US Solar eclipse 2017: Fox News anchor Shepard Smith fails to hide apathy during coverage of event

For many, the total solar eclipse of the sun that was seen across the US for the first time in 99 years was a spectacular historical event. But for one news anchor, it was an overrated news story.

Shepard Smith led the live coverage of the eclipse for Fox News, but his disdain for the job was clear for all to see.

At one on point he told viewers that if he put an object in one hand near his face and his phone in another hand with his arm outstretched, he would get “a total eclipse of the phone”.

Clips of his coverage were widely shared on social media.

An edit of supercuts has been put together of his best bits, including the comment: “They know this is all it’s gonna be right? Just a moon over a sun?”.

He also declared: “The sun is returning! Jalapeña!”

Millions of Americans watched as the moon covered the sun, creating a unique chilly darkness for a few minutes in the middle of the day.

It was the most-photographed eclipse in history, documented by satellites and high-altitude balloons. People watched it through cardboard-frame protective glasses, their cameras and telescopes.

Around 30,000 people descended on one area of Oregon in Big Summit Prairie for a dedicated solar eclipse festival. The state was the first in the US to witness it, as its path of totality moved across the country to the east coast.

Passengers aboard a cruise ship in the Caribbean watched it unfold as Bonnie Tyler sang her 1983 hit "Total Eclipse of the Heart”.

Donald Trump, despite warnings from experts about the risk of eye damage, also took off his protective glasses at one point and looked directly at the sun.

Additional reporting by AP