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Hello all! And the winners are: June 25-29 September 17-21 Both Wednesday to Sunday noon Seems strange to mention camping on the coldest day in a very long time! Anyway, I will be posting the dates and updating the website in the near future, ASAP. Please keep alert for updates to register. NEW info for the party: I have solar power and generator power for the parties. I will be discussing landline power with the state parks, and I'll keep you posted. I have no idea what the demand might be, but it has been more than sufficient for the last few parties. I'm hoping to be able to have AV equipment available for speakers and talks for both parties. If you would like to offer to do a talk, please contact me directly at philderosa1@... for more details.

Hello everyone! Today is Thursday, March 27. Yesterday we had some snow showers, this morning was 26 degrees, it's now doubled to 52, and they're forecasting 78 degrees for Saturday. Welcome to spring! Actually, winter was crazy warm and cold around here, too. I am now looking forward to enjoying the warmer temperatures and outdoor activities I love, including astronomy. How about you? As I mentioned on the website, I have arranged for AC power to be available during the event. Not primitive anymore. I have a quote for the red covers for the bathroom lights, which I will be ordering in the next few days. The remaining lights are a few security lights, and they will have red covers shielding overflow lighting as usual, while providing the needed security for the office area. I wish to thank the PA State Park people for their cooperation. Now I would like to ask a favor. Many of you go to other parties, as well as this one, which is understandable, each party has its own unique features. Many of you also belong to clubs. Please submit this party's info to your club newsletter, so that your other members are aware of the dates and website. I know some of you do this already, and it has been greatly appreciated and helpful. I would also ask that you share this info with friends in other clubs, newsletter editors, and websites. This may always be a small party, but right now it is tiny. I sometimes wonder if I should call it the Shoestring star party. I would like to do this party as long as possible, in spite of the expense increases in the last year. They've almost doubled since I started at this park. I'm not talking about the things I've purchased; that's something else. I'm talking about the fee increases and insurance I'm required to have. Don't get me wrong, I am not planning to stop. I just need to grow this a bit to become more sustainable. Together, we can continue to enjoy this site for many years. I'll thank you in advance for your help and look forward to seeing many of you at this year's parties. Clear Skies and safe travels. Phil DeRosa PS - Registration IS open! Here's the info: York County Star Party 2025 June 25-29 and September17-21 www.yorkcountystarparty.org Susquehannock State Park Lancaster County Pa

Hello everybody! I've been updating the entire website, if I missed something, please let me know. I've arranged to pay for 60 AMPs of 110 AC available for most of the party, starting Wednesday to Sunday, and I have solar panels and a generator as well. I've been granted permission to repurchase and use red plastic covers for the LED lights in the rest rooms. They are much easier to use and cover the lighting more completely. I expect to have them before the June party. Lasers will not be permitted on the observing fields during observing, which is the standard at all other parties. If you have never been to a star party, please read the rules page on the website www.yorkcountystarparty.org I have the state park rules linked there, as well as these two links about star party etiquette. https://www.go-astronomy.com/articles/star-party-etiquette.htm ? Sky&Telescope's "What's Up at Star Parties?": https://www.skyandtelescope.com/astronomy-resources/astronomy-questions-answers/whats-up-at-star-parties/ I was able to rent the pavilion for the September party Saturday, and I'm planning to have AV available for talks. This is my plan for all parties in the future. The June party Saturday was already reserved, and may still be usable after 8pm, or earlier, depending on when it is vacated. If anyone would like to give a talk, please keep this in mind, and contact me by email with an outline of the talk, which is required by the park supervisor before the party. NOTE: If anyone still has my starpartyphil email address, please stop using it. the address I use now is the one I used to send this email, so please make sure philderosa1@... is the one you have in your contacts. Also, I would like to know, in case of emergency, if anyone attending is a first responder or qualified in first aid. I have never had an incident at any party in the last 31 years, but I would like to be prepared. I am hoping to have more time available this year for this event, and I hope to do more personal observing as well PLEASE SHARE THIS WITH YOUR CLUBS, FREINDS, and anyone else who is a hobbyist. Thank you all for your support! Phil DeRosa philderosa1@... www.yorkcountystarparty.org June 25-29, 2025 and September 17-21, 2025 1

