The week of ALCON 2009 will offer a chance to taste Long Island cuisine and North Fork Long Island wine.

A tour will also be offered of the Brookhaven National Laboratories, where cutting edge physics is being done including work on the Hadron Collider. On the same tour, you will be able to visit the facility of Spectrum Thin Films, where coatings are deposited on filters for NASA space probes such as the NASA’s Mars Phoenix Lander project, and Astronomical light pollution filters and other optics used by amateurs.

(NOTE: The tour of Spectrum Thin Films is a special Tour being offered by the Owner and President, Anthony Pirera, who will also be a speaker at ALCON. This is a special event not usually available to people in the amateur community. Please see the details under the “Speakers” and “Tours/Events” sections of this website. Also, please see http://spectrumthinfilms.com/)

The main event, ALCON 2009, will include speakers on diverse astronomical subjects, and there will be a special schedule of Astrophotography talks. The Association of Lunar and Planetary Observers will also have a schedule of speakers on planetary science, and the American Association of Variable Star Observers will also provide speakers.

The Star-B-que will take place at Custer Institute, which is a historic astronomical landmark on the North Fork of Long Island. Dinner will feature local culinary specialties and wine tasting, and there will be some special speakers during dinner. Following that, the Observatories on the grounds of Custer Institute will be open for stargazing. In addition to its own Observatory, Custer Institute hosts the Observatories of the Amateur Observers’ Society and the Astronomical Society of Long Island.

The ALCON 2009 Banquet will be held at Hofstra University, where a special Keynote Speaker and presentation will provide a fitting end to ALCON 2009 celebrating the 400th Anniversary of Galileo's remarkable achievements.

The following is the Schedule for the ALCON Week.

Pre-Convention Tours Available:

Monday, August 3, 2009 – A tour will be offered of the Brookhaven National Laboratory and Spectrum Thin Films.

Thursday, August 6, 2009 – The Astronomical League Council Meeting will take place at Hofstra University at the site of the Convention. Thursday evening, a Star Party will take place at the Hofstra University Observatory on top of the Physics Building.

Convention Opens:

Friday, August 7, 2009 – The Convention officially opens at Hofstra University. During the day, there will be various lectures and workshops in General Topics in Astronomy, in Astrophotography, Lunar and Planetary Studies (ALPO Organization), and Variable Star Research (AAVSO Organization). Vendors will also be available onsite selling the latest in Astronomical Equipment. On Friday evening, Attendees will board buses for the trip to the Starbeque being held at Custer Institute.

Saturday, August 8, 2009 – Various lectures will continue and vendors will be available all day. During the day, the Astronomical League will also conduct an Annual Meeting. In the evening, the Banquet, which is the grand finale of the Convention, will be held at Hofstra University. During the Banquet, there will be a special keynote speaker and the Astronomical League will also present various national awards to members and attendees.

For Tours/Events information and details, please click here.

Below is the Schedule for Speakers and Workshops during Thursday to Saturday, August 6-8, 2009:

Word Document of Friday's speakers
Word Document of Saturday's speakers

Room To Be Determined

2:00 PM – Deirdre Kelleghan - Children’s “Deadly Moons” Workshop 

Room 1 – Room 141

9:00 AM - John Goss, Club Building Workshop (In Search Of the Perfect Club)                   

10:00 AM - John Goss, Club Building Workshop (In Search Of the Perfect Club)

11:00 AM  - John Goss, Club Building Workshop (In Search Of the Perfect Club)

Noon - Lunch

1:00 PM – Dr. Mike Inglis, The Mariachi Project:  Catching Cosmic Rays!

2:00 PM - Dierdre Kelleghan, Deadly Moons Workshop                     

3:00 PM - No Workshop

Room 2 – Plaza Room Center (divided)

9:00 AM - Mike Kozma, Amateur Radio Astronomy  

10:00 AM - Mike Simonsen, Epsilon The Enigma (The Variable Epsilon Aurigae)

11:00 AM  - Mike Francis, Galileo Impersonator

Noon -Al Nagler, How To Choose Eyepieces

1:00 PM - Open

2:00 PM - Robert Naeye, Amateur Exoplanet Research

3:00 PM – Open

Room 3 – Plaza Room West (divided)

9:00 AM - Open

10:00 AM – IOTA Speaker

11:00 AM  - Neil Fleming, Astrophotography                                       

Noon - Lunch

1:00 PM – Mike Siniscalchi, Astrophotography

2:00 PM  - AOS Astrophotography Tag Team  (Bob Masterson, Bryan Bradley)                                          

