<p>NEW YORK - A giant asteroid the size of Rhode Island eclipsed a bright star in the night sky in Thursday's wee hours, but the super-rare celestial event was spoiled by Mother Nature for many stargazers, experts say.</p><p>Skywatchers stayed up late hoping to see the huge asteroid 163 Erigone eclipse the star Regulus, the 22nd brightest star in the night sky. The fast-moving space rock flew in front of the star in the constellation Leo, blotting out Regulus for as much as 14 seconds in along a small visibility track across northeast North America. Most observers, however, didn't get the rare celestial treat they were hoping for. They got rain and clouds instead.</p><p>"It's miserable," astronomer Bob Berman said during the online Slooh Space Camera webcast of the Regulus event. "It's absolutely miserable. The weather is as bad as it possibly could be. It's really a double shame because it's been crystal clear for days. Isn't that the way it goes?" [Rare Asteroid Eclipse of Star Regulus: A Photo Guide]Slooh</p><p>A multiple-exposure photo from the Slooh Space Camera shows the asteroid Erigone taking a path below and to the left of the star Regulus in the night sky. Skywatchers hoped to see a rare occultation of Regulus, but for many, weather got in the way.</p><p><a href="http://www.nbcnews.com/science/space/rained-out-clouds-spoil-east-coast-view-asteroid-eclipse-n57836">Keep reading...</a></p>