As William Harkness (1837-1903), then director of the U.S. Naval Observatory, said on the eve of the 1882 transit: "There will be no other transits of Venus 'til the 21st century of our era has dawned upon the Earth. When the last transit occurred the intellectual world was awakening from the slumber of ages, and that wondrous scientific activity, which has led to our present advanced knowledge, was just beginning. What will be the state of science when the next transit season arrives God only knows. Not even our children's children will live to take part in the astronomy of that day."