KARACHI : As moon made first contact and started covering the Sun, 2020’s first solar eclipse has begun in Pakistan. Sukkur and Gawadar will witness greatest phase of celestial spectacle with over 98 and 97 percent coverage respectively.

According to details, the partial eclipse began at 8:46 in Pakistan and it will end at 14:34 with greatest eclipse to occur at 11:40. Karachi and Lahore will witness over 91% coverage while Gilgit will witness the lowest coverage at only 74%.

Apart from Pakistan, annual eclipse is also visible from parts of Africa including Central African Republic, Congo, Ethiopia, Northern India and China.

Medical experts have advised not to look at the sun directly without using sunglasses with special filters as rays from the sun can cause damage to skin and eyes.

Annular eclipses occur when the Moon -- passing between Earth and the Sun -- is not quite close enough to our planet to completely obscure sunlight, leaving a thin ring of the solar disc visible.

They occur every year or two, and can only been seen from a narrow pathway across the planet.

Remarkably, the eclipse on Sunday arrives on the northern hemisphere’s longest day of the year -- the summer solstice -- when Earth’s North Pole is tilted most directly towards the Sun.

The annular eclipse is visible from about two percent of Earth surface," Florent Delefie, an astronomer and the Paris Observatory, told AFP.

"It’s a bit like switching from a 500-watt to a 30-watt light bulb," he added. "It’s a cold light, and you don’t see as well."