Not only are we getting a Lunar Eclipse on Monday June 4th....
2012-05-28
.....but we also get the Transit of Venus across the Sun on June 5th!
2012′s partial Lunar eclipse will be a morning event on June 4 for North America, but people in Australia and Asia see the eclipse on the evening of June 4. At maximum eclipse, approximately one-third of the moon’s face will be covered by Earth’s dark umbral shadow.
Check this link for where the eclipse is visible and how it will look:
http://earthsky.org/astronomy-essentials/when-is-the-next-total-lunar-eclipse-for-north-america
Venus transists the disk of the Sun at 6:03pm EDT. on June 5th here in Ontario. This celestial event, where the disk of Venus crosses over the Sun, is a rare sighting. Here's an animated clip of what it looks like: http://shadowandsubstance.com/
There is a lot of interest and research about our solar system tied up in the transit of Venus, both astrologically and astronomically. NASA's website says: "There have been 52 transits of Venus across the Sun between 2000 B.C and 1882 A.D. Humans could only have noticed this event if they were watching the sun near the horizon at exactly the right time. There are no historical records that suggest anyone was so lucky prior to 1639, although Montezuma may have spotted the 1520 transit while studying the Sun for portends.The Mayan civilization had a particular fascination with Venus because it was associated with their god Quetzalcoatl and one of his incarnations, Kulkulkan......" For more on the scientific research associated with this event: http://sunearth.gsfc.nasa.gov/sunearthday/2004/vt_edu2004_venus_back_his.htm
Here's a link to NASA's map of who will get to see the Transit:
http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/transit/venus/Map2012-2.GIF
The next two transits of Venus will occur on December 11, 2117 and December 8, 2125!