A Special  Verrado Sunset on Sunday, May 20, 2012 was historic.  It had been eighteen years since an annular eclipse had been visible in the United States.   The  residents of Verrado, Arizona were among the privileged that witnessed this rare event.    The eclipse was visible along a narrow band running through the southwestern U.S. including Arizona with a partial eclipse falling south of the Grand Canyon.   Several of us got together and had a solar eclipse party at a neighbor's home which turned out to be an unforgettable event.   The next astronomical rarity for Verrado and the U.S. will be the transit of Venus on June 5th of this year.  This will not happen again in our lifetime.  Another great opportunity for a neighborhood party here in Verrado.  Why not .....with more than 51 parks and a beautiful community at the foothills of the White Tank Mountains here in the west valley, views of the city and sky are outstanding.

For more information on the annular eclipse see Sky and Telescope article " The May 20th Annular Eclipse"- May 2012 issue.   Scientific American carried an excellent article on the transit of Venus in their "Crossing the Sun: The Last Transit of Venus until 2117" in the article published by Jay Pasachoff  on May 31, 2012.   Feel free to contact me as well for information on both events or living here in Verrado.