Cloud over the South hindered clear views of today's partial solar eclipse.
Northlanders got the best view when it reached "maximum coverage" and the moon obscured 89 per cent of the sun at 10.25am in Whangarei.
Southern stargazers seeking a clear view were largely frustrated by cloud cover which granted only intermittent views of the crescent sun.
Elsewhere, 60,000 scientists, astronomers and eclipse chasers flocked to Cairns and the Great Barrier Reef in northern Queensland to view a total solar eclipse today.
The Solar Saros 133, a series of eclipses which occur about every 18 years, began in New Zealand at the North Cape at 9.12am with the moon first creeping over the sun's disc before being viewed from around the country. It was to end just before lunchtime.
