EAPS

EAPS and the MIT Wallace Observatory are hosting a simultaneous event including in-person viewing through telescopes at MIT and live broadcasting of Mercury passing in front of the Sun from the Wallace Observatory on May 9, 2016.

From our perspective on Earth, only two planets can be seen crossing the disk of the Sun: Mercury and Venus. Mercury will be silhouetted against our star, in an event that is perfectly positioned for us in the eastern US to see. In the past, transits of Mercury and Venus were analyzed to determine the sizes of those planets and the distance between the Sun and the Earth, all of these quantities are now well-known. This event will be an opportunity to watch a rare astronomical event, the first since 2006. If you miss this one, be prepared to wait several years as the next transit of Mercury won't be until 2019!

On-Campus Viewing (EAPS)
7AM - 3PM | Outside the Green Building | Senior Lecturer Amanda Bosh

Several telescopes will be set up outside the Green Building, come and take a peek at Mercury as it crosses the Sun! The Sun is so bright that it is dangerous to look at it directly, even more so when using a telescope to collect even more light. We will have filters designed for solar viewing, both neutral density filters and a Hydrogen-alpha filter that does a great job of highlighting prominences along the edge of the Sun.

This event is weather-dependent. If skies are cloudy or it is precipitating, the telescope viewing will be canceled and we will instead stream images from another telescope.

MIT Wallace Observatory Viewing (Online)
7AM - 3PM | LIVE HERE | Research Support Associate Tim Brothers