Hello everyone! This is my first post on the new site, lots to get familiar with. Thanks for joining this group, it is the only way I can easily keep everyone informed about this party. (Nice to see who has joined!) A big thanks to Prasad, for doing the work to set this up, and for always being available to help. Speaking of help, if Yahoo is already dead, I will need your help to invite your friends and others that might be interested and may not be aware of the new group replacing the Yahoo group, or haven't seen our emails. If you have a club or group newsletter to spread the word, a mention of the new location also might spur some interest. I will be posting the 2020 dates soon, as we continue to invite new 2019 attendees to this group and requesting their votes. That's all for now. Phil

All, Thank you for accepting the invitation to join this group. I tried sending you all an advance notification through the Yahoo group but it did not go through. My guess is that Yahoo group has already stopped working. This is going to be our new home for communicating. Of course, we will also have http://yorkcountystarparty.org/ Please, if you attended the 2019 Star Party at Susquehannock State Park, and if you have photos, could you please post them to the photos section of this group? That will be greatly appreciated. CS Prasad

Hi everyone. First, thanks for being so prompt in moving to the new group. This is rewarding to see. Second, I promise to try to be brief and to the point. Always. Third, if you haven't voted or shared your preferences in descending order for next year's party, please do so ASAP. I saved all replies so far, they aren't lost on Yahoo, so no need to vote again, unless you are changing or adding to a previous vote. I had hope for a much larger response, so a clear decision could be made quickly. I'm still waiting for that to happen. I don't want anyone to feel their choice wasn't given a fair chance. I'll share results as soon as it makes sense to do so. Anyone with a vacation choice deadline, feel free to text me at 717-891-8380 for a current update on where I am at choosing dates. I'll call you back. Please supply a good time for callbacks. That's if for now. And thanks again. I can't wait to see how next year's party turns out. I'm very optimistic. Phil

I am closing the poll tomorrow midnight for preferences for which month to hold the party next year. If you haven’t voted yet, please do so immediately. All votes can be submitted directly to me at philderosa1@... Two caveats to the voting: I expect to have a definitive answer soon from the Busy Bee as to their availability for these dates. I am also trying to get an answer from the State Parks on how early they shut off the water at the park. Results to be shared Monday, or as soon as I get an answer from both of the above entities. Likewise, if you haven’t made the jump to the new group from Yahoo, you will lose contact and update info about future parties at our new location at Susquehannock State Park, which is a shame, because it is a beautiful dark site for this event. If you give it a try, you might be pleasantly surprised. Please check out Glen Ward’s review of his visit at the 2019 York County Star Party on Cloudy Nights. August is running a distant third, and everyone that voted for it included a second preference, but I am not counting the 2 votes for August preference for any other month so as not to sway the current voting. the remaining options are: New moon September 17 means YCSP September 16-20 New moon October 16 means YCSP October 14-18 Thanks everyone ! I hope to see you at the party no matter what month ends up chosen. Phil

OK, I am not keeping anyone in suspense. We have a clear winner. I will preface that by explaining 2 votes… We had a walk-in attendee that voted, and because that person made the effort to appear, I included that vote. The second vote was withheld until everyone else voted, and it really wouldn’t have changed the result. But I felt that person had at least as much right to express my opinion as anyone else, if not more. That was my own vote. Assuming Busy Bee is available, the dates will be September 16-20, 2020 This was the result: August……….02% September…53% October……..39% (possible dates were October 14-18) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- For those of you who look at averages (which includes me), I will share something I’ve learned about them. Standard deviations (sd) make a bigger difference. For instance, the average of the stock market (I advise people about investments) is about 11% for about 75 years. The problem is that it hit the average about 2 times in that period. It’s the highs and lows that drive investors nuts if they don’t understand it. I looked up standard deviations for temperatures in this area, and to explain it simply, 1 standard deviation (sd) for the month of October is about 7 degrees either side of the average. 68% of the time, temps fall within 1 sd, or +/- 7 degrees of the average low of 48 degrees. That can range from 41 to 55 degrees. However, about 27% of the time, temps fall between 1 and 2 sd’s, or +/- 14 degrees of the average of 48. That range now changes to 34-62 degrees. No way to forecast this a year in advance. And for those extreme temps that fall OUTSIDE of 2 sd’s 5% of the time? Well, if I had decided to hold a star party this week, October 13-17, the forecast lows every night Tuesday-Sunday are expected to range 20-24 degrees… Not very often, but that would have proved devastating to a new party location that hasn’t built a strong following yet. If you ever meet Bradley Heist, ask him about the averages for it to be cloudy or raining at the York observatory. During his stint as event coordinator for a local club, he will tell you it is 100%. That is, if he had planned a date for a club event… Phil

