Abu Dhabi Police General Headquarters followed the historical event on Wednesday morning from the Marina Mall overlooking Abu Dhabi Corniche, where it viewed the transit of Venus across the face of the sun. The rare phenomenon will allow viewers to watch a small celestial body as it passes in front of a larger celestial body without being concealed or hidden by the latter.
The transit was witnessed by thousands of people in most countries around the world and was fully visible from the mid-Pacific Ocean through Eastern Asia and Eastern Australia. Moreover, Venus will be seen at sunset in North America, the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific Ocean. This rare transit was also observed in India, the Middle East, and Eastern Europe.
Astrologist Nizar Salam, Head of Green Emirates Mobile Observatory and member of the Abu Dhabi Central Operations Department said that Venus started to touch the outer edge of the sun in what is known as first contact at 2:08 am, before sunrise in Abu Dhabi. The second and full contact took place around 2:25 am.
He explained that the transit became more evident directly at sunrise, around 5:31 am, and could be seen at 5:33 am, exactly at sunrise in Abu Dhabi. Venus looked like a dark black dot of about 3% the size of the sun. This phenomenon has occurred 7 times only since the invention of the telescope in 1610, while the last observation was recorded on Wednesday June 6th 2012, when Venus started to come out of the inner zone of the sun in what is called the third contact at around 8:36 am. Venus’ transit across the sun was finally complete and the fourth contact was registered at 8:54 am. The full transit took 6 hours and 47 minutes.
Salam went on to explain the planet’s transit, stating that Venus’ passage across the sun witnessed three main stages: the four contacts which are the points of contact between Venus and the sun; the second phase and most important feature of the transit is the Black Dot, which takes place at the second and third points of contact. Many scientists had predicted that atmospheric disturbances increase the appearance of the Black Dot. The third stage is called the halo effect, another phenomenon of the transit, when a thin arch of light is visible on the edges of Venus and it happens before the second contact when Venus enters across the face of the sun, and once again after the third contact when it completes the transit across the sun.
The full transit phenomenon was recorded and broadcast from the observatory on Abu Dhabi Corniche through a number of telescopes and special cameras. People from all ages and sectors of society showed up to follow this rare phenomenon which will not occur again until 105 years.