:02 PM EASTERN STANDARD TIME.
PLEASE ADJUST YOUR TIME ACCORDINGLY.
THAT MEANS THAT PEOPLE ON THE WEST COAST WILL NOT SEE THE BEGINNING OF THE TRANSIT, BECAUSE
THE SUN WILL NOT HAVE RISEN YET.
JAMES; BUT FEAR NOT, YOULL STILL SEE HOURS OF IT
BEFORE MERCURY DEPARTS THE SUNS DISC.
STAR GAZERS ON THE EAST COAST WILL SEE THE ENTIRE THING.
DEAN: YOU KNOW WHAT, JAMES?
I'VE WAITED THREE YEARS TO SEE THIS TRANSIT!
JAMES: ME TOO!
AND IF YOU MISS THIS ONE, THE NEXT TRANSIT OF MERCURY WON'T BE UNTIL NOVEMBER 13, 2032
AND THE NEXT ONE VISIBLE FROM THE UNITED STATES WONT BE UNTIL MAY 7, 2049.
DEAN: WOW!
IN OTHER WORDS, ON NOVEMBER 11TH MAKE SURE YOU…
BOTH: KEEP LOOKING UP!