[X] My Assistant

[As old as Voyage...]

The Cassini spacecraft wasn't able to image the 13 January 2005 transit of Earth visible from Saturn but one of its successors may well be able to capture a view of one of the most spectacular transits of all, that of Jupiter.

I ran some calculations in 2004 and found that on the 19 May 2080 as seen from Titan (and its vicinity) Jupiter will transit the Sun. The underbelly of the giant planet will graze over the Sun’s northern tip creating an impressive 40.47 arc second dent in our star and blocking around four percent of its light.

Jupiter’s north may escape the Sun but it will be ringed by fire as sunlight is bent through its Hydrogen atmosphere towards Titan, giving valuable clues to its exact chemical composition.

This event is incredibly rare, having last occurred in 86 AD and after the 2080 event there will no repeat until the year 7541.

I used JPL's Solar System simulator to get an image of the event, but as it now only simulates up to 2025, I cannot reproduce the simulation.

Can anyone confirm that this event will occur from Titan on 19 May 2080?

[As old as Voyage...]

Here's another transit to look out for and not as long to wait either!

On 16 June 2061 Saturn will transit the Sun as seen from Neptune. The 3.1 billion km distant saturn appears with its rings slightly open giving the impression of an 8 arc second wide eye inlaid onto the Sun.

Have a look with Celestia.