Venus transit in Bahrain

This video is called The 2012 Transit of Planet Venus.

In Bahrain, people smell lethal teargas. They see police killing people for expressing their right to free speech. They see a prince, a princess, and others torturing people for not conforming to the dictatorship.

Sometimes, people can see better things. Like birds.

Or a rare astronomical phenomenon.

From Gulf Daily News:

Venus luck for Bahrain gazers

By Bushra Al Sayegh , Posted on » Tuesday, June 05, 2012

BAHRAIN will be among a few lucky countries to witness a rare astronomical phenomenon tomorrow which happens once a century.

Venus will pass between the Earth and the Sun and will be visible in Bahrain’s sky as a small black dot between 5.45am and 7.43am.

The weather will be clear tomorrow morning with slight chances of dust because the wind speed will be lesser than previous days, confirmed the Bahrain Meteorological Directorate.

However, a dusty weather could actually be a good thing as viewers can easily witness the unique cosmic event without wearing solar glasses, said Bahrain Astronomical Society vice-president and Bahrain University applied physics professor Dr Waheeb Alnaser.

“The dust can work as a filter, which means gazers can easily observe the event without wearing the solar glasses,” said Dr Alnaser.

“Nevertheless, people need not fear any risks of having any eye damage; it is a myth that such scientific occurrences can produce dangerous rays.

“The only thing that can cause damage is looking at the Sun directly without eye protection.

“Anyone can observe this phenomenon if they look east in an open space using proper glasses.

“We have distributed around 5,000 glasses and 2,000 will be given out as part of the celestial treat for gazers,” he added.

However, the transit of Venus happened twice this century, which was a freak occurrence as it was visible in Bahrain on June 8, 2004, when it lasted more than six hours.

An observing team has been formed by the university in collaboration with the society and they will be accompanied by a Bahrain TV crew as they set base at the university’s Sakhir campus.

“The transit of the Sun by Venus is a rare spectacle that will not happen anytime soon again,” said Dr Alnaser.

“The next time Bahrain will witness such a phenomenon will be December 11, 2117.

“Having only eight years difference since the last time we had this event is a miracle, such things do not happen frequently; they happen less than once per century.”

Those interested to get solar glasses should visit the information desk at the Information Affairs Authority building in Isa Town.

Meanwhile, the Northern Governorate yesterday organised a lecture on the phenomenon by Bahraini researcher and astronomer Ali Majeed Al Hajari.

Venus transit photos from the USA: here.

This video is called Sundown in Bahrain.

Bahraini Human Rights Defender’s Letter Smuggled Out of Prison: here.

Bahrain has a long history of repressing free speech, which intensified after the pro–democracy protests in February 2011. Due to the 1976 Penal Code provisions, the Bahraini government is easily able to repress dissent and criticism. In March, the Press and Publications Directorate banned the following books from the Bahrain International Book Fair. Because of our commitment to freedom of expression, Sampsonia Way recommends these books to all those who speak Arabic: here.

Scholars Group Asks Bahrain‘s King to Release Imprisoned Medics: here.