Episode
558 - The Transit of Venus part 1
- Podcast
- Do Go On
- Published
- Jul 1, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 8852
- Processing state
not_requested
Actions
POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/do-go-on-216756/episodes/558-the-transit-of-venus-part-1/transcription-requests
Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode.GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/do-go-on-216756/558-the-transit-of-venus-part-1.md
Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource.
Summary
How far away is the sun? English astronomer Edmond Halley suggested that tracking the transit of Venus across the sun would be the key to finding the answer. This set in motion a huge international collaborative scientific endeavour and one of the most comically cursed voyages, by the magnificently named Frenchman, Guillaume Joseph Hyacinthe Jean-Baptiste Le Gentil de la Galaisière! This is a comedy/history podcast, the report begins at approximately 05:25 (though as always, we go off on tangents throughout the report). For all our important links: https://linktr.ee/dogoonpod Check out our other podcasts: Book Cheat: https://play.acast.com/s/book-cheat Prime Mates: https://play.acast.com/s/prime-mates/ Listen Now: https://play.acast.com/s/listen-now/ Who Knew It with Matt Stewart: https://play.acast.com/s/who-knew-it-with-matt-stewart/ Jess Writes A Rom-Com: https://shows.acast.com/jess-writes-a-rom-com Our awesome theme song by Evan Munro-Smith and logo by Peader Thomas Do Go On acknowledges the traditional owners of the land we record on, the Wurundjeri people, in the Kulin nation. We pay our respects to elders, past and present. REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING: http://www.astronomy.ohio-state.edu/~pogge/Ast161/Unit4/venussun.html Chasing Venus: The Race to Measure the Heavens by Andrea Wulf https://theconversation.com/transit-of-venus-a-tale-of-two-expeditions-7246 https://www.iflscience.com/in-1761-and-1769-intrepid-voyagers-had-a-once-in-a-century-chance-to-measure-the-solar-system-83712 A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson https://airandspace.si.edu/stories/editorial/why-should-you-care-about-transit-venus http://www.skyandtelescope.com/astronomy-news/observing-news/transits-of-venus-in-history-1761/ https://www.nytim…