The fickle British weather obscured the partial eclipse for many peple on the east coast but it still thrilled millions.

Many people were left disappointed as persistent cloud cover meant they were robbed of a view of this morning’s partial solar eclipse.

Satellite images from the Met Office showed thick cloud covering an area of England south and east of a line from southern Devon to the Wash in East Anglia at 9.17am. An image taken an hour later showed it had moved slightly eastwards, allowing more people to get a glimpse of the phenomenon.

But the clouds did part over some areas of Norfolk, including Winterton-on-Sea where a dozen or so early morning dog walkers were treated to a glimpse of the rare celestial event.

The last solar eclipse of such significance occurred on August 11 1999, and was “total” - with 100pc of the sun covered when seen from Cornwall.

Another “deep” partial eclipse visible in the UK will not occur until August 12 2026, and the next total eclipse not until September 2090.

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A solar eclipse takes place when the Earth, moon and sun are aligned and the moon’s shadow touches the Earth’s surface.