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2024 Stellafane News

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Total Solar Eclipse Stellafane Banner

The Total Solar Eclipse on April 8th is fast approaching, and many of you will be heading to various locations for the best views. Why not take a part of Stellafane with you with this beautiful Eclipse Banner, featuring a photo by one of our very own members.

Get your Banner here!

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Banner designed by Natalie Dodson, Eclipse Photo by Dr Mario Motta
Banner designed by Natalie Dodson, Eclipse Photo by Dr Mario Motta

The Road to the 2024 Eclipse

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2017 Total Solar Eclipse by STM Member Clif Ashcraft
2017 Total Solar Eclipse
by STM Member Clif Ashcraft

We're less than two months away from this year's North American Total Solar Eclipse. Many have been asking what the STMs intend to do for this event.

First, there are a couple of things to know. Stellafane is not in the Zone of Totality, and therefore will not be hosting any Eclipse-viewing events on-site. Most of our members will be travelling outside Vermont to have a better chance at not having a cloudy day.

Second is safety: You must be prepared to safely view the eclipse. See the National Park Service 'How to View a Solar Eclipse Safely' web page for important information on how to do so.

Eclipse Glasses can be bought from Sky & Tel at https://shopatsky.com/products/2024-solar-eclipse-glasses. Information on Eclipse glasses can be found at the American Astronomical Society.

The University of Vermont has a good resource of eclipse information, providing eclipse timing information for the Burlington, VT area, and also has a short list of other northern Vermont institutions that are hosting eclipse events.

WCAX out of Burlington has a great video on the subject.

Another great resource, wherever you plan on viewing the Eclipse is TimeandDate.com's Eclipse page. This page has detailed information customizable by location, and shows you how much you'd be able to see from your 'current' location. They will also be broadcasting the event live, for those who do not wish to travel. But do see it in person if you can, preferably in the Zone of Totality, as the next Total Solar Eclipse in North America will be in 2044!

Palomar: A Retrospective

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Hale Dome, Sunset, and Moon. Credit: Caltech/Palomar Observatory
Hale Dome, Sunset and Moon
Credit: Caltech/Palomar Observatory

96 years ago (or 5 years after he founded the Springfield Telescope Makers) Russel Porter joined the California team planning the 200-inch Hale Telescope.

77 years ago (1947) Porter participated in the "First Light" tests of the Giant Telescope on Mount Palomar, actually looking through it! Now after 75 years of pushing out the frontiers of cosmological research towards the distant edge of the early Universe, the 200-inch continues to serve Astronomy in new and vital ways. It was the largest fully working telescope for at least 40 of its 75 years!

A recent article published on the Cal Tech website details the role of the 200-inch Telescope in probing the edge of the known Universe, and some of the Astronomers who made important discoveries on Mount Palomar. This fascinating article is available HERE.

STMs Celebrate Their 100 Years

Last night, accompanied by a roaring fire in the fireplace, the STMs gathered at the Clubhouse to celebrate an intimate evening of celebration of their 100th Year as a club. A meal of beef barley soup, beans and bread was had, something that might have been served a century ago.

Member Dennis di Cicco (who took the picture) had this to say:
"It’s worth noting that the photo was taken within an hour or two (maybe less) of exactly 100 years since the original members of the STM gathered to formally establish their club and set a priority of finishing the clubhouse where we were assembled. Imagine if any of them could see this photo with an image of their first club president standing next to our newest president. Do you think any of them could imagine that there would still be a group of STMs using the clubhouse for its original purpose a century later. I can’t think what the future will be like 5 years from now, let alone 100."

STMs at the Clubhouse, Dec 7th, 2023
Dec 7th 2023: STMs Celebrate their 100th Year - Photo by Dennis di Cicco
Dec 7th 2023: STMs Celebrate their 100th Year

Happy Birthday, Springfield Telescope Makers!! Here's to many more!

