Stellafane!

So this is Stellafane.  "Stellafane" means "Shrine to the Stars" and it has a rich history.  This pink clubhouse was built in 1923 by the Springfield Amateur Telescope Makers, and the legend is they went to the local hardware store and asked if the proprietor could donate any paint for the clubhouse, and the owner said sure, as long as he could pick the color!  This building is a national historic landmark.  This is my 30th year here at Stellafane, and by now I have so many friends that I see here once a year.  There is such a rich tradition here because of all the history over the years.

This is a view of the telescope field in front of the clubhouse.  The white "house" with the dome is actually a concrete telescope designed so that the astronomers in the old days could observe from within the structure in the Vermont winter without having to come out in the cold.  There are telescopes all over this field on display for judging.

And here is a cool story.  This is Tim and his wife Julia with their newly finished telescope awaiting judging.  The amazing thing is that I met Tim when I took the drone course at Syracuse University!  It's a small world!  The great news is that Tim and his wife won three prizes for their telescope, both for the optics, the mechanical design, and for the craftsmanship!  And this was their first telescope!