The longest solar eclipse of the century

Earlier today, the moon passed directly in front of the sun, causing a total solar eclipse that crossed nearly half the Earth - through India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Myanmar and China. Today's was the longest total solar eclipse of the 21st century, lasting as much as 6 minutes and 39 seconds in a few areas. Despite cloudy skies in many of the populated areas in the path, millions of people gathered outside to gaze up and view this rare event. Collected here are a few images of the eclipse, and those people who came out to watch. (33 photos total)

People watch the solar eclipse on the peak of Malu Mountain in Liuzhou, China on July 22, 2009. A total solar eclipse covered a narrow path across Asia, where it darkened skies for millions of people for more than six minutes in some places. (REUTERS/China Daily)

A man reacts while watching the solar eclipse with a pair of protective glasses in Taipei, taiwan on July 22, 2009. (REUTERS/Pichi Chuang) #

An aircraft flies past the sun during a solar eclipse above New Delhi, India on July 22, 2009. (REUTERS/B Mathur) #

Hindu devotees observe a solar eclipse through specially-designed viewing glasses as they take holy dips in the Sangam, the confluence of the Ganges, Yamuna and the mythical Sarawati River, in Allahabad, India, Wednesday, July 22, 2009. (AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh) #

A partial solar eclipse is seen as an internally displaced man loads his belongings onto the back of a truck before departing from the UNHCR (United Nations High Commission for Refugees) Yar Hussain camp in pakistan's Swabi district, about 120 km (75 mi) northwest of Islamabad on July 22, 2009. (REUTERS/Faisal Mahmood) #

Hindu devotees gather along the banks of the River Ganges to watch the total solar eclipse in the northern Indian city of Varanasi July 22, 2009. (REUTERS/Jayanta Shaw) #

A partial solar eclipse is seen near the minaret of a mosque in Rawalpindi, Pakistan on Wednesday, July 22, 2009. (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed) #

Children watch a solar eclipse through protective glasses outside a planetarium in Taipei, Taiwan on July 22, 2009. (PATRICK LIN/AFP/Getty Images) #

The roof of the Yellow Crane Tower is silhouetted below a partial solar eclipse in Wuhan, Hubei province, China on July 22, 2009. (REUTERS/Stringer) #

Taiwanese spectators spell out a message made from tiny pinhole projections of the partial solar eclipse outside the astrological museum in Taipei, Taiwan on July 22, 2009. (AP Photo/Wally Santana) #

A partial solar eclipse is seen beyond a statue of Mahatma Gandhi in the southern Indian city of Chennai, India on July 22, 2009. (REUTERS/Babu) #

South Korean student Jo Sang-young watches the solar eclipse through a stack of sunglasses at Yonsei University in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, July 22, 2009. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon) #

The moon passes between the sun and the earth, nearing a total solar eclipse, as seen in Changsha, Hunan province, China on July 22, 2009. (REUTERS/Stringer) #

A man continues his chore - emptying a rubbish bin in front of the world's largest stone Buddha statue - despite the darkness of the total solar eclipse above the city of Leshan, Sichuan province, China on July 22, 2009. (REUTERS/David Gray) #

The sun's edge, or limb, peeks out from behind the moon during a total solar eclipse above Varanasi, India on Wednesday, July 22, 2009. (AP Photo/Saurabh Das) #

People congregate on the banks of the River Ganges watching a total solar eclipse in Varanasi, India, Wednesday, July 22, 2009. (AP Photo/Saurabh Das) #

A red crescent of sun is visible during a total solar eclipse seen above Varanasi, India on Wednesday, July 22, 2009. (AP Photo/Saurabh Das) #

Much of the sun's corona becomes visible as the moon passes between the sun and the earth during a total solar eclipse, seen above Varanasi, India, Wednesday, July 22, 2009. (AP Photo/Saurabh Das) #

Buildings in the Shanghai Bund, seen on the banks of the Huangpu River just before a total solar eclipse on July 22, 2009. A few minutes later, Shanghai was plunged into darkness in the shadow of the moon. (REUTERS/Aly Song) #

Click on the image above to watch an animated fade to darkness.

People use their mobile phones to take photos as they join thousands of people along the Ganges river to watch a solar eclipse in the Indian city of Varanasi on July 22, 2009. (PEDRO UGARTE/AFP/Getty Images) #

In this handout image provided by National Astronomical Observatory of Japan, the sun's corona is clearly visible during the solar eclipse on July 22, 2009, seen near Iwojima Island, Tokyo, Japan. (Hideo Fukushima/National Astronomical Observatory of Japan via Getty Images) #

People watch the solar eclipse at Dhulia Gach village, 57 km (35 mi) south of the eastern Indian city of Siliguri, July 22, 2009. (REUTERS/Rupak De Chowdhuri) #

A statue of Chairman Mao Zedong is silhouetted against a partial solar eclipse in Wuhan, Hubei province, China on July 22, 2009. (REUTERS/Stringer) #

A partial solar eclipse is seen behind the Taj Mahal in the northern Indian city of Agra on July 22, 2009. (REUTERS/Brijesh Singh) #

A boy uses a piece of smoked glass to observe a solar eclipse in Tianjin municipality, China on July 22, 2009. (REUTERS/Vincent Du) #

A dinosaur sculpture situated outside a themed restaurant is silhouetted against a partial solar eclipse in Taipei, Taiwan on July 22, 2009. (REUTERS/Pichi Chuang) #

A family tries to capture a solar eclipse with their mobile phone cameras at the national parliament complex in Dhaka, Bangladesh on July 22, 2009. (REUTERS/Andrew Biraj) #

A bird flies past a partial solar eclipse, seen behind one of the domes of the Golden Temple - the Sikhs holiest shrine - in Amritsar, India on July 22, 2009. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri) #

A photographer takes pictures of a solar eclipse through exposed X-ray film during sunrise in New Delhi on July 22, 2009. (TENGKU BAHAR/AFP/Getty Images) #

A partial solar eclipse is seen through the window panels of the Taoyuan International Airport in Taoyuan, Taiwan on July 22, 2009. (REUTERS/Nicky Loh) #

Residents listen to an expert from a science and technology museum give a talk during a partial eclipse in Liuzhou, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, China on July 22, 2009. (REUTERS/Stringer) #

Girls try out a pair of protective eyewear during a solar eclipse viewing event at the national parliament complex in Dhaka, Bangladesh on July 22, 2009. (REUTERS/Andrew Biraj) #

A partial solar eclipse is seen through clouds in Hyderabad, Pakistan on Wednesday, July 22, 2009. (AP Photo/Shakil Adil) #