Everything that has a Beginning has an Ending.

 

NASA said that its InSight Mars mission has ended.  The robotic spacecraft after a more than six-month journey landed on Mars, Nov. 26, 2018. Since then, InSight has been studying the planet's interior and seismic activity.  It detected more than 1,300 quakes with a 4.7 quake that shook the planet for six hours. On De. 21, 2022 NASA announced that two attempts to contact the spacecraft failed, likely because its batteries had lost power after dust accumulated on its solar panels and the rover fell silent thus its mission has ended.

This blog was a byproduct of a mission to transport the car of my friend the late Milos from Florida to his son in San Francisco.  My son John decided that it was risky to me to drive alone so we drove the three thousand miles together.  From San Francisco we returned to Chicago ( 2000 miles) by train and then by bus (400 miles) to Columbus, Ohio for a total of 5,000 miles.  My intend at that time was to stop posting but on advice of a friend, I continue posting mostly on my travels.

The most memorable posts were from an epic journey when together with my brother and two friends brought a sailboat from Spain to Greece a 1,400 nautical miles journey. It was our Odyssey and I described it as such on posts from Aug.15, 2015 to July 16, 2016. 

In the past 10 years, I uploaded 228 posts in my blog Cross Country Chronicles but as Jack Kornfield said in his Buddha book "everything that has a beginning has an ending. Make your peace with that and all will be well" 

There are many individuals from my immediate family, and those who love and care about me who encouraged and inspired me to write.  I want to thank and express my gratitude to seventy thousand plus individuals who followed my musings. I wish them all a good a pleasant trip in their lives. 

Athens Authentic Marathon

 More than 45,000 runners from 92 countries participated in Athens' Authentic Marathon run on November 13, 2022

The run traces the steps of Phedippides, a news bearing Athenian soldier, who announced the victory of Greeks against the Persians at the Marathon battle in 490 BC.

Pheidippides collapsed and died after he said νενικηκαμεν that translates to "we won"

The Marathon race became one of the most competitive events during the revival of the Olympic Games in 1896 in Athens.  Spyros Louis won the gold medal in the first modern Olympics and became a legend in Greece.

The Marathon Race represents the highest effort in which the human body, soul and mind are tested to their limits as the runner presses to reach the finish line.

Here the young and not so young runners near the finish line in the Panathenaikon Stadium in Athens an unforgettable moment for the athletes, their families and friends.

This year a 91-year-old, Stelios Prassas participated and completed the Marathon run.  His success reminds us what humans can accomplish if they are physically gifted and have the will to train and prepare for the ultimate test in human endurance.

Longest Nonstop Bird Flight

 

A 5-month-old bird has set a new world record for the longest bird flight between Alaska and Tasmania.  The bar-tailed godwit -aka Limosa Iapponica travelled the distance of 8,425 miles (13,560 km) in 11 days.  Because the young bird was tagged, it allowed scientists to accurately track its flight.  Although it crossed over several Pacific islands like Vanuatu it did not stop until it reached the large Australian island of Tasmania.

DART

 

The Double Asteroid Redirect Test (DART) was NASA's successful test on September 26, 2022 of its plan to defend Earth from an asteroid's on collision course with our planet.

DART spacecraft zeroed in on Dimorphos, Didymos little moon which is 160 m in diameter and at a distance of 6.8 million miles or 11 million kilometers from Earth.  It stroke the little asteroid at a speed of 14,000 miles per hour hoping to divert from its orbit.

A picture of the little asteroid Dimorphos taken 2 min before the impact shows in great detail rocks on its surface.

Images from James Webb telescope showed a vast cloud of dust indicating a much larger force of the impact that it was expected.  The images were similar to those obtained by the Italian Space agency LICIAcube the little craft that separated from DART moments before its impact on Dimorphos.  NASA announced on Oct 11, 2022 DART's mission proved successful in adjusting the trajectory of Dimorphos, suggesting that a deadly space rock could be deflected in the future.  Before DART's impact it took the little asteroid 11 hours and 55 min to orbit its Didymos.  The spacecraft's impact changed the smaller asteroid's orbit by 32 min. 

Artemis I

 

Artemis I is NASA's first step to returning to moon after 50 years since astronauts landed there for the last time.  The giant moon rocket at the Space Launch System (SLS) and Orion capsule will take off on Sept 2nd.

The SLS rocket will attempt to send the Orion capsule around the moon and back with no one aboard. Astronauts could circle the moon in 2024 and attempt a lunar landing in 2025.  Artemis exploration programs was named after God Apollo's twin sister Artemis in Greek mythology.

NASA official said that the moon missions will be central to its human spaceflight program which aims to establish ultimately a long-term presence on Moon's surface and prepare for future missions to Mars. 

NASA called off moon launch twice due to a hydrogen leak.  NASA said that Artemis I is now scheduled to launch on Sept 27 or Oct 2. 

Cape Tenaron

 

Cape Tenaron or cape Matapan is mainland Greece's southernmost point. It was the site of the Ancient city Taenarum.  Nearby is a cave legend claims was the home of Hades the God of underworld.  On the hill above the cave there is a temple dedicated to the God of the sea Poseidon.

Tenaron's lighthouse was built in 1892 and its luminosity was 12 nautical miles.  In 1984 it was upgraded with solar panels and its luminosity is now 22 nautical miles.  The trek to the lighthouse from the end of the paved road is 2.2 kilometers.  For those who decide to take the hike to this very interesting place is better to start early in the morning or late in the evening in order to avoid the blazing summer Greek sun as there is no shade in its entirety.  I visited the site in 1968 when I was serving in the Greek Navy and my brother visited it recently on foot.

Santorini - 2022

 

Santorini has changed a lot since I first visited it fifty-four years ago.  It is now one of the most glamorous and visited islands on planet earth.

The views of the Caldera from the patios of elegant hotels is stunning.

The 3-hour trek between Fira and Oia presents a most beautiful scenery.

Santorini has become the place where young persons from far away places such as the United States or China elect to give vows of everlasting love and devotion. 

On this visit I stayed in the lovely hotel Phaos, which patio overlooks the the islands of Anafi and Astypalea in the Aegean Sea.

As in my first visit in 1968, I visited once more Akrotiri the Bronze Age settlement, one of the most important Minoan urban centres in the Aegean Sea, when it was covered by ash following the volcanic eruption in the 17 century BC.  The ancient Minoan town at Santorini's south coast, is called the "Pompeii of Greece" and some archeologists theorise that it is the fictional island of Atlantis that was created by demi-gods who established a utopian society as described by Greek philosopher Plato. 

I am finishing the trilogy on Santorini with the lighthouse in its southern tip, likely the oldest in Greece, as it was built in 1892.  It was the purpose of my first visit to service it and my role as a young Navy physician to check the health status of its crew.  The view was beautiful then, like it is now, thus a large number of visitors keep coming in the evenings to look at the sun setting.  Each of my trips to Santorini left me with beautiful and indelible memories which I will cherish the rest of my life.