Best Videos of the 2012 Transit of Venus

The planet Venus passed for a second time between the Earth and the Sun on June 5-6, 2012, an extremely rare astronomical eclipse event last occurring in December 1882. Just like a solar eclipse, the Transit of Venus across the face of the could be viewed using special safety precautions. North and South Americans saw part of the event on June 5 as the sun set. Alaskans, Hawaiians and most of the Eastern hemisphere watched the seven-hour eclipse on the morning of June 6, weather permitting.

• Watch this transit along with others viewing it (53 seconds)
• Watch this transit in silent timelapse with adjustable speed (12 seconds@16 fps)
• Watch this transit made dramatic by NASA, with music (2 minutes, 53 seconds)

Some videos show Venus transiting "the top of" the sun. Those shot through telescopes show Venus "at the bottom." That is because telescopes invert images.

The next Venus transit after this one is in 2117, with its "twin" in 2125. Venus transits occur every 122 years in pairs eight years apart, and the 2012 event was the second of this century's pair, the first having taken place on June 8, 2004. The first people to witness a Venus transit were two British astronomers who in 1639 followed and mapped it using a telescope as a projector. Their research helped astronomers calculate the size of the solar system, and astronomers are still using the Venus transit to perfect their calculations. The 2004 transit was the first in history to occur after the invention of broadcast media. In 2012 we have videos shot from earth, through mega-telescopes, and from satellites in space.

The Astrology of the Transit of Venus

The transit of Venus occurs only while the sun is in Gemini or Sagittarius and only when Venus is in retrograde motion. The 2004 and 2012 transits are in Gemini, the sign representing communications, vehicles, education, sales, news, languages, neurology, and technology. Past Venus transits have energized technological advancements that radically change human thinking and affect our daily lives. The effects are global. During the last Venus transit pair in 1874/1882, the first prototype automobiles were invented (1872-1885), the telephone (1876) and sound recording (1877) were invented, baseball's National League was founded (1876) and multiple international telegraph cables were laid and in use. Those Venus transits were in Sagittarius, the sign ruling entertainment, sports, and long-distance travel. Movies (1890s), basketball (1891) and airplanes (1903) were invented soon afterward.

Sylvia Sky, experienced astrologer, monitors horoscope and psychic sites for quality and accuracy. Copyright 2012 by Sylvia Sky.

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