A couple of times every century or two, the planet Venus passes in front of the Sun. Sir James Cook sailed halfway around the world to see this and claimed Australia for the crown in the process. Who was I not to set up the telescope just in case the rain stopped and heavy clouds parted for a few minutes? They did. Just long enough.

In terrestial photography, the key to a lot of good photos is just being in the right place at the right time: "F8 and be there." Every now and again, the rest of the universe makes a gift of a good astrophotograph, too. This one is a case of "1000mm and be there."