Dear Science and astronomy friends,

Simulations of All planetary Transit Motion Applet (Mercury and Venus)
@ http://www.venus-transit.de/TransitMotion/

Maximum Venus elongaton is about 71-72 days before and after the transit of
Venus (46.1to 47 Degrees) 29 March, & Maximum Mercury elongaton is about 21-22
days before and after the transit of Mercury (22.6.to 22.7Degrees)

Radius vector: 0.7184519 AU (107 million km) True distance: 0.7777389 AU (116
million km) 20 march
Radius vector: 0.7184495 AU (107 million km) True distance: 0.7701074 AU (115
million km) 21 March
Radius vector: 0.7184509 AU (107 million km) True distance: 0.7624594 AU (114
million km) 22 march

Radius vector: 0.7184653 AU (107 million km) True distance: 0.7471163 AU (112
million km) 24 March
Radius vector: 0.7184783 AU (107 million km) True distance: 0.7394227 AU (111
million km) 25 march
Radius vector: 0.7184952 AU (107 million km) True distance: 0.7317155 AU (109
million km) 26 march

Information about Venus for 29 Mar 2004 16:39:51 - (Julian day number
2453094.19434)
Local Information :- Apparent topocentric coordinates for the epoch of date:

Right ascension: 3h 28m 18.71s
Declination: +22° 9' 27.9"
Constellation: Aries
Altitude: 54° 15' 14"
Azimuth: 217° 51' 47"
Rise: 6h 51m 24s
Transit: 15h 8m 42s
Set: 23h 27m 40s
Star atlas chart numbers:
Herald-Bobroff Astroatlas, Chart C-36
Millennium Star Atlas, Charts 163-164 (Vol I)
Sky Atlas 2000.0, Chart 4
Uranometria 2000 Chart 132, Vol 1

Geocentric Information
Apparent geocentric coordinates for the epoch of date:
Right ascension: 3h 28m 18.920s
Declination: +22° 9' 34.56"
True distance: 0.7091949 AU (106 million km)
Horizontal parallax: 12.40"

Heliocentric Information
Ecliptic coordinates for the epoch of date:
Ecliptic longitude: 144° 11' 11.8"
Ecliptic latitude: +3° 8' 10.1"
Radius vector: 0.7185660 AU (107 million km)

Physical Information
Magnitude: -4.4
Phase: 0.511
Phase angle: 88.8°
Elongation: 46.0°
Diameter: 23.52"
Light time: 0h 5m 53.9s
Position angle of the bright limb: 252.8°
Mass: 4.8690e+024 kg (0.815 x Earth)
Mean equatorial radius: 6051.8 km (0.9488 x Earth)
Maximum angular diameter: 60.2"
Minimum geocentric distance: 0.277 AU
Geometric flattening: 0
Sidereal rotation period: 243d 0h 26m 56s (retrograde)
Mean density: 5.24 g/cm^3
Geometric albedo: 0.65

Events for Monday 29 Mar 2004 (23-18N -68-30E)
01:38 Saturn sets
01:47 Moon sets
05:31 Start of astronomical twilight
05:34 Jupiter sets
05:57 Start of nautical twilight
06:24 Start of civil twilight
06:46 Sun rises
07:37 Mercury rises
09:07 Venus rises
09:52 Mars rises
12:08 Saturn rises
12:27 Moon rises
12:56 Sun transits the meridian (23-18N -68-30E)
14:02 Mercury transits the meridian
15:50 Venus transits the meridian
16:35 Mars transits the meridian
16:56 Jupiter rises
18:51 Saturn transits the meridian
19:06 Sun sets
19:28 End of civil twilight
19:33 Moon transits the meridian
19:55 End of nautical twilight
20:21 End of astronomical twilight
20:28 Mercury sets
22:33 Venus sets
23:13 Jupiter transits the meridian
23:18 Mars sets

Maximum Venus elongaton is about 71-72 days before and after the transit of
Venus (46.1to 47 Degrees) and Maximum Mercury elongaton is about 21-22 days
before and after the transit of Mercury (22.6.to 22.7Degrees)

The different views of the simulation:

Looking onto the ecliptic plane:

The Earth and Venus are moving couterclockwise around the Sun.

The orbital plane of Venus is inclined (by 3.39°) against the ecliptic
plane. The grey part of Venus' orbit is below the ecliptic plane.

At the point D (Descending Node) Venus is passing the ecliptic plane from
north to south, and at A (Ascending Node) from south to north.

This constellation (inferior conjunction and Venus passing a node) is a
transit: Earth, Venus and Sun are in a straight line.

Looking parallel to the ecliptic plane

from D to A. Venus is seen within the disc of the sun (transit).

The actual inclination angle of Venus' orbital plane is only 3.39°, and
7.00° for Mercury.
Orbit eccentricity for:
Earth 0.0167
Venus 0.0067
Mercury 0.2056

Geocentric view

looking to the Sun from the moving Earth.

At inferior conjunction and passing a node Venus is seen within the disc
of the Sun (transit).



--------------------------------------------------------------------------

The next figure traces the geocentric path of Venus starting from an
inferior conjunction (transit) over a time interval of 4 years, ending by a
superior conjunction (Venus is behind the Sun). There are 13 node passages of
Venus:


Choose from the time interval menu to get this drawing.

The out most horizontal distance between the Sun and Venus is determined
by the maximum elongation angle (46° neglecting the small orbit eccentricity of
the Earth and Venus):


The maximum vertical angle may be up to 9.6° for Venus, and 6° for
Mercury. To see a transit this angle must be smaller than 0,25° (radius of the
Sun), i.e. Venus has to pass a node.




--------------------------------------------------------------------------

The geocentric path of Venus starting from an inferior conjunction during
a time interval of 8 years ends by another inferior conjunction (transit):




--------------------------------------------------------------------------

The (sidereal) orbit period of Venus is TV=224.701 days, and TE=365.256
days for the Earth. The time interval T between two inferior conjunctions is:


1/T = 1/TV- 1/TE or T = TVTE/(TV-TE) = 583.92 days
After 8 years Venus will be back at the starting point with a difference
of only 2.5 days:

5 x 583.92 d = 2,919.6 d
8 x 365.25636 d = 2,922.05 d
The coincidence is better after a period of 243 years:

152 x 583.92 d = 88,755.8 d
243 x 365.25636 d = 88,757.3 d
Four transits will happen within 243 years following a transit:

8 years + 121 1/2 years + 8 years + 105 1/2 years = 243 years
5 syn. per. + 76 syn. per. + 5 syn. per. + 66 syn. per. = 152 synodic
periods






[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]