New Southern California Astronomy Exhibition

This may be a little premature, but I wanted to get the word out early
about "Julian Starfest". Julian Starfest, a three-day festival focused
around the field of astronomy, will occur in the mountain town of
Julian on August 1, 2 and 3, 2008.

The event is the brainchild of three Julian astronomers, Scott Baker,
Michael Leigh and Chuck Kimball, and will be sponsored by the Julian
Merchants Association and the Julian Chamber of Commerce. All three
founders of the event are 30-year veterans of the astronomy hobby and
each, coincidentally, owns a Bed & Breakfast in Julian and shares
their love of astronomy with guests. Julian is known for its clear
dark skies and one of the best locations in Southern California for
observing.

The event will be held at Menghini Winery where a large grassy area
and plenty of parking can accommodate the anticipated crowd. Planned
are two nights of observing (aka Star Party), Friday and Saturday, and
astronomy related exhibition areas during the day on Saturday and
Sunday. Guest speakers will present on astronomy related subjects
throughout the days. A raffle with some great astronomy prizes will
be held Saturday evening.

On Saturday, a behind-the-scenes tour of the Hale 200-inch telescope
on Palomar Mountain is an option for attendees. Sunday will feature
an astronomy swap meet for attendees to sell and barter astronomy
equipment. Several well known astronomy equipment manufacturers will
have displays of their equipment, including Meade Instruments,
Celestron and Vixen Optics. Other astronomy vendors will be selling
equipment as well.

Camping, adjacent to the observing site, is available to astronomers
on a first come-first served basis. For more details and registration
forms, please visit the Julian Starfest web page at http://www.julianstarfest.com.

To reach Menghini Winery, take Highway 78 or 79 to Julian. Follow
Julian's Main Street north, which becomes Farmer Road. The Menghini
Winery is at the junction of Farmer Road and Wynola Road, 3 miles
north of town.