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2009 Stellafane ConventionThe 74th Convention of Amateur Telescope Makers on Breezy Hill in Springfield, Vermont, the 2009 Stellafane Convention, was held Thursday through Sunday August 13-16, 2009. Here you will find reports and photos documenting this convention. Suggestions Do you have a suggestion to improve any aspect of convention? We would like to hear about it! Please send them via email here. We are very interested in feedback, comments or suggestions on the new beginners program. We would like to continue to improve it for next year. Thanks to All!The Springfield Telescope Makers would like to thank all those who attended the 2009 Stellafane Convention and made it a success. The Convention is all about sharing ideas and knowledge, renewing and making new acquaintances, and enjoying shared observing sessions. You make the Convention what it is, and we thank you for participating! We would also like to say Thank You for the many generous contributions we received in support of paying off the Flanders Pavilion mortgage. Convention SummaryWe had three days of dry weather that offered viewing every night and optical judging was completed on Friday night. We had 32 entries in the telescope competition with a large number of very high quality entries, and the judges had their work cut out for them to pick the best of the best. Special events like the Antique Telescope Workshop on Thursday and the Alan Bean fundraising dinner on Friday set this convention apart. Alan Beans keynote talk was very well received and many favorable comments were heard that night and Sunday morning. We certainly did not set attendance records given the difficult world economy, but our attendance was solid and not much different from 2008 which was also a difficult economic year. 2009 Convention Special Events Moonwalker Captain Alan Bean 
2009 is the 400th Anniversary of Galileo's Astronomical use of the Telescope, the 40th Anniversary of the Apollo Moon Landings, and the International Year of Astronomy. Keynote Speaker Captain Alan BeanWe have invited Captain Alan Bean, Astronaut, Moonwalker and Artist to be our keynote speaker this year. Alan Bean was the fourth person to set foot on the moon in late 1969. Alan Bean DinnerIn order to help defray the costs of bringing Captain Bean to Stellafane, we are holding a special, limited seating dinner with him on Friday at the Hartness House. Photos from the Dinner Hartness House History of Astronomy WorkshopThere is a special Hartness House History of Astronomy Workshop which is cosponsored by the Springfield Telescope Makers, the Antique Telescope Society, and the Hartness House Inn on Thursday, August 13th at a nominal extra cost. Registration is separate from Convention Registration. Photos from the Workshop We also expect that you might happen upon Galileo Galilei, it appears he has registered to attend convention, but we are not sure if has entered his telescope in the competition :-) Advanced Amateurs interested in imagining will want to attend the Imaging Seminar offered both Friday & Saturday nights if clear. 2009 is a special year for Astronomy, and we worked hard to put together a special convention for you! ProgramThis page contains an Overall Schedule of Events, and additional details about many of the Activities, Talks and Events. Raffle DonorsThe Springfield Telescope Makers would like to thank the following people and/or companies for donating prizes to the raffle at the 2009 Stellafane convention. In no particular order, we thank:
The money raised from the raffle goes to support next year's convention and to make capital
improvements to the convention site. We appreciate the generous donations of the above people and companies,
and the attendees support by purchasing raffle tickets. Thank you all very much! Call for Convention We would like to add your photos or convention report to our web pages. Your experiences gives a much more comprehensive view of the convention then we can do ourselves. Please send them via email here. Photo GalleryClick on the section header above for the 2009 Convention Photo gallery, with candid images taken by the Springfield Telescope Makers and many attendees who send us photos they have taken (See the pink box at right if you have photos to send us for posting on our web page). We have two pages of Gallery Photos: Page 1 & Page 2. This year we also have to special photo sections from special events: The Captain Alan Bean Dinner, the Hartness House History of Astronomy Workshop and the Astro Imaging Workshop. Reports from AttendeesConvention reports from our attendees are posted here, giving you another view of the events and observations that various attendees had. If you have report, please send it to us (see box at upper right).  Gerry Logan of Lakewood, CA took three first place awards at the 2009 Convention with his 6" f/15 Maksutov. Telescope CompetitionOften considered the heart of the Stellafane Convention, the Optical & Mechanical Competition gives Amateur Telescope Makers a chance to show and share with others what they have done, and our expert judges pick the best in several categories to for recognition with awards. This page shows all the telescopes entered in the competition, and the awards that many have won. VideosThis page has downloadable videos of selected talks. If you missed a talk you wanted to hear, or want to refresh you memory of some details, this is the place to look. General InformationThis page contains much information about the convention, lighting policies, pet policies, food service, on-site bus service and where to set up your telescope. Check this page for answers to any questions you may have.
Do you have convention questions we haven't answered? Comments or suggestions about the Bulletin or Registration Supplement? Please direct these to our Convention Mailbox. Do you have a comment, question or suggestion about the web pages or online registration process? Please direct these to the Stellafane Webmaster. |
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