Uploaded June 2016 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Transits of Mercury (across the face of the Sun) are quite rare. They occur around 13 times per century. The Orion Observation Group (OOG) arranged an public viewing event to the Afrikaanse Taalmonument (Language monument) when it happened on 9 May 2106, the first time in ten years. Unfortunately the weather started out bad such that "first contact" could only be followed on the internet. About an hour-and-a-half into the event, the Sun broke through the clouds for the first time. The video captures the excitement of seeing the tiny, but well defined black dot of Mercury on the face of the Sun. Although it was a week-day about a dozen folk visiting the monument, got an added bonus that day!
Transits of Mercury (across the face of the Sun) are quite rare. They occur around 13 times per century. The Orion Observation Group (OOG) arranged an public viewing event to the Afrikaanse Taalmonument (Language monument) when it happened on 9 May 2106, the first time in ten years. Unfortunately the weather started out bad such that "first contact" could only be followed on the internet. About an hour-and-a-half into the event, the Sun broke through the clouds for the first time. The video captures the excitement of seeing the tiny, but well defined black dot of Mercury on the face of the Sun. Although it was a week-day about a dozen folk visiting the monument, got an added bonus that day!
