Venus Transit 2012 From Czech Republic

[assasincz]

This really was an event to remember for the rest of my life. As I like to say - "see and die" event.

I was really looking forward to it (as I suppose was everyone here) - I mean seeing something that will occur again in more than 100 years? That was not to be missed.

For the last week or so, long term weather forecasts were not terribly optimistic. It was raining for the last few days and the day before the transit seemed like all hell broke loose - heavy rain all day, thunderstorms and very windy. But still, fingers crossed, I was checking computer cloud cover models and satellite images for the rest of the evening convinced that no matter what, I will head out with my scope in case the clouds will break apart for a few glorious moments. It seemed that the cloud cover might start to break apart during the night before the transit, but forecasts were really very incosistent. So with alarm clock set for 4 AM, I went to sleep, full of enthusiasm. I was really unable to sleep properly.

The alarm went off and when I went to check the weather outside, I was amazed - inky dark blue sky with no real clouds anywhere. Heavens really did open that morning - it was a blessing. That moment, a truly magnificent feeling of amazement and luck got hold of my mind. I quikly packed all my stuff into the car as fast as possible (I took my 4.5" newtonian, because I have a full-aperture Baader solar filter for it, and was determined to try some webcam solar imaging), put some warm clothes on (it was only 6°C that morning) and get into my car. I rushed towards an emergency airfield nearby that is my regular observing spot. On my way there, I was a bit worried by all the low mist that occasionally covered the field along the way, which was worrying, because the airfield itself is susceptible to mist and haze. However, when I got there, all was marvellous - clear skies with occasional thin clouds in the west. The horizon to the east was a bit obscured by distant high-level clouds, blocking the sky some 2° above the horizon. Apart from that, the air was crystal clear and skies marvellously clear.

I unpacked my stuff at 4:50 AM, let my 4.5" newtonian cool down a for a bit and fired up my laptop and Prestigion PWC2 webcam. Actually, I only discovered that I can fit it to my new Hyperion Zoom Mk.III afocally by squeezing it into the rubber eyerest a few days ago, when I tried it on the Moon. The Venus transit was my first ever webcam solar imaging occasion, and what an occasion that was!!! Not ten minutes after I sat down in my chair, I noticed that the Sun was starting to peek out from behind the clouds near the horizon, and though "That's its. Oh yeah, I am actually going to see the Venus transit." I was like a kind in a candy store at that moment.

I rushed to fit the scope with filters, eyepiece and at 5:00 AM precisely, I aimed it to the Sun and looked through the eyepiece. Initially, I was both amazed by what I can see and a bit disappointed by absolutely disgusting seeing - the disc of Venus was a boiling potato, rippling like a black bubble from hell. Staring at the event for a couple of minutes, I then tried some webcam imaging, but the image was very blurry. By 5:40, as the Sun was getting higher in the sky, the seeing calmed down and the image became reasonably sharp. For the whole duration of the Venus transit, I was switching back and forth between looking though the eyepiece and doing some webcam imaging. I was, however, determined, that I will spend the Venus exit actually at the eyepiece, to really savour the moment. And I did so right until I was no longer able to recognize the bitten of piece at the Sun's edge. The transit exit began at 6:38 AM so I made a last couple of video sequences and switched to visual. I can honestly say that the last couple of minutes when Venus was exiting the Solar disc was the most imaginative piece of observing I have ever done in my life. For a moment, I though that I was seeing what I though is a faulty performance of my telescope, when during exit, the edge of Venus was lit with a thin line; but hey, at home, I have discovered that that was actually sunshine shining though the Venus' atmosphere. It was an invaluable experience and I was really chuffed to bits by the amazing luck that has befallen me that morning.

By 6:55 AM, the transit was over, and I can say, it felt a bit sad that such an exciting and long awaited event was already over. Still, I felt like the luckiest stargazer on Earth. After that, I made some additional solar images and decided to pack my stuff and head home. However, I was then joined by a man who drove to the end of the runway when I was located and apparently, he intended to fly his RC airplanes before going to work that day. I kindly offered him to look at the sun before I would pack it. I have to say, I was surprised that he was expecting to see the "magnetic loops, protuberations and eruptions", but I suppose that's what a layman might have in mind, when acquainted with all the H-Alpha images online. After I explained the whole solar observing issue to him, I packed my stuff, watched him fly his RC plane for a while and headed home.

For the rest of the morning and most of the afternoon, I took my time to process the images and videosequences as best I could - it was really my first time working with Registax, and with such an amount of data - 12 GBs to be exact - it was a challenge, full of mistakes. The results of my efforts might be seen below. I hereby beg the experience astrophotographers to take a look on my pictures and criticise.

Still, yet another item on my "to-do-list" has been ticked of. I can now go on with my life a bit more satisfied with what I have had the privilege to observe.

Venus_Transit_6-6-2012_0630_1600x1200_despeckled.bmp

[Marki]

Wow! Great write-up and cool pictures! Nice one, Assassincz!

I checked the forecast and resigned myself to not seeing the transit and getting an extra two hours in bed, so not a total disaster - lol.

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

Great report. Congrats on getting that. Like the image sequence. The latter might have better been posted in the imaging section, but it does serve to illustrate the report here.

[Double Kick Drum]

Thanks for sharing a great report and image time line.

I resigned myself to the certainty of cloud cover and stayed in bed.