Michael Stephanou

My first solar and stellar observations were made while serving as an officer of the Merchant Marine at times when deep sea navigation depended on measurements of the height of the Sun, selected stars and an accurate clock. This beauty of my trade ended when a small device blinking numbers was installed on my bridge and the acronym GPS became part of my life. My sextant was stored in a cupboard collecting dust and the clock kept on running unnoticed. I left the sea in mid 90's having lost interest in the adventures which were adventures no more. A solar eclipse at the easternmost island of Greece - Kastellorizo in 2006, trigerred again my interest in solar observations and almost a year earlier I started shuffling books and web pages to be prepared for this unique event. Ever since I became a solar addict and in 2009 I joined a local astronomy club in Athens Greece, the Hellenic Amateur Astronomers Association - H.A.A.A. A bit later I joined the solar section of AAVSO. I make solar observations in my free time, which is never enough -in White Light, Ha and Cak. After 15 years of solar observations I still find our local star fascinating and I always try to figure out ways to better my skills. During these years I have modified telescopes and have experimented with diferent techniques to improve imaging. Apart of visual observations, I operated a SID station using a receiver granted from S.A.R.A. a home built VLF antenna and an ancient computer, recording SID events which were daily transmitted to Stanford and manually calculated for AAVSO. For technical reasons this activity has been temporary suspended. I am proud to be a member of BAA these last years and even though leaving abroad I cannot take part in conventions or other activities of the Association, I got to know persons - amateur observers like me, eager to share their knowledge and ready to discuss our mutual interests.

Local societies
H.A.A.A.