The NEAF Solar A History of NEAF and

Party the NSSP By Barlow Bob

NEAF was inspired when Allan Green at RCC where the RAC held its club meet- I asked Al Nagler if I could demon- and Al Nagler, both of the Suffern, New ings. To better attract amateur strate his new Tele Vue Solaris dedicated York-based Rockland Club from the northeast area, Al Nagler intro- solar with a DayStar H-alpha solar (RAC), attended an astronomy-product duced Tele Vue’s annual “Scratch and Dent filter that year in the courtyard area next to expo in Connecticut organized by Bob Ri- Sale.” The initial goal was to attract as many the atrium entrance and with his usual gen- naldi of New England Astro, a Tele Vue as 200 amateur astronomers to attend erosity, Uncle Al provided the Solaris, a TV dealer. The expo was held at a Connecticut NEAF, and more than that attended the in- mount, Air Chair and several TV eyepieces. hotel for a year or two before 1990 and the augural show. The Solaris telescope created breathtak- experience gave Allan the idea of hosting a These first NEAF vendors displayed ingly-sharp images of the in the red H- similar event at Suffern’s Rockland Com- their products in the RCC’s atrium area, be- alpha wavelength. munity College (RCC). Although Al tween its auditorium and cafeteria, while Being a dedicated one-star solar guessed then that few would travel to Rock- the large RCC auditorium provided the stargeezer, I delighted in demonstrating the land for such an event, Allan would even- perfect venue for NEAF speakers. The cafe- Solaris telescope from sunrise to sunset, but tually prove him wrong. teria area provided the food service. even I failed to anticipate the long lines of In 1991, the RAC sponsored its first NEAF was originally intended to pro- NEAF attendees that formed next to this product trade show, vide a forum where northeast amateur as- lone solar telescope and that have contin- dubbed a name that would stick, the tronomers could meet and exchange ued to grow throughout the span of 20 Northeast Astronomy Forum (now more information. Free tables were provided NEAF events. I also failed to anticipate that popularly known simply as “NEAF”). It where any local amateur astronomy clubs this informal sidewalk solar display would, was a modest event, featuring Tele Vue could promote their activities and swap ta- in 2004, be formalized as the annual NEAF products and those of a few other vendors. bles were established where used astronomy Solar Star Party. A group of dedicated RAC members equipment could be traded. These activities When Allan Green moved to the dark headed by Allan Green, NEAF’s first Chair- helped attract many local amateur as- of Albuquerque, New Mexico, Don man, and Don Urban launched this event tronomers. Urban became the second NEAF Chair-

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NEAF Chairman pauses for a solar view during NSSP 2006. Barlow Bob (left) and Al Nager at NEAF 2005. man and the event became even more pop- my sidewalk solar-astronomy educational tent was set up in the hotel parking lot to ular under Don’s steady direction and or- outreach demonstrations. The hotel’s large accommodate them and the next year an ganization. catering area was divided into three rooms even larger catering tent was employed. The NEAF was moved to the nearby Suf- with vendors in the first, swap tables in the annual Tele Vue “Scratch and Dent Sale” fern Holiday Inn and I set up my solar tel- second, and amateur astronomy clubs in became such a popular feature that it too escope (a TV Genesis fitted with a Solaris the third. Another large catering area was was moved to an outside tent to accommo- adapter kit and 0.7-angstrom DayStar H- dedicated to speakers. As the number of date the huge lines that waited patiently for alpha filter) outside in the hotel parking lot NEAF vendors and attendees continued to TV bargains. next to the NEAF entrance and continued increase from year to year, a large catering Now, Barlow Bob is not stupid. I set

68 Astronomy TECHNOLOGY TODAY THE NEAF SOLAR STAR PARTY

Barlow Bob provides first views through Tele Vue “Scratch and Dent Crowds of NEAF attendees enjoying NSSP 2005. Sale” bargains. up my new Tele Vue solar scope in the park- sketching the sun. Mark Rosengarten also Northeast Astro Imaging Conference ing lot across from the long line of atten- shared views of sunspots through a tele- (NEAIC) was added to the venue to better dees leading to the TV sale tent and placed scope equipped with a white-light filter and promote astro-imaging products and re- a large sign on the front of my scope adver- Bill Dean demonstrated a variety of Coro- lated speakers. The NEAIC is now held in tising, “Complimentary test drive of your nado’s dedicated H-alpha solar scopes. The conjunction with NEAF on the Thursday NEAF purchase on the Sun,” and during folks at Questar even demonstrated that and Friday before NEAF weekend. these early years many NEAF attendees got company’s unique solar spectroscope. In 2004, the RAC decided to include their first views through their new TV eye- When the preternaturally-energetic our previously-informal solar event as an of- pieces in my solar telescope. Better yet, I got Alan Traino became NEAF Chairman, the ficial NEAF activity. The now-formal free test drives of a wide variety of great eye- event began expanding at a similarly fre- NEAF Solar Star Party (NSSP) was moved pieces. netic pace, even attracting numerous inter- to a new site inside of the RCC courtyard, NEAF continued at Holiday Inn for national vendors. Soon, the cooperating where it will remain to host attendees of several years until RAC needed a conven- tion facility with a much larger area to ac- commodate the ever increasing annual crowds of vendors and attendees. A larger auditorium with better media facilities was also needed to more properly present the fine speakers that NEAF was attracting. The event was therefore returned to Rock- land Community College and the exhibitor area moved into the extremely large RCC field house – a venue large enough to han- dle future growth of the increasingly popu- lar event. By this point, amateur solar as- tronomers Greg Piepol, Alan Daroff, Vince Cianfichi, and Mark Rosengarten had joined the still-informal solar presentations. Greg Piepol shared views through his large- aperture Astro-Physics refractor with a Solar Spectrum narrow-bandwidth H-alpha solar filter and Vince Cianfichi demonstrated

