Venus Solar transit, June 5th

For viewers in North America, a little before sunset on June 5th, 2012, Venus will transit the Sun. This is the last such occurrence this century. 

Information Guide (click here)

Is this an astrophotography project? It can be. Safety issues are paramount in any Solar viewing. NEVER LOOK AT THE SUN. ESPECIALLY NOT THROUGH OPTICS. If one is using a telescope, eyepiece filters are not good enough, regardless of what any manufacturer may say. It's a question of heat build up. The solar filter needs to be on the entrance optics. This includes any finder scope or camera lens, too. So, focused sunlight itself is dangerous, as is the heat it causes. Remember, your digital sensor can be ruined by the same things that are a danger to your eye.

With that warning out of the way, let's look at some options.

 

image from www.astrosurf.com

Both homemade and commercial filters can be as simple as mylar solar film stretched over cardboard to as complex as wavelength specific optical glass. If you buy a ready made filter, expect to pay from $75 to well over $200.

Solar projection (click here) is a great viewing and photographic method. For photography, set up the optics you're using and a white piece of poster board on a couple of tripods or even use a chair for the poster board. Then use your close up photography skills to capture the image as projected. It can be done!

Hope you have loads of fun with this transit, whether you decide to photograph it or not.