Prayers, cheers rise as solar eclipse darkens swath of Asia

People gazed at the sky in wonder and cheered while others knelt in prayer as a total eclipse of the sun unfolded over Indonesia on Wednesday, briefly plunging cities into darkness and startling wildlife.

The rare astronomical phenomenon was witnessed along a narrow path that stretched across 12 Indonesian provinces encompassing three time zones.

Approximately 40 million people witnessed the phenomenon. A partial eclipse was visible in other parts of the Indonesian archipelago, a swath of Asia and in northern Australia.