Skywatching: Transit of Mercury

Selected date

Monday November 11

Selected time

11:00 AM  –  1:04 PM

Best for:
All Ages!

About the Program: 
Join us for a special daytime skywatching session as we observe the transit of Mercury!

A transit of Mercury happens when Mercury appears to pass directly in front of ("transits") the Sun. Transits of Mercury happen about 13-14 times per century. The next transit of Mercury visible from somewhere on Earth will be 2032, and the next one visible from North America won't be until 2049. We'll use solar telescopes to safely view the transit from 11 a.m. to 1:04 p.m., weather permitting.

If viewing the transit on your own, please make sure to use approved solar filters or viewers to protect your vision.

Read more about our sky watching events here(Opens in a new window)

This event is FREE and open to the public. 

Location: 
Morehead Planetarium at the Sundial in the parking lot.
250 East Franklin St.
Chapel Hill, NC 27599
Directions.

Weather and Cancellations:
It'll be hard to see the transit of Mercury in cloudcover, so Morehead may cancel this session if the weather forecast predicts stormy or cloudy conditions. Cancellation decisions are made as soon as possible - but at least 2 or 3 hours in advance.

Cancellation notices will be posted on Morehead's Twitter and Facebook feeds. You can also give us a call at 919.962.1236 to check on the current status of any skywatching session.