Venus Transit 2012

A Planet Transiting the Sun - so what? It's just a round speck of dark object crossing the disk of the sun. I can't help myself getting amused by all the commotion surrounding this rare phenomenon. I later learned that this event is so rare that the next one will not happen anymore in my lifetime. Hmmm... interesting. I must have been carried away by my astro friends' enthusiam that on the last minute, I decided to take a day off from work to view and perhaps take a picture of this "very rare celestial event". Weather forecast was not very promising-it was already June so I cannot blame myself when I chose to just stay home and observe there. I set up my scope at our roofdeck, fitted the solar filter and wait for Venus to enter the sun's disk. I had difficulty focusing as it was very cloudy and the sun barely penetrated the thick haze. I fired shots at the appointed time of ingress and continued firing every two or three minutes thereafter. Most of the time it was very cloudy but I stayed. There was a moment when I took a peek at the eyepiece and saw that round speck hovering over the sun's disk among the sunspots. At that instant, something gripped me. I was watching live with my very own eyes the celestial dance of the second planet from the sun. It was really  a very small dot against a huge ball of burning gas. Somehow I also felt a bit small. So small and insignificant as a I watched Venus against the backdrop of a brilliant Sun. Then I realized I was not just watching Venus, I was actually watching myself. It's me on Earth-a similar sized planet. Whew, there must be something in the heat of the Sun that made me think in an unusual way. Eventually, heavy clouds covered the spectacle and I started to dismantle my setup.

A Planet Transiting the Sun - so what? It's just a round speck of dark object crossing the disk of the sun. Yes, but I was able to see myself in the perspective of the infinite Universe! Seemed my sunburns  were worth it!

Partial Annular Eclipse 21 May 2012

I was very busy these past days and haven't got real time to update this blog. It's just tonight that I'm able to rest my weary back against a padded chair.

May 21, 2012 - Eclipse Day. It was a partial annular eclipse for us in the Philippines and the already eclipsed sun rose in the eastern sky. I prepared my DSLR and coupled the 70 - 300 mm lens, climbed up on the roofdeck and waited for the sun. Anxious that I might have missed the sun behind the tall houses blocking the eastern side, I went to the farthest side of the deck and hoped that it will rise through the narrow gap between the structures. Clock struck 5:30 am, time for sunrise, but no sun could be viewed from where I was. Oh-oh, I missed it. But hey, I saw a familiar orange radiant gleaming behind the clouds. And yes, there it was-the yellow-reddish sun rising behind dark clouds. I was ecstatic to see that it rose between the two tall coconut trees producing a very nice frame for an unusual crescent sunrise. I clicked away with varying exposures and chose the most pleasant one. Yes.......got it!