Rare chance to see the “messenger” planet

Mercury will partially eclipse sun Oct. 9

Koreans will have the rare opportunity to observe Mercury, the planet nearest to the sun, partially eclipse the solar body on October 9.

According to the Korea Astronomy Observatory on October 6, "Mercury will pass over the front side of the sun for five hours from 4:12 a.m. on October 9." Such an astronomical phenomenon will last until 9:12 a.m., but Koreans will be able to observe it just for two hours, from 7:05 to 9:05 a.m., the observatory said.

Mercury passes over the sun only when the sun, Mercury, and the earth line up. Such a situation happens only 13 or 14 times every century, because Mercury’s orbital plane when revolving around the sun has an incline 7 degrees greater than that of the earth.

It is estimated that the astronomical phenomenon will take place 14 times in the 21st century, but it will be visible from Korea again only in 2031.

But the Korea Astronomy Observatory warned, "The passage of Mercury across the sun can be observed only through telescopes with filters to reduce the sun’s rays. Due to the danger of damaging one’s sight, people should not observe the phenomena with the naked eye or with telescopes without filters."

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