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Mutual Planetary Transits
Fifteen millennium catalog
5 000 BC - 10 000 AD
Mutual planetary phenomena is a case of syzygy (planetary alignment), where three planets are aligned in a straight line. This document concentrates on mutual planetary phenomena on our home planet. The next time one is scheduled to occur is on 22 Nov 2065 when Venus will transit Jupiter.
During the fifteen millennium period Earth experiences 471 mutual planetary phenomena. When the closer planet has smaller angular diameter than the farther one it is called a transit, otherwise it is an occultation.
| Event Type | Number |
|---|---|
| Transit | 268 |
| Occultation | 203 |
Due to parallax observers at different locations will see events differently. There are five different scenarios for any specific event. They are explained for the instant of Greatest Transit. For transits, visibility options are:
- Central - The closer planet will completely be visible within farther planet's disc, worldwide
- Partial - Only a portion of closer planet's disc will be in front of farther planet's disc, worldwide
- Central or Partial - Transit is visible as either central or partial for different locations.
- Partial or None - Transit is visible as partial for some locations, while for others there will be no transit at all.
- Central, Partial or None - For observers at different locations there is a central, a partial or no transit at all.
Distribution of transits by their type is as follows:
| Transit Type | Number |
|---|---|
| Partial or None | 95 |
| Central or Partial | 91 |
| Central | 41 |
| Central, Partial or None | 32 |
| Partial | 9 |
By analogy, five types of occultations are distinguished. However, central occultation is named total instead.
| Occultation Type | Number |
|---|---|
| Total, Partial or None | 103 |
| Partial or None | 57 |
| Total or Partial | 22 |
| Total | 18 |
| Partial | 3 |
A total of 471 mutual events occur in the time interval 5 000 BC - 10 000 AD. This makes an average frequency of one event in 32 years. However, these events are irregularly distributed in time. For instance, the shortest period of time between two consecutive mutual planetary events is a little over than 9 days. The transit of Venus in front of Saturn on 06 Mar 5199 is followed by a transit of Venus in front of Jupiter on 15 March 5199. The longest period lacking of any mutual events is more than 90 538 days (almost 248 years) and we are currently living in that gap between 03 Jan 1818 and 22 Nov 2065, on both occasions Venus is transiting Jupiter.
For a planet to take part more frequently in mutual events two factors are decisive: fast apparent motion and large apparent diameter. The following table shows number of mutual events every planet takes part in:
| Planet | Events |
|---|---|
| Venus | 259 |
| Mercury | 181 |
| Jupiter | 172 |
| Saturn | 108 |
| Mars | 98 |
| Uranus | 67 |
| Neptune | 57 |
The following table shows occurrence of mutual planetary events pairs.
| Planets involved | Events | |
|---|---|---|
| Venus | Jupiter | 86 |
| Venus | Saturn | 55 |
| Mercury | Jupiter | 43 |
| Mercury | Saturn | 41 |
| Mercury | Venus | 40 |
| Venus | Uranus | 33 |
| Mars | Jupiter | 25 |
| Mercury | Mars | 25 |
| Venus | Neptune | 25 |
| Venus | Mars | 20 |
| Mercury | Neptune | 18 |
| Mercury | Uranus | 14 |
| Mars | Uranus | 12 |
| Mars | Saturn | 9 |
| Jupiter | Uranus | 8 |
| Mars | Neptune | 7 |
| Jupiter | Neptune | 7 |
| Jupiter | Saturn | 3 |
| Saturn | Uranus | 0 |
| Saturn | Neptune | 0 |
| Uranus | Neptune | 0 |
The following catalog contains predictions for every mutual transit and occultation during the fifteen thousand year interval 5 000 BC through 10 000 AD. The information for each event in the catalog is summarized as follows. The calendar date and time in the scale of Terrestrial Time of Greatest Transit, closer (foreground) and farther (background) planets are found in first three columns. The type of event can be found next - T for transit and O for occultation, followed by lowercase: c - central; t - total; p - partial; n - none. Approximate duration is given next in hours and minutes format. Foreground planet's coordinates (Right Ascension and Declination) are shown in following two columns. The elongation from Sun in degrees can be found next. Positive elongation is eastwards, negative is westwards from Sun. Apparent magnitudes of both planets can be found next, followed by their apparent angular radii. Finally minimum geocentric separation between centers of planets involved is displayed.