Mercury in transit draws crowds to Griffith Observatory for rare event

From Earth, the planet Mercury seemingly trudged along Monday as it passed between us and the sun.

But the solar system's small, innermost planet actually was zooming past at 106,000 mph in a rare event.

• Photos: Transit of Mercury at the Griffith Observatory

And it did not go unnoticed, as crowds flocked to the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles to view the planet's transit of the sun, an event that happens only about 13 times a century.