STUDENTS and college staff are determined to catch a rare glimpse of the transit of Venus early next month.

The event is so rare that no human alive has witnessed the celestial event. But on Tuesday, June 8, Venus will drift across the face of the Sun and the Earth and staff and students at Guisborough's Prior Pursglove College have got hold of the equipment they need to view the spectacle.

Science technician Gayner Mosely said: "When I heard about this rare opportunity several months ago I started experimenting with binoculars and filters. It worked but was very Heath Robinson.

"So I was really pleased when Steve Hunnisett, director of curriculum at the college, tracked down a Solarscope which will give us an inverted image of Venus moving across the sun.

"We have worked out that Venus should start to appear at about 6.30am and will finish her transit by 12.30pm."

The college has a long-standing interest in space, bringing Russian Cosmonauts to east Cleveland for the first time in November 1998 and getting involved in their last visit to the area in October last year.