The Founders: Russell W. Porter + An Important Anniversary

Founder Russell W. Porter
Founder: Russell W. Porter

Today, Dec 7th 2023, is an auspicious day. On this day, 100 years ago, twelve people convened at Oscar Seth Marshall's home, to sign the charter that would bring the Springfield Telescope Makers into being. Most of our Founders would be Jones & Lamson colleagues, and it would become an important place in STM Early History.

This leads us to our 12th and final Founder in this series. Russell Porter was a number of things; an artist, surveyor, explorer, survivor of shipwrecks, architect, prolific designer and inspirational leader. Early in his life, he'd found himself interested in optics, and would often find himself experimenting with them. Springfield, located in what was called Precision Valley, with its machine tool industry, ended up being the perfect place to cement Porter's telescope hobby. With the tools at his disposal, and a recession making commercial telescopes a luxury most couldn't afford, it suddenly seemed that telescope making could be a hobby easily approached by all. On August 17th, 1920, the first telescope making class was organized by Porter, and held at Jones & Lamson. The success of that first class led Porter and others to suggest that maybe there was enough interest to form a club of like-minded enthusiasts. And here we are, 100 years later, and the hobby is as strong as ever, the club with more members than ever.

About our 100th Year, current STM President Cecilia Detrich had this to say in her Centennial Message:

December 7, 2023

Congratulations to the members and supporters of the Springfield Telescope Makers on this centennial anniversary of the founding of our club!

The friendship and camaraderie felt by the club's charter members as they met in the home of Oscar Marshall on December 7, 1923, to hold the first official meeting of the Springfield Telescope Makers continues to draw us all back to our beloved Stellafane. Imagine how these founding members would have felt if they were aware that their actions that evening, as they enjoyed fritters + syrup, and coffee, would reach thousands of amateur astronomers into the next century and around the world!

As we begin the second century of the Springfield Telescope Makers, we extend appreciation to all the club members, their families, and all our supporters who have contributed their talents and resources to our mission to stimulate interest in astronomy and allied sciences by preserving and fostering the skill of amateur telescope making.

We are all looking forward to gathering together on the hill at our next Stellafane Convention, August 1-4, 2024.

Clear Skies,
Cecilia Detrich
President
Springfield Telescope Makers

You can read more about Russell Porter and other Founding Members on The Founders Page. Alternately, if you're interested in reading more about the club's early history, here is some suggested reading:

Early STM History by Russell Porter | Brief History of the STMs by Bert Willard | First Meeting Minutes | History Main Page (with many articles)

Pictures from our archives below:

The 1955 Stellafane Convention
The 1955 Stellafane Convention.
The 1955 Stellafane Convention.
Oscar Fullam and wooden equatorial telescope.
Oscar Fullam and his wooden equatorial telescope.
Oscar Fullam and wooden equatorial telescope.
Frank Whitney and Telescope on Mt. Ephram, early 1920's
Frank Whitney and his telescope on an outing of Porter’s telescope making group, Mt. Ephram, Springfield, Vermont, early 1920s.
Frank Whitney and Telescope on Mt Ephram
Telescopes at the County Fair, 1922
Telescopes made by Porter’s original group of telescope makers as exhibited at a county fair about 1922.
Telescopes at 1922's County Fair
Hawks Mountain Summit, 1922
Porter’s telescope makers erect a wood tower and install a bronze survey tablet at the summit of Hawks Mountain in Baltimore, Vermont, in 1922.
Hawks Mountain Summit, 1922
 First Stellafane Convention, 1926.
First Stellafane Convention in 1926.
First Stellafane Convention in 1926.

New Hartness House Workshop Page

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Hartness House, home of the Hartness House Workshop - Photo by Asif Khan
The Hartness House

We have a new addition to the website today. The Hartness House Workshop has been a tradition alongside the Stellafane Convention since 2009. But until today, there hasn't been a way to peruse past workshops. You can now view them all in one place, on the Hartness House Workshop page. Alternatively, you can also access the Hartness House page at any time via the Convention menu in the upper-left.

