A rare transit of Venus will occur on June 6 and be visible from exposed areas in any district, the Hong Kong Observatory said today.
During the transit, Venus will come between the Sun and the Earth, and its silhouette will appear as a dark dot, moving across the Sun's disc.
The transit of Venus is a rare astronomical phenomenon, as it comes in pairs eight years apart, with successive pairs separated by more than 100 years.
This transit of Venus will be the second one in a pair, with the first occurring in 2004. After this one, there will be no transit of Venus in the next 100 years.
The transit will occur between 6.12am and 12.49pm. The best places to view it are Plover Cove Reservoir, Tai Au Mun in Sai Kung and the Avenue of Stars in Tsim Sha Tsui, however, most of the event can be viewed from exposed areas in any district.
The observatory and the Space Museum will hold a
webcast of the event.
A partial lunar eclipse will also occur on June 4. It will have started by the time the Moon rises that evening. The middle of the eclipse will occur soon after moonrise, and will be visible until 9.20pm.
The best places for viewing it are at Shek O, Stanley and Clear Water Bay Beaches, the northern coast of Hung Hom, and the east dam at High Island Reservoir.