This may be interesting to some of you. FIRST..the STATE PARK PEOPLE I was surprised that the local parks offices have no knowledge of the parties held at Cherry Springs or even Codorus Park. The supervisors are entrusted as stewards of public lands, take their work very seriously, and are very protective. I am thrilled that they took a chance on our event, and I can understand their caution. When I was stuck for a location 3 years ago and managed to get the scout camp with 3 weeks warning, when I learned of the airport owner’s death. I was told how the scout council was burned with the aftermath of allowing some events to use Wizard Ranch, and last year I heard about how disabled vehicles were left abandoned on a park property. These are terrific people trying to do a wonderful job, truly as public servants. We are lucky to have them, and their caution is justified. SECOND..the STATE PARK property.. I am proceeding slowly and cautiously, to gain trust and build a good relationship, and see what potential there is for events at this park. Too much too fast is not a good thing here, in spite of my excitement and enthusiasm. These people have let us do things they haven’t allowed anyone else to do, and for that, we can both benefit. I am looking to help them with their efforts to promote use as well as preserve this gorgeous park. It is a small, forgotten piece of Lancaster County, which is one reason it is so dark. Surrounded by farmland on both sides of the river, Muddy Run Park to the north, and the Susquehanna River to the south, it is not likely to have the skies ruined by light pollution. Ever. I could only hope. We are also amazed at how hard and dry this field is. We are the first to be allowed to drive on it. For any of you who remember pulling onto the field at Codorus State Park in the early 2000’s, seeing a third of it taped off due to being soggy, I can appreciate their caution. THREE…the future of our EVENTS One of the things that some of you know is that I am an old boy scout. I was a kid in Brooklyn when I joined at age 10, and was taught to leave places better than I found them. Since 1995, I am usually the last person to leave the party, and I police the entire property for the tiniest bits of trash to remove any trace of our visit. I want people to realize we respect the privilege they extend to us when we have a place to hold our events. Most of you do the same. The last couple of years have been iffy, to say the least, but I never want anyone to be able to say anything negative about their experience with us. As we move forward, there may be opportunities for evening star watches or additional camping events. I will discuss these ideas when possible, and always, there are people that need to give permission to the supervisors, so please be patient. As I said, I’ve been looking for a place like this for a long time. And here it was, in my own backyard, so to speak. I plan to be welcome back here for a long time. Thanks everyone for supporting me and this party. I don’t take that for granted, either. Phil

