Transit of Vulcan

The Transit of Vulcan, a supposed passage of an unknown object before the sun, observed in the 18th and 19th centuries, believed to be of volcanic origin.

In the middle of the 19th century, some astronomers, such as Leverrier, postulated that a planet within the orbit of Mercury exsisted. Because the hypothesized planet was so close to the Sun, they gave the it the name Vulcan or Volcano. The gravity of this planet could explain the Mercury's orbit, which did not precisely correspond with what was predicted by Newton's theory of gravity. However, astronomers were not able to determine a proper orbit for this hypothetical planet. Mercury's peculiar orbit was later explained by Einstein's theory of general relativity.

The observations in the 18th and 19th century could possibly be caused by errors in the optics of the tools at the time. It is likely that the sightings of objects in front of the sun were in fact sunspots or false sightings. It could have been an asteroid. However, up to today, no transit of an asteroid in front of the Sun has been recorded.

External link

de:Vulkantransit

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