A total solar eclipse took place on March 29, 2006, passing diagonally across central Turkey from the Mediterranean coast in the southwest to the Black Sea coast in the northeast.
The towns of Side and Manavgat (between Antalya and Alanya on Turkey’s Mediterranean coast), Sultanhani(between Konya and Aksaray), Hacibektas (in Cappadocia) and Ordu (on the Black Sea coast) were directly at the path’s center.
The duration of eclipse totality was about 3 minutes, 45 seconds at Manavgat on Turkey’s Mediterranean coast (at 10:57 am GMT/UTC, or 1:57 pm local time), and 3 minutes, 30 seconds at Ordu (at 11:10 am GMT/UTC, or 2:10 pm local time) on the Black Sea coast.
Click here for important information on safe eclipse viewing!
Some lucky visitors witnessed the eclipse from a hot air balloon aloft at 4420 meters (14,500 feet) in the skies over Cappadocia.
Here’s a NASA map that shows the path of the eclipse.
Here are the coordinates of the umbral path.
The towns and cities of Olimpos, Konya, Aksaray, Gülşehir and Tokat were close to the center of the path, and good for viewing.
The weather was excellent in most of Turkey, with no rain and only a few clouds.
I witnessed the eclipse on a hilltop in the town of Hacı Bektaş in Cappadocia, an excellent spot chosen by my friends at Argeus Tourism & Travel in Ürgüp.
Thanks to Dennis Andersen of Berkeley, California for the tip, and Paul Thurner for explaining the intricacies of eclipse timing to me.
—by Tom Brosnahan
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