India wakes up to a solar spectacle

The century's longest total solar eclipse began with thousands of skygazers thronging the major sites to catch a glimpse of the rare celestial spectacle.

The Sun rose eclipsed on Wednesday morning at 5:28 am at a local sunrise point in the Arabian Sea close to the western coast of India near Surat in Gujarat.

But most other parts of the country remained under thick cloud cover on Wednesday to the disappointment of millions who had gathered outside to watch the longest solar eclipse of the 21st century.

The eclipse was visible in a stretch of Asia, beginning in India and crossing through Nepal, Bangladesh, China and part of the Pacific Ocean.

It was a rare celestial event. It was a total eclipse of the Sun.

The eclipse lasted six minutes and 39 seconds in some areas. The enthusiasts from around the world have descended on the region to view the event by land, sea and air.

A solar eclipse occurs when the moon passes between the Sun and the Earth so that the Sun is fully or partially covered. This can only happen during a new moon, when the Sun and Moon are in conjunction as seen from the Earth.

While large parts of central and eastern India saw a total eclipse, other parts of the country experienced a partial eclipse. However, monsoon clouds played spoilsport in many areas.

Time of the eclipse across the country:

• Delhi: Eclipse began at 6.24 am
• Bhopal: Eclipse began before Sunrise; total solar eclipse began at 06:22:11 am
• Patna: Eclipse began at 05:29:57 am; total solar eclipse began at 06:24:37 am
• Varanasi: Eclipse began at 05:30:03 am; total solar eclipse began at 06:24:10 am
• Gaya: Eclipse began at 05:29:34 am; total solar eclipse began at 06:24:26 am
• Surat: Eclipse began before sunrise; total solar eclipse began at 06:21:16 am
• Ujjain: Eclipse began before sunrise; total solar eclipse began at 06:22:51 am
• Vadodara: Eclipse began before sunrise; total solar eclipse began at 06:22:41 am
• Siliguri: Eclipse began at 05:30:26 am; total solar eclipse began at 06:26:33 am
• Darjeeling: Eclipse began at 05:30:35 am; total solar eclipse began at 06:27:01 am
• Sikkim: Eclipse began at 05:30:40 am; total solar eclipse began at 06:27:15 am