Contributed by our club member, Greg Shanos.

Click on the link or image below to view the Video of the Eclipse. Enjoy!!

Hello everyone:

Attached is a 5 minute low res video of the Total Solar Eclipse of March 29th, 2006 on the Mediterranean Sea near Greece and Turkey.

Jen, Joey & Karen of Astronomical Tours, Kay Ferrari of the NASA Ambassadors program and Mike Bakich of Astronomy Magazine- feel free to post it on your websites.

George Raab, please send to everyone with email to the St Petersburg Astronomy Club.
Johnathan Sabin please send to everyone in the Local Group of Deep Sky Observers.
Dennis Farr/Jimmy Thomas please send to everyone in the MARS Club
Dave Heustis please email to everyone in the SKYSCRAPERS.

Thank you. Enjoy! Look forward to hearing from everyone.

Respectfully submitted
Gregory T. Shanos

Greece Eclipse Expedition
By
Gregory T. Shanos

MARCH 20, 2006
Departed Tampa International airport Delta (Song) airlines at 12:00 noon for JFK Int. Airport in New York City. Technical problems with the airplane necessitated a two hour delay in liftoff. We departed Tampa for JFK at 1:51 p.m. Arrived in NY at 4:00 p.m. Delta flight to Athens was at 5:30pm so we still had plenty of time. The movie on the plane was Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. After an in-flight dinner I slept through most of the nine hour trip.

MARCH 21, 2006
Arrived in Athens at 10:00 am local time or 3:00 AM Florida time. We waited at the airport for about an hour for another flight to arrive. We were transported by bus (a 40 minute drive) to a five star hotel named the Elektra Palace. We could see the ruins of the Acropolis from our hotel room. The remainder of the day was spent walking the streets of Athens. The Hard Rock Cafe was within walking distance of the hotel. Purchased a T-shirt. We ate at McDonalds which also serves beer! We witnessed the Greek Soldiers changing of the guard in front of the Congressional building. Retired early this evening due to jetlag. A bussed city tour awaits tomorrow.

MARCH 22, 2006
Our city tour began with the Crown jewel of Athens the Acropolis and the Parthenon. Our translator Marina gave us an excellent history of Hellenic culture from the Neolithic through classical Golden age then into Modern Times. We walked around the Parthenon from the eastern facing entrance the western facing rear and along both sides. What a marvel to behold. The Parthenon and current surrounding buildings are currently in the processes of being restored. There is much scaffolding and surrounding iron framework which distracts from the beauty of the Parthenon. Next we took a tour of a museum that was on the grounds of the acropolis. This museum housed many statues that would otherwise erode and be lost forever. Photography was allowed without flash. This was not a problem for my digital Nikon D70 6.1 megapixel camera. Not to brag, but this was my third visit to the Acropolis; I was there in June 2004 while I visited my family on the island of Corfu for the Transit of Venus and in 1983 when I spent a summer in Corfu. The city tour continued as we were bussed throughout the city to view various buildings. The tour was a half day excursion which terminated 1:00 p.m.. My wife & I visited a nearby museum called the Benaki Museum. Spent three hours viewing many antiquities from the Neolithic through the 2Oth century. Had a light dinner and slept for a couple of hours due to jet-lag kicking in. Relaxed that evening and packed for tomorrow's excursion to Delphi.

MARCH 23, 2006
Our first stop was Delphi. Delphi was a 3 hour bus ride from Athens. When we arrived at Delphi, our first stop was the museum. Photography was allowed, so my wife took the digital photos while I videotaped the presentations given by our tour guide. The stone monuments and antiquities unearthed at this site were incredible. Delphi was the major religious center of ancient Greece. Delphi was the dedicated to the God Apollo. Kings, statesman, and ordinary men from throughout Greece regularly came here to seek the Oracle of Delphi. This was a female priestess called a pythea that inhaled fumes from the earth, chewed on laurel leaves (got high) then spoke in riddles which were interpreted by the male Priests as the person’s future or prophecy. These oracle prophecies were taken as the word of Apollo and strictly followed by the King or individual. Delphi is set on the beautiful mountain of Mt Perias. We walked through the ruins of ancient Delphi. What a spiritual experience. It soon began to rain, fortunately my wife brought along two ponchos. After the short rainfall, a rainbow appeared. What a photo opportunity with a rainbow set among the ancient ruins of Delphi. Next the bus stopped a short distance down the mountain to the temple of Athena. This was a smaller temple with three erect columns. It soon drizzled and another rainbow appeared! Another excellent photo opportunity. We spent the night in Delphi. The evening was much cooler than in Athens. Our next stop tomorrow Olympia.

