BUENOS AIRES (DPA) - A solar eclipse on Tuesday (July 2) darkened the sky over Chile, as the moon moved in front of the sun.

The eclipse was first observed in La Serena on Chile's Pacific coast.

It was due to end near the Argentinian capital, Buenos Aires.

Thousands of people had gathered along the route of the eclipse, which had also drawn many scientists to the region.

Chile's Atacama desert and the Argentinian province of San Juan were seen as having the best climatic conditions for observing the eclipse, while some clouds floated in the sky above Buenos Aires.

Outside the path of the total solar eclipse, a partial eclipse was expected to be visible in the rest of Chile and Argentina as well as Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Paraguay, Uruguay and parts of Colombia, Brazil, Venezuela and Panama, according to the US space agency Nasa.

The total eclipse, when the sun is completely covered by the moon, was due to last up to 4 minutes and 3 seconds, depending on the location, Nasa said.

The next total solar eclipse visible over South America will be on Dec 14, 2020.