So the Transit of Venus is coming up – Why all the fuss?
On June 8 2004 the Earth, Sun and Venus will all be in a straight line
for the first time in 120 years. If you are lucky enough to be in the
right place on Earth, you will see Venus traverse across the sun.
Astronomers back in the 1700’s used measurements from the Transit
of Venus to work out the distance from the earth to the sun, and as a
result the size of our solar system. Given the technology back then,
this is an amazing achievement. But more importantly for New Zealanders,
the Transit of Venus in 1769 was the main reason Captain Cook visited
the South Pacific.
During this voyage he contacted New Zealand for the first time. This
visit and subsequent ones had a major impact on the shaping of New Zealand,
both in terms of New Zealand society and its environment.
Want to find out more about the Transit of Venus? Click here to go to the Transit of Venus Webpage - it has all the information you need. |
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