2018 Stellafane Convention The 83rd Convention of Amateur Telescope Makers on Breezy Hill in Springfield, Vermont 43° 16’ 41” North Latitude, 72° 31’ 10” West Longitude Thursday, August 9 – Sunday, August 12, 2018 “For it is true that astronomy, from a popular standpoint, is handicapped by the inability of the average workman to own an expensive astronomical BE SURE TO VISIT telescope. It is also true that if an amateur starts out to build a telescope THE ORIGINAL STELLAFANE SITE just for fun, he will find before his labors are over that he has become seriously interested in the wonderful mechanism of our universe. Since so much of the convention takes place at Stellafane East, it’s all And finally there is understandably the stimulus of being able to unlock too easy to miss the fun of seeing the original Stellafane Clubhouse and the mysteries of the heavens by a tool fashioned by one’s own hand.” the Porter Turret Telescope on Breezy Hill. Catch the shuttlebus near the —Russell W. Porter, Founder of Stellafane, March, 1923 food tent or the main camping area, or just take the short walk down the road opposite the entry “fruit stand” where you checked in. The original SOME STELLAFANE HISTORY site, including the Clubhouse and the Porter Turret Telescope, was des- In 1920, when a decent astronomical telescope ignated a National Historic Landmark in 1989. It remains the location for was far beyond the average worker’s means, the Stellafane Convention’s optical and mechanical competitions for Russell W. Porter offered to help some Spring- field machine tool factory workers to build amateur-built telescopes. their own. Together, they ground, polished, and THE STELLAFANE CLUBHOUSE figured mirrors, completed their telescopes, and began using them, soon becoming thor- The Clubhouse was designed oughly captivated by amateur astronomy. By by Russell Porter and con- 1923 they had formed a club, the Springfield structed by the members. Telescope Makers, and had built Stellafane The pink color may simply (originally “Stellar Fane”), our now legendary have been that of donated Clubhouse. By 1925 their activities had drawn paint, but it has been hal- the attention of magazine editors including lowed by long tradition. Web Waldron at Collier’s and Albert Ingalls at Many fascinating memo- Scientific American. They visited the club, and rabilia of the club’s earlier soon published articles about telescope mak- days can be seen here. Al- ing. This generated interest across the country, and the club decided to invite though it’s now a tight fit other amateurs to visit. On July 3, 1926, 29 people came to Breezy Hill, and The with today’s larger member- Stellafane Convention was established. It’s been held every year since, except ship roster, the Springfield Telescope Makers still hold some meetings at the during World War II. The convention grew rapidly, and today nearly a thousand Stellafane Clubhouse. Photo is from the 1930s. enthusiastic amateurs make the pilgrimage to Springfield. THE PORTER TURRET TELESCOPE STELLAFANE EAST The Porter Turret Telescope In 1986, faced with the loss of access to a neighboring field that had been the was constructed in 1930 by the Convention’s camping area, the STM, with the support of members who mort- club. Porter had endured more gaged their homes, purchased a 40-acre farm across the road from the original than his share of winter cold on Stellafane site. This became known as Stellafane East. In 1998, STM member polar expeditions early in his Harty Beardsley donated another adjacent 45 acres, ensuring that the Conven- career. Following Hartness’s tion has room for growth. turret refractor design, he de- vised a way to build a reflect- THE MCGREGOR OBSERVATORY ing telescope that also allowed The McGregor Observatory at Stellafane East was constructed by the club the observer to remain indoors between 1989 and 1995. It houses a unique on the coldest winter nights. instrument—a 13” f/10 Schupmann tele- Extensively renovated in the 1970s and fitted with new optics, the Porter scope on a massive computer controlled Turret remains an excellent instrument. Photo is from the 1930s. alt-az mount. For a time it was the larg- est operating Schupmann in the world. THE ANDREW SIMONI OBSERVATORY This design, which combines reflective Now completed on Breezy Hill, this new building houses a restored 1930s and refractive elements, yields a coma- spectrohelioscope. THE SIMONI OBSERVATORY WILL BE FORMALLY DEDICATED AT free and essentially apochromatic image, 4 PM FRIDAY, AUGUST 10. Light refreshments will be served, followed by tours and is ideal for planetary observation. The of the facility, and solar observing if weather permits. An invention of George Schupmann is operated during Convention. Hale, the