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Venus Transit 2004
On Tuesday, June 8, 2004, the students and teachers had the opportunity to observe the unique phenomenon, which had been last seen in the year 1882- Venus passing in front of the solar disc. Several students from the sixth grade even participated in the international project Venus Transit 2004 and the competition of secondary schools in publishing websites concerning this rare event. In this section we bring you a brief report from the observation day.
At about 7 a.m. our team met the physics teachers in the football pitch behind the school. We had to prepare the observatory- a telescope with tripod, one pair of binoculars used for the projection of the Sun on a white screen- ground and several binoculars and simple devices such as welding glass and a helmet and a special foil in the frame from paper- these were for curious onlookers. We had to cover all binoculars (except the one for projection) with a special foil, which filtrated the sunshine to protect our eyes. It was also necessary to set the clock in order to measure the times of instants of all four contacts of Venus and the Sun accurately and last but not least we pitched two penthouses which were providing a pleasant shadow during the boiling hot day. In the end we fenced the whole observatory area very flashy with a red-and-white tape.
At about 7.15 a.m. we were all eagerly awaiting the instant of the first exterior contact between Venus and the limb of the Sun. It was nearly impossible to observe and measure the instant precisely, because Venus couldn’t have been seen before entering the solar disc. However, shortly after that we had the opportunity to observe the “black drop” effect in the instant of interior contact. This effect is due to the diffraction of light, which causes Venus to be "stuck" to the limb of the Sun, as if with some kind of chewing gum.
From 7.30 a.m. to 1 p.m. we were just observing the transit of the Venus’s shadow from the left edge of the bottom of the solar disc to the right. This was carefully recorded by our photographer. During the day all classes from our school and a lot of passers-by came to observe the transit. We patiently explained the essence of the event to every single one. They could also watch the ground glass and even look into the telescope or binoculars to watch themselves the transit. The boys spent the spare time playing cards (which is typical for the male part of our class even during the school breaks) and the girls were sunbathing.
However, at about 1 p.m. we again pricked up our ears, because the two last contacts, which had to be recorded, were drawing nearer. But suddenly clouds covered the sky and we almost lost our chance to observe anything. Fortunately the Sun reappeared a few minutes later, so we saw and recorded even the end of this unique celestial event. Venus “touched” the solar disc and the “black drop” effect was seen again. Then Venus passed the solar limb and then its shadow merged in the dark space surrounding the solar disc…
The observation was very interesting for us and maybe, thanks to this project someone from our team will become fond of astronomy so much, that it will become their profession. We also want to thank our physics teachers for helping us with seeking for information and documents concerning this subject and lending us the equipment for observing.
The nearest transit will be seen on June 6, 2012, the following ones will- in all probability- be witnessed only by the next generations.
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