3:00 PM  - Open
________________________________________________

Room 4  ALPO

9:00 AM – Dr. Mike Reynolds Welcome remarks

9:15 AM  - Richard Schmude, Membership Status and Treasury report

9:30 AM  - Frank Melillo,  ALPO Mercury observations at the 40th DPS meeting

10:00 AM  - Stuart Parker, Imaging the Planet Mercury from Southern Hemisphere

10:30 AM  - Frank Melillo, Mercury 2008 Observations

11:00 AM  - John Boudreau, Amateur Imaging of the Planet Mercury

11:30 AM  - Frank Melillo,  Results of the MESSENGER 2nd flyby 

Noon - Lunch

1:00 PM - Dr. John Westfall, Timing of Venus Contacts & Venus Transits

1:30 PM - Dr. Julius Benton (Presented by Frank J Melillo), Venus

2:00 PM  - Wayne Bailey, The ALPO Banded Crater Program on the Moon

2:30 PM  -  ALPO Business meeting

3:00 PM  -  ALPO Business meeting

Room 5 (Workshop Room) Room 142

9:00 AM - No Workshop

10:00 AM  - Vivian White, Night Sky Network

11:00 AM – Open

Noon - Lunch

1:00 PM - Mike Reynolds, Meteorite Workshop                                          

2:00 PM  - Open

Room 1 – Plaza Room Center (divided)

9:00 AM - Terry Mann, Astronomical League IYA Work

10:00 AM – Prof. Don Lubowich, Astronomical Research Program

11:00 AM - Open

Noon - Joe Rao, Great Comets Of the Last 400 Years

1:00 PM – Dr. Richard Greenberg, “Unmasking Europa”                                                   

2:00 PM – Dr. Nancy Kiang, “Astronomical Detection of Life on Other Worlds:  Biosignatures of Photosynthesis.”                                          

3:00 PM - Mike Simonsen, The Fascinating Study of Variable Stars  
                    

Room 2 – Plaza Room West (divided)

9:00 AM - Dierdre Kelleghan, Galileo

10:00 AM - Gordon Myers, The Fascinating Universe Of Variable Stars

11:00 AM - Bob Crelin, Glarebuster Lighting                
                         
Noon - Lunch

1:00 PM – Phil Harrington, “Nights of Future Passed”, which reviews the amateur telescope over the 20th century.
 
2:00 PM - Light Pollution PowWow                                                                       

3:00 PM - Astronomical League Business Meeting  
                                             

Room 3 – Room 141

9:00 AM –Rob Sparks, Light Pollution Talk

10:00 AM - NERAL Business Meeting                                                                 

11:00 AM – Jim Brunnell, Astrophotography                                                       

Noon - Lunch

1:00 PM – Steve Walters (Astrophotography), “The Race Against Time:  Sesssion Planning and Execution”                                

2:00 PM - Tony Pirera, Spectrum Thin Films, “An Astronomical Journey"                                                          

3:00 PM -  Rob Sparks, “The Galileo Scope For the IYA 2009”

Room 4  ALPO

9:00 AM - Dr. Roger Venable, Features of the North Polar Hood of Mars

9:30 AM - Richard Schmude, Recent developments on Jupiter

10:00 AM - Dr. Julius Benton, (Presented by Richard Schmude) Saturn

10:30 AM - Richard Schmude, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto

11:00 AM – Alan Friedman

 11:30 AM – Open

 Noon - Lunch

1:00 PM - Richard Schmude, “Comet Lulin”

1:30 PM - Dr. Mike Reynolds, “Eclipse Talk”

2:00 PM - Open

2:30 PM  - Open

3:00 PM – David Levy, Visual Comet Hunting: a Requiem?

________________________________________________

Room 5 (Workshop Room) Room 142

9:00 AM - Open

10:00 AM - Mike Reynolds, Meteorite Workshop

11:00 AM - No Workshop

Noon Lunch

1:00 PM - Open

2:00 PM -  Vivian White, Night Sky Network

StarBQue - Friday, August 7, 2009, after all speaker talks at Hofstra University.

6:30 PM – Wine Tasting

7:00 PM – StarBQue Begins, Dinner is served

8:00 PM - Bill Bogardus, Opening Remarks and Welcome

8:15 PM – History Of AOS and It’s Observatory

8:30 PM - Mike Francis, Galileo Impersonator

9:00 PM  - Jeff Katz, “Research At Custer”                                                   

9:30 PM  - Observing At the Custer Observatories

11:00 PM – Buses Depart For Hofstra

Banquet - Saturday, August 8, 2009, after all speaker talks at Hofstra University.

6:00 PM – Social Hour (Cash Bar Open)

7:00 PM  - Banquet Begins

                - Welcome and Introductions

                - Dinner Service

8:00 PM  - Awards

    - Keynote Speaker (David Levy)