Transit of Mercury 2016: Watch the rare celestial event
The transit of Mercury, during which the solar system's smallest planet crosses in front of sun, took place on the afternoon of Monday, May 9.
The last time Mercury crossed the face of the sun was 2006. The planet's orbit is tilted 7 degrees to that of Earth, therefore Mercury usually passes above or below the sun from our perspective, reports the Guardian.
RELATED: Transit of Mercury 2016
The fastest and innermost planet took about 7.5 hours to complete Monday's journey across the sun. During the transit, a small, round shadow was visible on Earth. It was even fully visible from parts of Europe, eastern North America and South America.
In order to view the event, scientists around the world used telescopes fitted with special solar filters to prevent eye damage.
Solar Dynamics Observatory captured this view of the #MercuryTransit this morning! More at https://t.co/F2DCjnjUN5pic.twitter.com/pyQPC2MBXF
— NASA Sun & Space (@NASASun) May 9, 2016
