KOTA KINABALU (THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) - Residents here woke up to a partial solar eclipse on Wednesday (March 9) morning.

Depending on their locations, Malaysians witnessed the phenomenon starting from 7.24am local time during "first contact" when the moon's disk first touched the edge of the sun.

According to the National Planetarium's website, the partial eclipse has a maximum overlapping of up to 87 per cent in the southern parts of Peninsular Malaysia and Sarawak.

This will decrease as it moves into the northern regions of the peninsula and Sabah.

In Indonesia, the solar eclipse swept across the vast archipelago, with hordes of skygazers watching the spectacle, which was marked by parties, prayers and tribal rituals.

The moon began to move between the earth and the sun at 6.19 am local time on Tuesday, the official Meteorology, Climate and Geophysics Agency said.