View source for Organization:Stellafane

{{Infobox observatory
|name            = Stellafane Observatory
|background      = 
|image           = 
|caption         = 
|organization    = Springfield Telescope Makers Club
|code            = 
|altitude        = {{convert|1290|ft}}
|weather         = Variable weather – clear dark night skies
|established     = {{Start date|1920|08|12}}
{{Infobox NRHP
| embed        = yes
| name         = Stellafane Observatory
| nrhp_type    = NHL
| location     = Breezy Hill,<br>Springfield, Vermont
| area         = {{convert|3.5|acre}}
| built        = {{start date|1923, 1930}}
| refnum       = 77000107
| added        = 7 November 1977
| designated_nrhp_type = 20 December 1989
| locmapin     = Vermont#USA
}}
|telescope1_name = 
|telescope1_type = 
|telescope2_name = 
|telescope2_type = 
|telescope3_name = 
|telescope3_type = 
|telescope4_name = 
|telescope4_type = 
}}
The '''Stellafane Observatory''' is an astronomical observatory in Springfield, Vermont, founded in 1920 by [[Biography:Russell W. Porter|Russell W. Porter]]. The Pink Clubhouse was built in 1923 at the site by the Springfield Telescope Makers Club. The name ''Stellafane'', suggested by Porter at the club's December 1923 meeting, is derived from the Latin words ''stella'' and ''fanum'' meaning "Shrine to the Stars",<ref>{{cite web|author=Ken Slater |url=http://stellafane.org/about/index.html |title=stellafane.org, About Us – About Stellafane |publisher=Stellafane.org |date= |accessdate=2010-09-22}}</ref> and originally referred specifically to the clubhouse, but has since come to refer to all of the club's land and buildings on the summit of Breezy Hill, west of downtown Springfield.

The '''Stellafane Convention''', a gathering of [[Astronomy:Amateur telescope making|amateur telescope makers]] and [[Astronomy:Amateur astronomy|amateur astronomers]] is the longest running astronomical convention in the United States,<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2nDPxIRqakcC&pg=PA217|title=Guidebook for the Scientific Traveler|last=Nickell|first=Duane S.|publisher=Rutgers University Press|year=2008|isbn=978-0-8135-4918-7|location=New Jersey|pages=217|language=en}}</ref> having been held nearly every year at the location since 1926. The clubhouse and observatory became listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1977, and became a National Historic Landmark in 1989, in recognition of the club's pioneering role in the popularization of astronomy and the amateur construction of telescopes.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl/detail.cfm?ResourceId=1713&ResourceType=Building |title=National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service – Stellafane Observatory |publisher=Tps.cr.nps.gov |date=1989-12-20 |access-date=2010-09-22 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110606183726/http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl/detail.cfm?ResourceId=1713&ResourceType=Building |archive-date=2011-06-06 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url={{NHLS url|id=77000107}}|title=NHL nomination for Stellafane Observatory|publisher=National Park Service|accessdate=2015-04-18}}</ref>


==History==
Russell Porter was born in Springfield in 1871, and in 1919, upon returning to the town, began constructing telescopes with the assistance of employees and equipment from the factories in Springfield. The Springfield Telescope Makers Club grew out of an instructional class on how to make telescopes that was started by Porter the following year, on 12 August 1920.

===Clubhouse===
{{stack|[[File:Stellafane Observatory Pink Clubhouse 2021.jpg|thumb|260px|View of the original pink Clubhouse at the Stellafane Observatory (2021).]]}}
On {{start date and age|1923|12|7|df=y|paren=y}}, the members of this small group held their first meeting, deciding to build a clubhouse<ref>{{Citation| last = Willard| first = Bert| title = A Brief History of Stellafane| publisher = The Springfield Telescope Makers, Inc.| year = 2015| url = https://stellafane.org/history/early/brief-history.html| accessdate = 2015-08-25}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=Ken Slater |url=http://stellafane.org/history/early/index.html#conventions |title=stellafane.org, Stellafane Early History |publisher=Stellafane.org |date= |accessdate=2010-09-22}}</ref> on a {{convert|3.5|acre|adj=on|lk=on}} plot belonging to Porter on the {{convert|1270|ft|adj=on}} summit of Breezy Hill outside of town.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://stellafane.org/history/early/index.html#conventions|title=Stellafane Early History|last=Slater|first=Ken|date=|website=stellafane.org|publisher=The Springfield Telescope Makers, Inc.|language=en-US|access-date=2018-04-18}}</ref>

The original {{convert|20|by|24|ft|adj=on}} clubhouse, with an {{convert|11|by|13|ft|adj=on}} ell added in 1926, included a meeting room, a kitchen, a workshop, and bunk rooms on the second floor. The building incorporated a polar Cassegrain telescope, a transit telescope (no longer functional), a [[Astronomy:Solar telescope|solar telescope]], and a [[Engineering:Sundial|sundial]] on the south wall.{{fact|date=September 2023}}

==Stellafane West==
Besides the historic Stellafane "pink clubhouse", the original site includes Porter's uniquely designed Turret Telescope, a {{convert|12|in|mm cm|adj=on}} f/17 Newtonian reflector built in 1930, consisting of an [[Astronomy:Equatorial mount|equatorial]]ly rotated concrete dome with the telescope mounted on the outside, with the observer on the inside working in heated comfort.{{fact|date=September 2023}}

