GAZETTE & HERALD: Wiltshire Astronomical Society is setting up a public viewing from Chippenham town bridge of the first transition of Venus across the sun for more than 100 years.
On Tuesday, the planet Venus will move in front of the sun for six hours. It will be the first transit across the face of the sun since 1882 and the first complete transit to be seen in the UK since 1243. The next Venus transit visible from the UK will be a partial event in the 22nd century.
The society will be setting up telescopes at the Fizz Bar from 6am before moving to the riverside park behind Wilkinsons at 8am once the sun has moved from behind the trees. The transit will start at 6.17am and continue until 12.30pm.
Organiser Andy Burns said because of the dangers of looking directly at the sun, the telescopes will be fitted with solar filters, and projection boxes will be set up for safe viewing.
"We will even have a special hydrogen alpha telescope designed for solar flare and surface viewing," he said.
If the weather forecast is for all over cloud on the day the society will be looking for alternative sunny spots with clear skies. Local schools and a television crew from the BBC are expected to attend.
The Wiltshire Astronomical Society was founded in 1995 and caters for all aspects of astronomy with members of all levels of experience. It meets on the first Tuesday of each month at 8pm in the WI Hall at Seend.
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