Hello all, Thank you all who have shared your thoughts about the vote. In response to your concerns, I will try to address them briefly, IN UPPER CASE. Please do not consider this SHOUTING. It is simply to distinguish the response. I don’t expect everyone to read this message, but I felt compelled to reply to the issues raised. Here we go: Did you count the votes like mine that were sent as emails and not votes? The Yahoo site wouldn't let me vote, so I simply sent the email. The other email type votes I saw were all votes for October. ANSWER: YES I have copies of all votes from the poll-- I get direct notification of all votes to my inbox. Likewise, all the emails and response I got are saved in a separate file. Also got the responses that were tagged to the bottom of the poll. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This will - almost certainly - be the dates of the Black Forest Star Party. WELL, MAYBE. ACTUALLY, I’VE BEEN IN CONSTANT COMMUNICATION WITH STEVE TAYLOR, A MEMBER ON THE BFSP COMMITTEE. My first question was when the BFSP will be. His best GUESS that he gave me LAST WEEK would be August. No promises. The CPO is currently in re-negotiations with the State Parks. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Rather then the temperature, what will prove devastating - from an attendance standpoint - for your event is that anyone wishing for a superior observing experience will choose Cherry Springs and the Black Forest Star Party instead of the YCSP. THIS STAR PARTY IS NOT TRYING TO COMPETE WITH BFSP, AHSP, STELLAFANE, OR ANY OTHER PARTY. THERE WILL ALWAYS BE PEOPLE WHO CHOOSE TO MAKE THE TRIP TO THOSE PARTIES. Having been involved with this party since 1995, my opinion is that it is a niche party, fairly dark enough for the observers in the big cities or south of here, within 2-3 hours’ drive of this area. Many attendees would have to double their drives to attend the bigger parties. ---------------------------------------------- If YCSP is to be considered a “can’t miss” regional star party rather then the a small gathering of 20-30 people you need not have it on the same dates as the Black Forest Star Party. By doing so, you’ll limit your attendance I HAVEN’T SEEN ANY SIZABLE ATTENDANCE BY ANY OF THE LOCAL CLUBS (Harrisburg, York, Lancaster, Reading, Westminster) IN 10 YEARS, EXCEPT FOR THE PEOPLE THAT HAVE FAITHFULLY ASSISTED ME KEEP THIS PARTY GOING. ------------------------------ and the sales/profits that Buzzy Bee will realize. I do know that the folks running the Black Forest Star Party are looking at contacting Busy Bee as a possible food vendor for 2020 Black Forest Star Party. I’VE ALREADY DISCUSSED THIS WITH BUSY BEE. I think there are some logistics issues that might be of concern going north. ---------------------------------- Finally, your poll only took into account people who attended this year, and/or are members of this group. This is a much smaller audience then potential attendees if you were not competing with the Black Forest Star Party. (SEE ABOVE REMARK ABOUT COMPETING) “THIS (YAHOO/.io) GROUP HAS ABOUT 200 MEMBERS. THEY NEVER ATTEND ALL AT ONCE. Some haven’t attended for years, retired, or lost interest. I also questioned people that attended that aren’t on the groups (yet?). A sizable amount attended this year simply because they found out about it on the web. I am trying to fill a void, because there appears to be a need. I ran the party for over a decade when it was consistently over 325 attendees. That was great to increase funds for “the club”. Apparently I was no longer needed for that purpose. With the amount of people that joined the new group from the Yahoo group, and the interest of other people AND CLUBS that have contacted me after the Cloudy Nights review by Glen Ward, I am not worried about becoming as big as the other parties… actually, attendees have expressed concern if it DID get that big. This location might not be able to support that many people, anyway. Nor might the park supervisor

Hi All. I just got a commitment from Andy that the Busy Bee can be there for the September dates. While I've got your attention, I would like you to know I am hoping to get an earlier weekend approved for a no-frills party before summer. I've been trying to contact the park supervisor, and I'll let you know when That happens and when I get an answer. Phil Get Outlook for Android

Hello everyone! hope you all are having a wonderful and safe Thanksgiving! I am awaiting confirmation with the parks department for the dates I submitted. I expect them to be accepted from my conversation with the park supervisor, but still have not heard back from him. I will continue to attempt to gain a confirmation, and keep you posted. Currently I am in NJ, awaiting the first signs of the winter storm that is headed here and going to make a mess for the next 2 days. I will be returning to PA on Tuesday, and hoping that everyone has a safe return from any travel you have made to be together with your families and friends. Phil