2023 Board Election Results

This past weekend, on November 11th, was the day of our Annual General Meeting (at the BRIC). After being well-fed by the Wilders, we proceeded to elect a new Board. The result is what you see below. Bob Morse has stepped down as President while previous Vice-President Cecilia Detrich steps up to take up the mantle. Mike Hayes has become Vice-President. Terri Simoni has stepped in as Secretary, replacing Rick Hunter who has stepped down. New to the board is Katie Shusdock who has done a great job with the telescope making class, and who joins us as Trustee. Also joining the board is Bruce Beford as Trustee. We wish to thank both Bob Morse and Rick Hunter for their service to the club.

Cecilia Detrich
Cecilia
Detrich

President
Mike Hayes
Mike
Hayes

Vice President
Terri Simoni
Terri
Simoni
Secretary
Glenn Jackson
Glenn
Jackson

Treasurer
Ken Slater
Ken
Slater
Trustee
Bruce Beford
Bruce
Beford

Trustee
Katie Shusdock
Katie
Shusdock
Trustee

Events Calendar (Scroll up for News)

DayDateTimeEvent
-2024-
Sat Jan 13 1:00-5:00 5-Year Planning Meeting
BRIC
Sat Jan 13 6:00-9:00 Dinner & Club Meeting
Presentation: Dr Stephen Sekula:
"Astronomy Without Light: Revealing the Unseen Universe"

BRIC
Sun Jan 14 10:00-4:00 TM Class
BRIC
Sat Feb 10 7:00-9:00 Club Meeting
Club Visit to the SAHS (moved to March if bad weather)
BRIC
Sat Feb 10 10:00-4:00 TM Class
BRIC
Sat March 9 7:00-9:00 Club Meeting
Presentation: Joseph Houston & John Briggs:
"Swords returning to Plowshares: The Challenges of Dual Use Technology" (moved to February if bad weather that month)

BRIC
Sat March 9 10:00-4:00 TM Class
BRIC
Sat April 13 7:00-9:00 Club Meeting
BRIC
Sat
Sun
April 20
April 21
9:00-6:00
10:00-5:00
Stellafane at NEAF
Suffern, NY
Sat April 27 10:00-4:00 Full Moon Work Party
Sat May 4 7:00-9:00 Club Meeting
Sat May 25 10:00-4:00 Full Moon Work Party
Fri-Sat May 31, Jun 1st 7:00-9:00 Up-All-Night Star Party: Spring Edition
Sat June 8 7:00-9:00 Club Meeting
Sat June 22 10:00-4:00 Full Moon Work Party
Sat July 6 7:00-9:00 Club Meeting
Sat July 20 10:00-4:00 Full Moon Work Party
Thu-Sun Aug 1-4 Stellafane Convention
Sat Aug 17 10:00-4:00 Full Moon Work Party
Sat Sept 7 7:00-9:00 Club Meeting
Sat Sept 21 10:00-4:00 Full Moon Work Party
Sat Oct 5 10:00-4:00 TM Class
BRIC
Sat Oct 5 7:00-9:00 Club Meeting
Fri-Sat Oct 11-12 7:00-9:00 Up-All-Night Star Party: Fall Edition
Sat Oct 19 10:00-4:00 Full Moon Work Party
Sat Nov 2 10:00-4:00 TM Class
BRIC
Sat Nov 2 7:00-9:00 Club Meeting
BRIC
Sat Nov 16 10:00-4:00 Full Moon Work Party
Sat Dec 7 10:00-4:00 TM Class
BRIC
Sat Dec 7 7:00-9:00 Club Meeting
BRIC
-2025-
Thu-Sun July 24-27 Stellafane Convention
- Color Key -
Public Event Everyone Welcome
Mirror Class Registration Required
Club Activity Feel Free to Stop By
Special Event Check for Requirements
Members Only Visitors Not Allowed

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