Students provide viewing of Transit of Venus
Published 9:53 am Monday, May 21, 2012
The public will have the once in a lifetime chance to view the planet Venus passing between the earth and the sun on June 5.
Hazen High School students will assist the public in viewing the event known as the Transit of Venus, with more than a dozen solar-equipped telescopes.
The next Transit of Venus won’t happen until 2117 and the event historically is how scientist measure the size of our solar system.
“We’re really eager provided the weather cooperates,” said Todd Pollard, Hazen biology teacher. “Most people don’t realize it’s a once and a lifetime event.”
Pollard is also the STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) advisor and about 40 students in the school’s STEM club are manning the telescopes.
They are refurbished donated telescopes with special filters that use a metallic film. This cuts down the sunlight, which makes it safe to view the sun.
The students have been meeting on Fridays when the weather is nice, practicing using the telescopes and viewing sun spots.
The Transit of Venus happens about every 105 years and then eight years after that event there is another one.The last transit was in 2004 when the students were 8-years-old.
The viewing stations will be available from 2:30 p.m. to sunset at Hazen High School, 1101 Hoquiam Ave. NE, in Renton.
For more information contact, Todd Pollard at 425-204-4311.