Hello all.. Happy Holidays! HELP ASAP--I still need more responses!!! It is pretty clear to me what I will need to do, but more responses would make this obvious to the park supervisors. Thanks all that responded so far, a total of 16. At least 4 of the responders have big RVs that, bless you, don’t care and are planning to attend. I’m ok with that IF I have no expenses. The lot has a decent field of view, and still a good place for observing. But this does not look promising for this state park if there is no compromise here. I already have my eye at another location that could be dark and could work, and not that much further from my location in York. PLEASE if you have not responded, I need more numbers to work with. I will clarify one thing below, and appreciate your comments, which I will share (anonymously) with the state people, AND the group. Some of them gave me a laugh, which is appreciated! --------------------------------------------------------- This is what I sent out: ------------------------------------------------------ here is the one question with choices. You may reply by simply responding as completely as possible, for example only: A0 B20 C30 D 98 (A0 means zero percent) !!! NOTE: THIS DOESN’T HAVE TO TOTAL 100%. YOU CAN VOTE 100% FOR MORE THAN ONE CHOICE. ALSO NOTE: If you wish to clarify your earlier vote, some of which are confusing, or want to explain, please feel free to do so. All responses are going into a folder. ----------------------------------------------------- THE QUESTION IS: WHAT IS THE % LIKELIHOOD OF YOU ATTENDING THE PARTY IF: A. you are required to use the official campgrounds in the trees at the north end of the parking lot, and could leave equipment on the field overnight (I've already told them the party won't happen here) B. TENTS and SCOPES will be allowed on the field, vehicles are not allowed on the field, and you are required to carry all camping and astro gear to the ballfield C. TENTS and SCOPES will be allowed on the field, but vehicles will be allowed only for unloading and loading, but required to park in the parking lot near the bathrooms (this MAY be an option if we can't fit enough people on the observing field for a SMALL TO MID-SIZE party. I don't know what that number is yet.) D. SAME AS LAST YEAR: You can park next to your tent, and ONLY RVs and other heavy or 2-axle campers or trailers are required to park on the parking lot. AGAIN, PLEASE RESPOND TO THIS EMAIL ADDRESS ASAP: philderosa1@... Thanks everybody for your speedy responses! Phil

HELLO ALL! MERRY CHRISTMAS…AND GOOD NEWS! I got a kind-of positive response from the park supervisor. I am going to copy and paste part of his email to me so you can see exactly what he said… ------------------------------------------------ “…. We have agreed that we will allow vehicles and tents on the ballfield provided that the weather cooperates. The RV’s, camper trailers, and other heavy vehicles will need to stay on the gravel lots like this past year. We will still require your group to purchase a campsite in the Organized group tenting area for the dates that you will be staying overnight in the park along with pavilion rental. We can further discuss this next week. I will not be back in the office until December 30th. “ ------------------------------------------------ We will need to agree on what “provided that the weather cooperates” means. That should be a fun discussion. Also, two other things that need to be discussed is “like this past year “, since single-axle camper trailers were allowed on the field, and we were not required to rent campsite in addition to the renting the Pavilion. But this means, for all intents and purposes, we have not only a York County Star Party in September 16-20, but a Memorial Day No-Frills event at this park. ONE LAST BIT OF INFO NEEDED… PLEASE, IF YOU HAVE A SINGLE-AXLE CAMPER (LIKE MANY DO, INCLUDING ME), I NEED TO PROVIDE NUMBERS TO DISCUSS ABOUT BEING ALLOWED TO CAMP ON THE FIELD. In other words, if you will or will not attend if you MUST be in the parking lot. IF IT DOESN’T MATTER, OR IF YOU WILL ATTEND, I NEED TO KNOW. I don’t know how far I can get with these issues, and I don’t want to wear out our welcome before we get established. While there may be restrictions this year, that could change, if we do not have any damage on the field, which I don’t expect. I’ve been involved with this party for 25 years, and I’ve never been disappointed with anything the attendees have or haven’t done. It’s been my privilege to host this party, and to meet everyone in this hobby of ours. So now, everyone, I wish you all a safe and happy holiday! MERRY CHRISTMAS! PHIL

