The transit of Mercury is one of those events that happen every few years or so but it’s still special enough that you want to make the effort to see it anyway. And yes, it’s just a small dot passing in front of the Sun but when you really think about it, it’s kind of cool. Being able to see the Sun without going blind is neat enough but then watching a planet – a teeny tiny little planet with a diameter less than the distance from Vancouver to St John’s – zip in front of the Sun, it’s not hard to see why it’s special.

So once again, the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada Saskatoon Centre decided to share this wonder with the people of Saskatoon on November 11th. And once again, I got to do a little of the media blitz.

I got another chance to gab on commercial radio too! https://www.cbc.ca/listen/live-radio/1-88-saskatoon-morning/clip/15745507-astronomers-set-up-on-river-landing-for-transit-of-mercury

So? What’s the review like? Where are the pictures? Alas, my body decided not to cooperate. An hour before the event was to start, I woke up to a raging migraine. After a little bit of breakfast and a lot of medication, it was clear that I need to get back to bed. But not before watching a little of the live feeds coming in from big telescopes around the Americas.

Eventually, I woke up and made it down to RiverLanding to see the last moments of the transit. Reports came in that it was a wonderful and well-attended event despite the coldness that morning. Once again, the people of Saskatoon have really shown a thirst for knowledge and I can’t wait for the next sidewalk astronomy event!