Port-Gentil, Gabon: Despite rain and overcast skies residents of southern Gabon got a glimpse of a total eclipse of the sun, a rare phenomenon also visible in eastern Africa.
"I saw a black disc progressively cover the sun. It's magnificent," said Clarence Diledou, who lives of the port town of Port-Gentil.
"But unfortunately the bad weather spoiled the party a bit."
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The moon blocks the sun seconds before a total solar eclipse at the remote Sibiloi National Park on the shore of Lake Turkana. Photo: Reuters
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The west African nation got peak viewing of the total eclipse as it swept over a path nearly 60km wide.
At its peak over land in central Gabon, the sun was blocked out for about a minute.
Weather permitting, partial phases of the eclipse were also visible in southern Europe and in the eastern United States.
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Members of the Rendile tribe are pictured before total hybrid eclipse in Sibiloi national Park in Turkana in Kenya. Photo: AFP
In Port-Gentil, families gathered together for the occasion along the sea front, facing the sun.
Like many in the town, Diledou used special glasses distributed by authorities to watch the rare event.
Those who did not have any came up with imaginative
solutions, among them Pauline Koumba, who put a bowl of water in her
courtyard and watched the reflected eclipse.
"I saw the brief passage of the eclipse in my bowl. But it was over quickly and the black clouds spoiled the effect," she said.
Families also gathered in the capital Libreville, where the
eclipse was less spectacular, but where the skies darkened noticeably
for about half an hour from 1330 GMT on Sunday (0300 AEDT on Monday).
It then continued across Africa, passing through northern Uganda and northern Kenya, although overcast skies marred the effect.
Experts say a safe way to view an eclipse is by making a pinhole camera -
piercing a tiny hole in a piece of paper then turning your back to the
sun and using the pierced page to project the image of the sun on
another sheet of paper.
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