high res (1.6 M) low res (103 K)
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ISS010-E-08224 (22 November 2004) --- Mount Olympus, Greece is featured in this image photographed by an Expedition 10 crewmember on the International Space Station (ISS). Mount Olympus is the highest peak (2917 meters) in Greece, as well as the mountain chain that runs north into Bulgaria and south, via the Cyclades Islands, into Turkey. In this winter view, Olympus is the only peak with a dusting of snow—perhaps for this reason its name in classical Greek means “the luminous one.” In Greek mythology the peak was inhabited by the Twelve Olympians, the most famous gods of the ancient Greeks. North of Mount Olympus lies Macedonia, the homeland of Alexander the Great. Climbing the mountain is a favorite tourist activity today. The slopes of the peaks of Olympus and its neighboring peaks drop sheer into the Thermaikos Gulf, a northern arm of the Aegean Sea. White cirrus clouds obscure the shoreline near the city of Thessaloniki. This major port is spread along the shores of a small and well protected bay at the north end of the gulf. On the plains inland of the Olympus chain lie a lake, on the Aliakmon River, and the town of Larisa, at the focus point of a series of transport routes.
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