Geeks: mark November 8th down on your calendars
Mercury transits the sun beginning at approximately 19:12 UT on Wednesday, November 8th. Those of us on the west coast of North America get to see the whole thing; for most other people in this hemisphere the sun will set while the transit is still in progress.
Visibility map
Predicted contact times (all times UT) for a sampling of major world cities (emphasis on US/Canada).
Transits of Mercury are more common than transits of Venus[1] but still pretty cool.
NOTE: If you have not done solar observing before and this sounds like a cool thing to watch, TAKE PROPER PRECAUTIONS. Never ever look directly at the sun through binoculars or telescopes without a filter made specifically for solar observation. If you want to play it safe, find your local science museum which will probably have telescopes etc. set up for public viewing.
[1] If you didn't see the transit of Venus in 2004, the next one in 2012 is your last chance until 2117. Not taking any chances, I flew to England for the 2004 transit just in case bad weather etc. happens in 2012.
Visibility map
Predicted contact times (all times UT) for a sampling of major world cities (emphasis on US/Canada).
Transits of Mercury are more common than transits of Venus[1] but still pretty cool.
NOTE: If you have not done solar observing before and this sounds like a cool thing to watch, TAKE PROPER PRECAUTIONS. Never ever look directly at the sun through binoculars or telescopes without a filter made specifically for solar observation. If you want to play it safe, find your local science museum which will probably have telescopes etc. set up for public viewing.
[1] If you didn't see the transit of Venus in 2004, the next one in 2012 is your last chance until 2117. Not taking any chances, I flew to England for the 2004 transit just in case bad weather etc. happens in 2012.