Hello everyone! I hope everyone is enjoying the holiday season, seeing friends and family. I do have news, and an important request for responses--ASAP---to the ONE QUESTION BELOW, or we may have a problem. First, I finally got a commitment from the state parks that TWO sets of dates have been approved, one for the Wednesday-Sunday September 15-20 York County Star Party, and.... a no-frills star party for Memorial Day weekend, Friday-Monday, May 22-25. However, I am still negotiating terms with the supervisors involved. The two persons involved have no experience with star parties, and were not part of the local team that was present for last year's event. Their job is to be the best stewards of park lands entrusted to them, and I can appreciate the seriousness of their position. Their employee, Bob, that WAS witness to our event, and supported the use of some of vehicles , has retired, and the previous supervisors have moved on to other posts. The terms put to me were that NO vehicles would be allowed on the ballfield. This negotiation is a work in progress. I may be speaking to the top supervisors tomorrow, or after the holidays, or both. I am going to ask everyone to respond to the following questions by email to me, at: philderosa1@... I need your responses ASAP from as many as possible to negotiate, whether or not you plan to attend this year, so here is the one question with choices. Please don't panic! You may reply by simply responding as completely as possible, for example only: A0 B20 C30 D 98 (A0 means zero percent) THE QUESTION IS: WHAT IS THE % LIKELIHOOD OF YOU ATTENDING THE PARTY IF: A. you are required to use the official campgrounds in the trees at the north end of the parking lot, and could leave equipment on the field overnight (I've already told them the party won't happen here) B. TENTS and SCOPES will be allowed on the field, vehicles are not allowed on the field, and you are required to carry all camping and astro gear to the ballfield C. TENTS and SCOPES will be allowed on the field, but vehicles will be allowed only for unloading and loading, but required to park in the parking lot near the bathrooms (this MAY be an option if we can't fit enough people on the observing field for a SMALL TO MID-SIZE party. I don't know what that number is yet.) D. SAME AS LAST YEAR: You can park next to your tent, and ONLY RVs and other heavy or 2-axle campers or trailers are required to park on the parking lot. AGAIN, PLEASE RESPOND TO THIS EMAIL ADDRESS ASAP: philderosa1@... Thanks everybody for your speedy responses! Phil

Phil et al. FYI. The Black Forest Star Party held each year at Cherry Springs State Park will be held Sept. 18, 19, 20. -- Paul Leuba

HEELO ALL---- HISTORY OF THE YCSP STAR PARTY … the star party MDSP, or Mason Dixon Star Party was started around 1989/1990 by the local York club at Spring County Valley Park, with the equestrian rings, near Glen Rock, PA, and until 6 years ago I had chaired it about half the years of its existence. At that point, many of the club officers decided they wanted to stop supporting the star party, even though members were fine with having it. Politics. I went to my first in 1995 and don’t think I missed any since then. I have been bounced around by land owners for the last couple of years, trying to find darker skies and a cooperating land owner, and I am thrilled to be able to offer the DARKEST site that could support a party in this area. Please stay tuned for developments, things are being worked on in the background now. Busy Bee food vendor confirmed for the September party, but is unavailable for the Memorial Day event. Hope to see you there! Phil De Rosa

HELLO ALL ! The registration page has been designed and made active, thanks to the efforts of BJ Gollatz, one of the members of the local club that has supported the star party for about 20 years. Each party is listed separately on the same page, and BJ referred to them as the May "Virgo Cluster Party" and the September "Andromeda Party" to distinguish registrations. There are 3 reasons to register early: 1. There are a lot of expenses behind the scenes, so if you register, I can plan the budget better 2. There is a maximum size for attendance without ending up under trees, and I'm getting interest from people 2-4 hours away. I have no idea how many this field can hold, but I will need go there (closer to spring!) to check it out and possibly measure spaces for attendees to get an idea. 3. If I can interest a food vendor for the Virgo Cluster party, it will help if they know they will have some customers. Busy Bee already committed to the September party. As an alternative, using the BBQ grills, driving to area eateries, or bringing camp stoves are welcome. No open ground fires allowed. I will send a follow up to this email to help answer the most common questions, as we proceed to update the website ASAP. Thanks everyone to helping to keep YOUR party going all these years! I'm looking forward to seeing everyone again! Stay tuned! Phil