In 2017, the Simoni [[Physics:Spectrohelioscope|Spectrohelioscope]] Solar Observatory was constructed near the Turret Telescope, named after long-time convention attendee Andrew E. Simoni (1918-2013).{{fact|date=September 2023}}

Stellafane West is still the location where the Springfield Telescope Makers hold most of their meetings and telescope competitions.{{fact|date=September 2023}}

==Stellafane East==
Although the amateur telescope competition and display is still held on the original site around the clubhouse, most of the convention activities since the 1980s have taken place at Stellafane East, an annex to the original land about {{convert|1/4|mi|m}} away.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=https://stellafane.org/history/modern/index.html|title=Stellafane Modern History|author=|date=|website=stellafane.org|publisher=The Springfield Telescope Makers, Inc.|language=en-US|archive-url=|archive-date=|url-status=|access-date=2018-07-22}}</ref>

Stellafane East includes the more recent McGregor Observatory, built between 1986-1991, which boasts a {{convert|13|in|mm cm|adj=on}} [[Company:Ludwig Schupmann|Schupmann]] telescope, the Breuning Domed Observatory built in the early 2000s, the Flanders Pavilion, built in 2005 and named after founding club member Ernest Flanders, the "Amphitheater" hillside presentation area, the "Bunkhouse", which contains radio communications equipment, and several other buildings on the eastern site.<ref name=":0" />

Over {{convert|10|acre|lk=on}} of land at Stellafane East are reserved as a camping area, with plots for tents, campers, and RVs to reside during the multi-day convention and other gatherings.{{fact|date=September 2023}}

==Stellafane Convention==
The Stellafane Convention is held every year on the club's land and  buildings on the summit of Breezy Hill.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.skyandtelescope.com/astronomy-news/stellafane-2017/|title=Stellafane: A Weekend on Breezy Hill - Sky & Telescope|last=Walker|first=Sean|date=July 28, 2017|work=Sky & Telescope|access-date=2018-07-22|language=en-US}}</ref> It was started by Porter and the Springfield Telescope Makers in 1926, as an occasion for some 20 amateur telescope makers to compare telescopes and exchange ideas. It has since become  Thousands of amateur telescope makers from all over the world gather to share their innovations, join in competitions, and enjoy the night sky. The convention is generally held over the weekend of the [[Astronomy:New moon|new moon]] closest to the height of the Perseid meteor shower, usually in early August.{{Citation needed|date=July 2018}}

The convention has been held nearly every summer since 1926, with the exceptions of:
* 1949–1953, following the death of founder Russell W. Porter
* 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic

The convention has been attended by several notable figures in the fields of astronomy and space exploration, including Alan Bean, [[Biography:David H. Levy|David H. Levy]], [[Biography:Alan Stern|Alan Stern]], [[Biography:Clyde Tombaugh|Clyde Tombaugh]], and Samuel D. Hale, grandson of George Ellery Hale.

==See also==
*[[Astronomy:3140 Stellafane|3140 Stellafane]], asteroid named after Stellafane
*[[Astronomy:Amateur telescope making|Amateur telescope making]]
*[[Astronomy:Amateur astronomy|Amateur astronomy]]
*[[Astronomy:List of astronomical societies|List of astronomical societies]]
*[[Organization:Star party|Star party]]
;Notable amateur astronomers associated with Stellafane
*Robert E. Cox
*James Hartness
*Walter Scott Houston, longtime presenter of the Saturday evening "Shadowgram" talk
*Albert Graham Ingalls, Scientific American editor who wrote stories about Russell W. Porter and the Springfield Telescope Makers
*John M. Pierce, early founding member
*[[Biography:Russell W. Porter|Russell W. Porter]], founder of the Springfield Telescope Makers
*List of National Historic Landmarks in Vermont
*National Register of Historic Places listings in Windsor County, Vermont

==Gallery==
<gallery>
Image:Telescope trailer 22.jpg|A large trailer mounted [[Astronomy:Newtonian telescope|newtonian reflector]] on display during the 1983 Stellafane Convention with the pink Clubhouse and the Porter Turret Telescope in the background
File:Stellafane Simoni Observatory 2021.jpg|View of the Simoni Spectrohelioscope building at Stellafane West
File:Stellafane McGregor Observatory 2021.jpg|The McGregor Observatory building at Stellafane East
Image:Stellafane building logo.jpg|The Stellafane logo on the cornerstone of the McGregor Observatory
File:Stellafane Breuning Domed Observatory 2021.jpg|View of the Breuning Domed Observatory at the 2021 Stellafane Convention
File:Stellafane Flanders Pavillion 2021.jpg|View of the Flanders Pavilion at the 2021 Stellafane Convention
Image:Stellafane presentation.jpg|Stellafane presentation at the hillside amphitheater in 1999
</gallery>

==Notes==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
;Stellafane observatory
* [http://stellafane.org/history/early/index.html#conventions Stellafane clubhouse history]
* [http://stellafane.org/history/early/ptt1.html The Porter Turret Telescope: How It Works]
* [http://stellafane.org/history/early/landmark.html The Stellafane National Historic Monument]
;Stellafane convention
* [http://stellafane.org/convention/index.html Stellafane Convention schedule and history]

{{Astronomy navbox}}

[[Category:Amateur astronomy organizations]]

{{Sourceattribution|Stellafane}}