China to get 2012 view of Venus transit

Parts of eastern and central China will see a complete transit of Venus in June, an event they'll have to wait 105 years to witness again, astronomers say. The transit of Venus in front of the sun is similar to a solar eclipse by the moon. It occurs when the planet passes directly between the sun and Earth, obscuring a small portion of the sun. During the transit, people will see a small black dot moving across the sun, Wang Sichao of the Purple Mountain Observatory in Nanjing said. However, observers should not watch the transit with the naked eye, he said, and eye protection measures are strongly recommended, China's state-run news agency Xinhua reported Wednesday. In Beijing, the transit will start at 6:10 a.m. local time and last for over 6 hours before ending at 12:50 p.m., Wang said.