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NEAF 2011. art solar observing and imaging systems ex- ent a solar educational program which can At the first official NSSP, Greg Piepol, hibited at NEAF. NSSP amateur staffers be far more dynamic than you might think. Alan Daroff, Vince Cianfichi, Paul Hynd- have traveled to the annual event from 15 For example, our display might demon- man, and I were joined by a small group of U.S. states and eight foreign countries and strate bright emission spectra lines of the dedicated amateur solar astronomers, plus have been joined by NEAF exhibitors from sodium and mercury lights in the ceiling of the Coronado NEAF solar exhibitor. The eight U.S. states and five foreign countries. the field house as displayed through a NSSP has continued to increase in size and There is simply no better place than NEAF Shelyak Instruments Lhires Lite spectro- is now what many consider the world’s and NSSP for hands-on testing of the best scope. Meanwhile, weather permitting, at- largest solar star party. equipment available to amateur solar as- tendees can observe and contrast the dark While NSSP volunteers receive free en- tronomy. absorption lines of the sun using the same trance to NEAF and other perks, their most Weather for daily NSSP solar viewing equipment. NSSP staffers explain how sci- coveted compensation is in the form of the has usually been good and when NEAF was entists using spectroscopy to analyze the bright-yellow official NSSP sportswear, expanded to a two-day event, the odds of emission spectra-line fingerprints of various consisting of a golf shirt, sweatshirt, and significant hours of clear skies improved. elements in a laboratory, discovered that hat, which uniform has become the high- But when someone complains about the dark absorption lines in a star correspond school-letterman-jacket equivalent of ama- weather conditions at NEAF, I tell them to to these bright emission lines. teur solar astronomy. Each year, a number speak to Alan Traino, its current Chairman. Alan Daroff is the most senior mem- of attendees ask if they can buy the yellow I only organize NSSP; Mr. Traino is re- ber of our NSSP Staff, with decades of am- NSSP sportswear and we humbly explain sponsible for providing clear skies for our ateur solar astronomy experience. He shares that the NSSP uniform can only be earned, daily solar observing. his considerable knowledge with NEAF at- not purchased. So, on the rare occasions when weather tendees and, using a low-resolution prism NSSP has become a remarkable Pro- conditions do not permit solar observing, spectroscope, demonstrates how an H- Am solar outreach event that demonstrates Alan provides the NSSP staff with an ex- alpha etalon works. I also present a similar equipment used by icons of amateur solar hibitor booth in the RCC field house where etalon demonstration using a Lhires Lite astronomy as well as the latest state-of-the- they display their solar and pres- high-resolution grating spectroscope.

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Other examples of NSSP solar astron- laser forms a bright, green dot on the annual Barlow Bob’s Solar Star Chart at omy educational activities have included ground and a child places a small, yellow NSSP. It’s a simple chart and the 2011 ver- those provided by Larry Rand, a local disc on the successive spot. When the tele- sion predicts the Sun’s position at RA: 1h, teacher who utilizes his unique “Pipehenge” scope has completed twelve movements, the 37m, DEC 10 degrees, 06 seconds, at mag- to demonstrate movements of the Sun twelve resulting yellow discs have formed nitude -26.8 and spectrum G2V. No, you through the seasons. Larry sets up the the distinctive figure-eight-shaped pattern don’t have to be a rocket scientist to find the Pipehenge next to the NEAF Kid’s Corner of the solar analemma. When NSSP is Sun in the , but if you are a rocket sci- where children can sit in its navigator’s seat closed due to inclement weather, he pres- entist, just plug those coordinates into your at the center of several curved PVC pipes, ents this fascinating exercise inside the RCC go-to telescope’s computer. Be sure to put representing the center of the Earth. Larry field house instead. a solar filter on the front of your scope be- uses this product to explain how the Sun The Kid’s Corner is a popular NEAF fore entering that go-to command. And feel travels in the sky through the year in a activity with engaging astronomy-related free to create your own version of Barlow movement known as Analemma. Please projects. Its staff also brings groups of chil- Bob’s Solar Star Chart to share with fellow visit the pipehenge.com website to learn dren outside to enjoy NSSP where the kid- amateur solar astronomers at your own about this amazing product. friendly staff help children observe the Sun solar star party. You’ll find solar coordinates Similarly, Marc Stowbridge has shared through the remarkable solar telescopes at aa.usno.navy.mil. his “Walking the Analemma” demonstra- gathered there. Of course, we also stress the NSSP staffers have received many pos- tion at NSSP. He places a Meade ETX on importance of safe solar observing. Most of itive compliments over the year, but per- the top of a tall PVC pipe mount. Marc at- these kids (like most adults of our general haps the ultimate came from the NEAF taches a green laser so that it points toward population) have never observed the Sun. exhibitors at large the year Alan Traino in- the rear of the telescope and programs the Perhaps a Kid’s Corner attendee who ob- structed that we end NSSP early so the ex- scope to follow the path that the Sun trav- serves the Sun for the first time at NSSP hibitors would have NEAF attendees’ full els across the sky over the course of a full will someday be a future member of the attention at the closing hours of that event. year, but in short, one-month steps. When NSSP staff. Not bad for what started out 20 years ago as the scope stops at each monthly step, the Each year I create and distribute the a one-telescope solar star party. New ATT App! Check Out Our New App for the iPhone & Android Download TODAY! Now You Can Read All Issues On The Go! ASTRONOMY TECHNOLOGY TODAY www.astronomytechnologytoday.com

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