The longest annular solar eclipse of the millennium began Friday in parts of Africa, and reached Asia in the Indian Ocean at about 11 am local time to see the cosmic event.

In the Indian city of Varkala, people gathered to watch this rare celestial phenomenon.

The eclipse was also visible in a number of Asian nations, and Maldives.

The annular path began in Africa and continued its way through the Indian Ocean, where it was seen for a maximum duration of 11 minutes and 8 seconds.

The show continued through Asia and was also observed in Bangladesh, Myanmar and China.

An annular eclipse occurs when the moon is farther from the Earth than during total eclipse. The moon passes directly in front of the sun, but does not completely cover it, resulting in what appears to be a ring of fire.