The Mercury Transit
May 16, 2016
People looking to the sky on May 9 will be able to see Mercury slowly make its voyage across the sun. A rare celestial occurrence will be taking place called the transit of Mercury. This phenomenon occurs when Mercury crosses paths between Earth and our sun.
“I have never heard of the Mercury transit,” Jeovany Sanchez, 12, said, “but the fact that it only happens such a few times in our lifetime makes it a must see.”
Another event similar to this one would be the Venus transit that occurred in 2012. The Venus transit, however, is a less frequent occurrence than Mercury transit. Astronomers have calculated that Venus will not cross the sun again until 2117. The lucky few who witnessed the Venus transit first hand are among the handful of people in this generation who will ever see it in person. The rest could probably find a video online.
“I can’t believe I will never get to see Venus cross our sun again in my lifetime,” Samuel Vasquez, 12, said. “I can’t afford to miss seeing Mercury’s transit across the sun.”
People will be able to view the event almost anywhere in the world, the only exceptions are: East Asia, Japan, Indonesia, Australia and New Zealand. Downey residents rejoice. If some happen to miss the event or happen to not be in the area, they can watch it live online or later on YouTube.
“The thought of being able do see a whole planet move right before your eyes is amazing,” Breana Bradford, 12, said. “I can’t wait to witness it with my own eyes.”
The radius for the sun is approximately 432,474 miles while the radius for Mercury is 1,516 miles. Seeing the Mercury transit gives a good visual of Mercury’s small geographical circumference, since it is the smallest planet in or solar system. Make sure to not forget to wear the proper eye protection before looking directly into the sun, serious eye damage can occur otherwise.
Guerrero has gathered memories and has embraced each state and country that he has visited. Guerrero has taken trips across the world, one being China. During those trips it has brought him to learn that even in a different country there are a number of diverse cultures and customs.
“When my mom and I were visiting China, we were walking around the town,” Guerrero said, “when this Chinese girl slowly approached us and signal us the a peace sign with her hand.”
Traveling around the world gave Guerrero new and unforgettable memories. He was astonished with Virginia’s historical buildings, because it was something Guerrero had never seen before; it was as if time stood still.
“Traveling to new places is like a different world” Guerrero said, “ Virginia made me feel like I was time traveling, because everything was old and rustic.”
“We love to travel as a family,” Kimberly Piper, Guerrero’s mom said, “because we like to see new and adventurous places.”
In the beginning Guerrero had no choice but to travel a lot, since his mother is a labor delivery nurse and they had to continually be moving around the states. At first, it was a struggle to constantly start fresh and never settle down, but now he craves this lifestyle.
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