Kolkata: Skygazers in the country are in for a rare astronomical treat as the planet Venus moves across the face of the sun appearing as a small dark disc on Wednesday.
Known as the transit of Venus, it is a phenomenon when the planet will be seen as a black spot travelling from one limb of the solar disc to the other, Sanjib Sen, director of Positional Astronomy Centre, Kolkata, said.
Venus appears as a dot on the solar disc because its angular size is very small compared to that of the sun as seen from the earth.
To the delight of skygazers, the celestial event can be seen in India after sunrise on Wednesday.
The next transit of Venus will occur after a century in 2117, Sen said.
PTI
First Published: Monday, June 04, 2012, 20:02