Telescope Competition at the Clubhouse
Every year, we have a range of expert speakers. This year's theme is Dark Skies. Join us to hear from experts in the field, and attend workshops on mirror-making, telescope building, and much more! For more advanced attendees, attend the off-site workshop on advanced topics at the Hartness House on Thursday for an additional fee.
Stellafane is known as the "Birthplace of Amateur Telescope Making," and creating mirrors and scopes remains a core aspect of the convention and organization. Enter your handmade telescope into the annual Telescope Competition and be inspired while walking through the fields of scopes set up around the historic Stellafane Clubhouse.
New & Featured Events
Stellafane & Beyond Film Premier
Join us for the premiere of a feature film that transports its audience from a renowned astronomy shrine into the farthest reaches of space inspired by the art and history of amateur telescope making. Friday, August 14 5:00 pm at 100 River Street in Springfield. Buy tickets with your Convention Admission.
Hartness House Workshop
Held the Thursday before Convention, the Workshop offers a broad spectrum of advanced individual talks. The Day will be full of a high-quality presentations on a variety of astronomical subjects, with the opportunities to mingle with the speakers and other attendees at the historic Hartness House Inn.
New & Featured Events
Stellafane & Beyond Film Premier
Join us for the premiere of a feature film that transports its audience from a renowned astronomy shrine into the farthest reaches of space inspired by the art and history of amateur telescope making. Friday, August 14 5:00 pm at 100 River Street in Springfield.
Buy tickets with your Convention Admission.
Hartness House Workshop
Held the Thursday before Convention, the Workshop offers a broad spectrum of advanced individual talks. The Day will be full of a high-quality presentations on a variety of astronomical subjects, with the opportunities to mingle with the speakers and other attendees at the historic Hartness House Inn.
Every year in the dark of a midsummer new Moon, amateur astronomers and telescope makers travel great distances to gather on a beautiful rural hilltop in Springfield, Vermont. This is The Stellafane Convention, the oldest annual gathering of night-sky enthusiasts, and one of the largest. It has been hosted here at the birthplace of American amateur telescope making by the Springfield Telescope Makers since 1926.
Convention Basics
The dark skies of rural Vermont provide fine observing conditions. All are encouraged to bring and use their telescopes, home-built or commercial. There is plenty of observing available even without your own scope when on Convention grounds, with multiple solar observing opportunities during daylight hours, and at night, a field of telescopes waiting to be judged (most owners will let you take a peek), as well as 3 permanent observatories and some of the darkest skies in the country.
To many, the telescope competition is the heart and soul of The Stellafane Convention. Expert optical and mechanical judges pick the best amateur-built telescopes in several categories, from basic small Newtonians to more esoteric compound telescopes. Special awards are also made for design innovations. Winning at Stellafane is a real honor. Quite aside from awards, the competition is a rare chance for amateurs to compare notes, for prospective telescope makers to examine the designs of others before undertaking such a project, and for all to enjoy the ingenuity of these talented instument builders
Ruskin Hartley, Executive Director of Dark Sky International, will speak on the accomplishments and challenges of protecting the night sky - a critical resource for astronomy, nature, and the environment at the Saturday Evening Program.
“Stellafane” means Shrine to the Stars. Time has also made it a shrine to the history of American astronomy. People who come here feel a rare connection to that history, and to each other in our common astronomical pursuit. Longstanding friendships are nurtured here. Many folks return year after year to see friends they encounter nowhere else!
The Springfield Telescope Makers (a nonprofit organization) holds a fundraising raffle at the Convention, with the drawing held before the Saturday evening keynote address. The donated prizes typically include up to $10,000 worth of equipment and accessories relating to amateur astronomy, dark skies, Stellafane, and much more! This event is a highlight for many longtime convention goers, and you have great odds of going home with some new loot!
We offer on-site camping for tents and RVs. Camping is primitive with minimal amenities and no RV hookups; however, Port-a-potties are provided, and hot meals are available from a catered food tent.
For those who don't feel like camping, there are a number of lodging options in the surrounding towns, including charming Vermont inns and conventional hotels such as Best Western.
The Edgar May Health & Recreation Center, conveniently located in Springfield has showers available to non-members on a walk-in basis. It is a clean and friendly facility, just a 10 minute drive from Stellafane, towards the highway.
Important information:
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Showers cost $5.00 | Towel rentals are $3.00
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140 Clinton St, Springfield, VT 05156 | Call: (802) 885-2568
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Mon-Thu 5:30 am-9:00 pm; Fri 5:30am-8:00pm;
Sat: 7:00 am-4:00 pm; Sun 8:00 am-4:00 pm
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