MARCH 24, 2006
Our next stop on the Classical Greek tour was Olympia, the place where the Olympic Games originated. Olympia is a 4.5 hour drive from Delphi. We proceeded down Mt Perias and could now see the Mediterranean Sea. When we arrived at Olympia, our first stop was the museum. Photography was allowed, so my wife took the digital photos while I videotaped the presentations given by our tour guide. The stone monuments unearthed at this site were indescribably beautiful. Like Delphi, Olympia was a pilgrimage to Zeus. The Olympic Games began in 776 BC and continued uninterrupted every five years for 1500 years. I stood at the spot where the modern Olympic flame is lit and carried to Athens. The original tracks where the ancient Greeks ran were still in tact. In fact, the tourists were allowed to run or jog this track if they wished. The track was 192 meters in length. I sprinted 192 meters then jogged back the rest of the way. It was an absolute thrill to run on the same track that my ancient Greek ancestors did thousands of years ago. We spent the night in Olympia. Onward to Naphplio tomorrow.

MARCH 25, 2006
We boarded the bus for Naphplio at 8:30am. Naphplio was the old Capital of Greece from 1830 to 1874. It was then moved to Athens. March 25, 1830 is Greek Independence Day from the Ottoman Turks. All stores & Government buildings were closed. We stopped at Megalopolis to witness how the Greeks celebrate this day. There was a parade of the local school children grades K thru 12 along the main street of each city of Greece. In addition the leaders of the community placed a wreath of laurel leaves next to a statue honoring the Unknown Soldier. Weather today was extremely overcast. It rained later in the day. After the parade we boarded the bus and headed toward Napoli. After a quick lunch we soon stopped at a museum reproduction shop. I purchased a replica of the Gold Mask of Agamemnon. We now arrived at the city of Napoli. It was drizzling at this point; however, this did not stop the tour. Napoli is at sea level within the Aegean Sea. There were three historic forts at the site from the 1800's we walked through the narrow streets of the city and admired the architecture of the buildings while raindrops kept falling on my head. Next checked into the Amalia Hotel. Tomorrow we visit ancient Mycenae.

MARCH 26, 2006
Greek daylight saving time starts today. Spring ahead. We departed on a rainy day for ancient Mycenae which was an hours drive. By the time we arrived at Mycenae. The rain had stopped yet it remained overcast. Ancient Mycenae was a sight to behold. This city is ancient 16th century BC. The ruins are surrounded by high walls known as Cycladic Walls. Above the entrance gate were two lions. The heads are missing since they were made of solid gold and there whereabouts are unknown. Schliemann excavated the site in 1830's. The site boasts the famous gold mark of Agamemnon. However, this city dates to before the time of Agamemnon. Next we visited the nearby Honeycomb Tomb. This was an impressive structure. We boarded the bus and headed to the famed theatre of epiderus. This treasure dates back to the Classical Period of Greece. The theatre holds 15,000 people and is acoustically perfect. Sound was easily heard throughout the entire theatre. We then had a lunch at the local restaurant. Then we drove for two hours to The Corinth Canal. This canal was cut through the Peloponnesus and now connects the Ionian Sea with the Aegean Sea. There were also people Bungee Jumping into the canal. An hour drive later we were in Athens. Checked back into the Electra Palace Hotel. We packed our luggage for the cruise ship tomorrow. The eclipse is now only three days away.

MARCH 27, 2006
We boarded a bus and headed to the Port of Piraeus in Athens. We had to check in our luggage airport style with X-ray machines and even walked through a metal defector. Astronomical Tours changed ships at the last minute and this turned out to be a mess. Some people paid for expensive cabins and were given smaller ones. The worst occurred when approximately 50 people were overbooked and there were no cabins. Some had to double up with other couples while others slept on the couches in the lounge. Tensions were high today throughout the ship. As for my wife and I we were upgraded to a better cabin with no problems to speak of. After lunch there was a series of lectures. The first was by Dave Levy and Dave Eicher on Deep Sky objects I the Northern Hemisphere, followed by Mike Reynolds Ph.D. on meteorites. The lecture series ended with a presentation by Bob Jones Editor of Rock and Mineral Magazine. The lecture series was well received. At the conclusion of the lectures we soon arrived at the island of Mykonos. Since we arrived late, there was only time for shopping in the main street of town near the dock. There were many souvenir shops; however, we did not purchase anything. We watched the sunset from Mykonos then headed back to the boat. The buffet style breakfast, lunch, and dinner were excellent. We retired early that night to prepare for tomorrows adventure in Turkey.

