Temples across state closed due to solar eclipse

Hyderabad, Jan 15: All temples across the state, including Tirumala remained closed from 5.30 am to 6 pm on Friday due to the first annular Solar Eclipse of the year, which was visible partially in cities of Hyderabad, Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam, Tirupati, Nellore, Kurnool and Rajahmundry.The massive doors of Sri Venkateswara temple were closed by the priests after the pre-dawn rituals.

The temple will be opened for public darshan after shuddhi (purification ceremony) at 6 pm.All major temples – Kanaka Durga Temple, Vijayawada, Saraswathi temple, Basara, Mallikarjuna Swamy temple, Srisailam, Sri Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy Temple, Yadagirigutta, Balaji Temple, Chilukuru, Satyanarayana swamy temple in Annavaram and other shrines were closed from 5.30 am till sunset due to Solar Eclipse.The eclipse was visible only for 11 minutes and 8 seconds in Andhra Pradesh. The eclipse started at 10:44 am and ended at 2:29 PM in India.According to astronomical sources, the annular Solar Eclipses occur when the Moon is too far to cover the Sun entirely.

Therefore, when the eclipse reaches totality, you would see a ring of fire (annulus) around the moon and hence the name annular.The visibility of the eclipse was  more in Tamil Nadu as compared to other parts of the country.Hordes of people, including scientists and students, thronged at Tank Bund and Birla Planetarium in Hyderabad city to watch and study this rare celestial phenomenon.