US mesmerised by rare solar eclipse - in pictures

Millions soaked up the eerie stillness of the first total solar eclipse to stretch coast to coast in almost a century

Enthusiasts Tanner Person, right, and Josh Blink, both from Vacaville, California, watch a total solar eclipse while standing atop Carroll Rim Trail at Painted Hills, a unit of the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, near Mitchell, Oregon, US. Adrees Latif / Reuters

People watch the solar eclipse on the lawn of Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles, California. Mario Anzuoni / Reuters

Sun spots are visible as the sun emerges from a total eclipse by the moon, on Monday, August 21, 2017, near Redmond, Oregon. Ted S Warren / AP Photo

A woman makes a heart shape with her hands during a partial eclipse of the sun over the 'Roque Nublo' mountain at the Canary Island of Gran Canaria, Spain. Borja Suarez / Reuters

People look towards the sky as enthusiasts gather in Old Havana for the partial solar eclipse in Cuba. Alexandre Meneghini / Reuters

The International Space Station is silhouetted against the sun during a partial solar eclipse as seen from Ross Lake, Northern Cascades National Park, in Washington. Bill Ingalls / NASA via AP

The Anjo Moroni statue atop the church of the Mormons is photographed while the solar eclipse is seen in Manaus, Brazil. Bruno Kelly / Reuters

US president Donald Trump looks up towards the solar eclipse without his protective glasses on as he views the eclipse from the Truman balcony of the White House in Washington, US. Kevin Lamarque / Reuters

A solar eclipse shows through a layer of clouds over the Ravenel Bridge in Charleston, South Carolina. Wade Spees / The Post And Courier via AP

Cole Whittle, left, and Joe Jonas of multi-platinum-selling band DNCE, joined actress Shay Mitchell to celebrate the Great American Eclipse aboard Royal Caribbean's Oasis of the Seas. The ship set sail along the path of totality, offering guests a once-in-a-lifetime view of the epic celestial event. Charles Sykes / Invision for Royal Caribbean International / AP Images

The Saint-They Chapel is seen in silhouette at sunset during a partial solar eclipse, as the moon passes in front of the sun, seen at the Pointe du Van, in Brittany, France. Mal Langsdon / Reuters

The moon covers the sun during a total eclipse in Cerulean, Kentucky. Timothy Easley / AP Photo

Enthusiasts Tanner Person, right, and Josh Blink, both from Vacaville, California, watch a total solar eclipse while standing atop Carroll Rim Trail at Painted Hills, a unit of the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, near Mitchell, Oregon. Adrees Latif / Reuters

Sky-gazers stood transfixed across North America Monday as the Sun vanished behind the Moon in a rare total eclipse that swept the continent coast-to-coast for the first time in nearly a century.

Millions of die-hard eclipse chasers and amateur star watchers alike converged in cities along the path of totality, a 70-mile wide swath cutting through 14 US states, where the Moon briefly blocked out all light from the Sun.

"It was incredibly beautiful. I am moved to tears," said Heather Riser, a 54-year-old librarian from Virginia, sitting on a blanket in Charleston's grassy Waterfront Park where thousands had gathered to watch.

Festivals, rooftop parties, weddings, camping trips and astronomy meet-ups were held nationwide for what was likely most heavily photographed and documented eclipse in modern times, thanks to the era of social media.

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