spectrohelioscope produces an image of the sun in any desired visual Photo by Dennis di Cicco. wavelength. The spectrohelioscope will operate during convention. Schedule of Events and Presentations KIDS=ACTIVITY FOR CHILDREN TEENS=ACTIVITY FOR TEENS NTA=FOR THOSE NEW TO ASTRONOMY INT=INTERMEDIATE ADV=ADVANCED ATM=AMATEUR TELESCOPE MAKING COMP=TELESCOPE COMPETITION ALL=SUITABLE FOR EVERYONE MCE=MAJOR CONVENTION EVENT OBS=OBSERVING PLEASE SEE DESCRIPTIONS ON FOLLOWING PAGES FOR MORE INFORMATION THURSDAY, AUGUST 9, 2018 8:30 am - 5 pm Hartness House Workshop: Antique Telescopes, Observatories & Equipment Hartness House Hosted by Tom Spirock (Separate Registration & Fee for this Workshop) noon- 4 pm Large RV Permit Holders must arrive Entry Gate Please don’t arrive before noon! 3 pm - 10 pm Early Entry Permit Holders can arrive Entry Gate Please don’t arrive before 3! 6 pm - 8 pm Hartness House Workshop: Antique Telescopes, Observatories & Equipment Hartness House Dinner & Keynote Hosted by Tom Spirock (Separate Registration & Fee) 8:30 pm - midnight Observing Olympics Observing Fields Coordinated by Eileen Myers Telescopes & Binoculars OBS 8:30 pm - Observing with the Hartness Turret Telescope Observing Hartness House Weather Permitting OBS FRIDAY, AUGUST 10, 2018 9 am Registration Gate Opens 9 am - noon Coatings West of Clubhouse Alan Ward Mirror Coating ADV, ATM 10 am - 6 pm Shuttle Bus Operates Bus Stops: Pine Island, Food Tent, Clubhouse 10 am - 4 pm TELESCOPE MAKING DEMO Tent north of T-shirt sales area Organized by Read Predmore ATM 10 am - 10:30 am Intro & Rough Grinding Glenn Jackson ATM 10:30 am - 11 am Fine Grinding Rick Hunter ATM 11 am - 11:30 am Making Dental Stone Tools Junie Esslinger ATM 11:30 am - noon Making Pitch Laps Steve Dodson ATM 1 pm - 1:45 pm Polishing & Figuring Dick Parker ATM 2 pm - 4 pm Testing (Bring your own mirror) Dave Kelly ATM 11 am - noon Astronomy Activities for Children: Meteorite CSI McGregor Obs. Library Kris Larsen Ages 5-12; Limited to first 25 KIDS noon - 1 pm Free Time Everyone Relax or Enjoy Lunch No on-site talks or demos scheduled ALL 1 pm - 2 pm Solar System Walk Meet at M44 (Green Shed) behind Clubhouse CCSU Students NTA 1 pm - 5 pm Stellafane Teen Robotic Project (Requires Signup) Bunkhouse Paul Fucile TEENS 1 pm - 2 pm Homemade 15-foot dome observatory Flanders Pavilion Mark Sproul INT, ATM 1 pm - 2 pm Night Vision and Live Video for Amateur Astronomy McGregor Observatory Library Martin Hilario INT 1:30 pm - 5:30 pm Coatings West of Clubhouse Alan Ward Mirror Coating ADV, ATM 2 pm - 3 pm Imaging Large Planetary Nebulas and Supernova Remnants Flanders Pavilion Al Takeda Talk INT 2 pm - 3 pm Solar Observing Hour Observing Fields Please set up your Solar Scope and Share OBS 2 pm - 3 pm Astronomy Activities for Children: How Telescopes Work McGregor Obs. Library Kris Larsen Ages 5-12; Limited to first 25 KIDS 3 pm - 4 pm Coatings Flanders Pavilion Alan Ward Talk ADV, ATM 3 pm - 4 pm A Survey of Astronomical History: Why Our Heritage Matters McGregor Observatory Library Kevin Johnson NTA 3:30 pm - 5 pm Imaging Large Planetary Nebulas and Supernova Remnants near Domed Observatory Al Takeda Demo/Workshop INT 4 pm - 5 pm Introduction to Stellafane McGregor Observatory Library Kim & Dennis Cassia ALL 4 pm - Simoni Observatory / Spectrohelioscope Dedication Northwest of Clubhouse MCE 4 pm - 5 pm Exoplanet Discoveries: The Role of Amateur Astronomers Flanders Pavilion Dennis Conti, Chair AAVSO Exoplanet Section INT 5 pm - 7 pm Free Time: Relax or Enjoy Dinner No on-site talks or demos scheduled ALL 5 pm - 8 pm Hartness-Porter ATM Museum Open Hartness House Hosted by Bert Willard, Curator ALL 5 pm - 8 pm Telescope Competition Registration Clubhouse Optical and Mechanical Registration COMP 6 pm - 7:30 pm Friday Evening Videos Flanders Pavilion Astronomy documentaries for the whole family ALL 2 7:30 pm Friday Evening Informal Talks Flanders Pavilion Bruce Beford, MC Short presentations by Convention Attendees MCE 8:30 pm - midnight Observing Olympics Observing Fields Coordinated by Eileen Myers Telescopes & Binoculars OBS 10 pm - Telescope Optical Competition Fields around Clubhouse COMP 10 pm Registration Gate Closes SATURDAY, AUGUST 11, 2018 7 am Registration Gate Opens 7 am - noon Swap Tables Swap Table Area - North of Main Camping Area MCE 8 am - 9:30 am Telescope Competition Registration Clubhouse Mechanical (and Optical if needed) Registration COMP 9 am - noon Coatings West of Clubhouse Alan Ward Mirror Coating ADV, ATM 9 am - 5 pm Shuttle Bus Operates Bus Stops Bus Stops: Pine Island, Food Tent, Clubhouse 10 am - 4 pm TELESCOPE MAKING DEMO Tent north of T-shirt sales area Organized by Read Predmore ATM 10 am - 10:30 am Intro & Rough Grinding Glenn Jackson ATM 10:30 am - 11 am