MARCH 28, 2006
Departed at 8:00am from the ship that was docked on the Port of Kusadasi, Izmir Turkey. The bus proceeded up the mountain to a small stone house. The Virgin Mary is believed to have lived her last remaining years in this house. It is officially sanctioned by the Pope! Nevertheless the house was a single room dueling with an altar, candles, icons etc. It resembles a modern day Greek Orthodox Church. Our next stop were the Ruins of Ephesus. This was an impressive Greco-Roman City that was once part of Greece in antiquity. The site is only 10% excavated; however, it was still huge! There was also a theatre similar to Epidaris that could seat 25,000 people. It took an hour to walk through the ruins. This city also had running water. There was a library and a brothel. In fact there was even a secret passage from the library to the brothel. We boarded the ship and headed to the Monastery of Saint John on Patmos. During the boat ride there were a series of lectures by noted speakers Dave Levy, Wendee Levy, and Mike Babbich of Astronomy Magazine. When the boat docked we boarded a bus for a five minute ride to St. Johns Monastery. Patmos has 400 monasteries on a small island. St. John is believed to have lived his remaining years in a cave on this island. The monastery resembled the Greek Orthodox Church of which I am all too familiar with. The guide informed the visitors of the rituals of the Greek Orthodox Church, A scenic view of the Sun setting over the Greeks Islands was a sight to behold. Boarded the boat and headed toward the eclipse coordinates on the Mediterranean Sea. The weather today was perfectly clear- not a cloud in the sky! Let’s hope it’s like this tomorrow.

MARCH 29, 2006 ECLIPSE DAY
Woke up at 7:00am this morning and had a quick breakfast. Then proceeded to "claim a spot" on the pool deck for observing the eclipse. The weather was perfectly clear- just a few high cirrus passing through posing no interference.

Following are the critical times for the eclipse.

Totality 3min 53sec
Sun altitude 58 degrees.

Approximate Coordinates:
27.76 deg EAST Longitude
34.05 deg WEST Latitude

First Contact: 12:30pm (9h 30m UT)

Second Contact: 1:48pm (10h 48m UT)
(Totality begins)

Sideslips: 1:50pm (10h 50m UT)

Third Contact: 1:52pm (10h 52m UT)
(Totality ends)

Fourth Contact: 3:10pm (12h 10m UT)

MARCH 29, 2006 ECLIPSE DAY (continued)
Fog started rolling in during the partial phases during first contact. It had completely covered the sun at one point. However, it was rather windy and the fog was moving through at a rapid rate. Soon it was clear again and when second contact began it was perfectly clear for the entire total phase. During the diamond ring the chromo sphere was visible along with two prominences around the 11 and 12 o'clock positions. As the corona came into view, the colors of the chromo sphere were no longer visible. The eclipse was now monochromatic. The sky became very dark during this eclipse. This is the darkest eclipse I had ever experienced. Around mid totality I could see another cloud bank building and heading toward the eclipsed sun. Fortunately there were only two minutes of totality left. The total phase was complete and within 5 minutes the sun was completely covered with fog. However the partial phases were visible through the clouds and easily recorded on my camcorder. I would not have been able to see the corona if this occurred during totality. The temperature dropped approx. 16 F. Upon conclusion of the eclipse Dave Levy gave a presentation, and then various amateurs showed off their eclipse digital JPG photos. Upon completion of the presentations, dinner was served. I slept very happily that evening.

MARCH 30, 2006
Our first stop was the Palace of Knossos in Crete. This site was excavated by Sir Arthur Evans in the late 1800's. The Palace was the site of the earliest Greek civilization- the Minoan. Much of this palace has been reconstructed. We then boarded the boat and were off to the Island of Santorini. Santorini a volcanic island. Actually the entire island is part of a Caldera. We climbed to the top of a volcano called Neokalemia. There were three craters containing molten lava several kilometers below the surface. The surrounding scenery at the top of the volcano was breathtaking. We then proceeded down the volcano and to our boat. The next stop was a hot spring off the island. Individuals that dove into the water indicated that it was not hot at all. The sea temp went form 40 F to 50 F. Some hot spring! We then proceeded by boat to a bus that drove up a steep slop. The sun was setting at this point what a magnificent sunset. The top of the slope was the City of Fira from which we took a cable car ride to the bottom of the mountain. Boarded the ship, the M/V Ocean Monarch at nightfall. This was our last excursion to the Greek Islands. Now we head back to Athens.

MARCH 31, 2006
Woke up early at 6:00am this morning. Breakfast at 7:00am. Then boarded the bus for the airport. It took approximately, one hour to get to the airport. Took off on time at 1:05pm from Athens Greece to JFK in New York. The plane flight took approximately 10.5 hours. I slept through most of it! Also slept through the in-flight movies. Arrived in JFK at 4:00pm. We had a five hour layover, so no need to hurry through customs. Departed JFK at 9:00pm and arrived at Tampa International Airport at 11:00pm. My in-laws picked us up and we drove another 1.5 hours to Longboat Key (Sarasota) Florida. Arrived at home at 1:30 am on April 1st, 2006. This concludes our Eclipse Expedition to Greece.