Dr Phill’s Science Made Simple

The 1 August 2008 total eclipse was Phill’s fifth and Steve’s second. We were booked on a cruise on the MV Discovery which sailed from Harwich up the Norway coast and into the Arctic Circle on another trip organised by Roy Mayhugh.

The eclipse was totally fogged out. We still had a lot of fun. It got so cold and dark during totality! We all got a bit silly and had a great laugh. When we were inside the Arctic Circle the sun never set. Four of us started a late party on the deck. This expanded to most of the passengers! One evening the captain came out to see what was going on. He told the crew to keep the bar open until the last person left! The MV Discovery and her sister ship were used to film the TV series "The Love Boat". Two guys did a spoof presentation including "the health risks of viewing an eclipse in fog" and eclipse related conditions such as "long lens envy".

This was the 47th eclipse of Saros 126. Totality lasted about 2 minutes from our viewpoint.