David Bowie has topped the American album charts for the first time with Blackstar, released two days before his death on January 10.

Blackstar sold the equivalent of 181,000 albums knocking Adele’s 25 off the top spot.

David Bowie’s highest-charting US album previously had been The Next Day, which peaked at No 2 in 2013.

Nineteen of his albums entered the UK album charts last week, after fans sought out his classic hits.

Blackstar is the first posthumous number one album in the US since Michael Jackson’s This Is It soundtrack topped the chart in November 2009.

Nine other David Bowie albums also made the Billboard 200 this week with the Best of Bowie reaching No 4 and The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars at number 21.

David Bowie’s first hit on the US singles chart was in 1972 with Changes. The record did not initially find major success, only reaching No 66 that year.

However, the song returned to the chart in 1974, following David Bowie’s subsequent breakthrough on the American music scene with Space Oddity – his first top 40 hit which peaked at number 15.

David Bowie’s biggest selling single in the US was Let’s Dance, which reached the top of chart in 1983. He also achieved seven top 10 albums.

The iconic singer died on January 10 following an 18-month battle with cancer.

Fans around the world have been paying homage to the 69-year-old at tribute concerts and memorial sites linked to musician.

In Belgium, astronomers have paid tribute to David Bowie by dedicating a constellation to the self-proclaimed Starman. The constellation is made up of seven stars that, when connected, form the iconic lightning bolt seen on the cover of David Bowie’s Aladdin Sane album.