RIYADH, 8 April 2003 — People in Saudi Arabia will have the opportunity to view two great astronomical events this decade — a transit of Mercury on May 7, 2003 and a lunar eclipse on May 4, 2004.
Dr. Zaki Abdul Rahman Al-Mostafa, head of the astronomy department and assistant director of the Institute of Astronomical and Geophysical Research at King Abdul Aziz City for Science and Technology, said that a transit of Mercury takes place only when this innermost planet of our solar system, while rotating on its own axis in long elliptical orbits, passes in front of the sun.
Dr. Zaki warned the public not to watch the transit with the naked eye but to use a solar filter. Failure to do so will result in serious damage to the eye.
The lunar eclipse of May 4 next year will be visible in Saudi Arabia, Dr. Zaki said.
