A Rare Triple Conjunction is Coming! Join us for the joint meeting of MAPS, SEPA & GLPA on Oct. 9-13, 2007 at the Oglebay Resort & Conference Center in Wheeling, West Virginia.

Registration Packets

Vendor registration packets have been mailed. You can also download them here. conf-vendor-reg-forms.pdf [276K]

Delegate Registration Packet Download: If you don't receive the registration packet in the mail, the following PDF files can be downloaded, printed and returned with your payment to register for the conference.

Conference Agenda

Guest Speakers to Include:

David Levy

Charles A. Wood, author of Sky and Telescope's "Exploring the Moon"

Dr. Jim Kaler: Astronomy Update

Dr. James Sweitzer

Conference Workshop Sign-up

IMPORTANT: Contact the workshop presenter before September 30th to sign up for workshops. Since workshops and papers are sometimes running concurrently, you may want to view the conference agenda, paper abstracts, and workshop abstracts before making your decision.

CONFERENCE DETAILS:

The conference registration area, located in Wilson Lodge, will open at 3:00pm on Tuesday, October 9 for those wanting to arrive early and have an opportunity to enjoy the park for a little while.

The conference will officially get underway with a reception beginning at 6:00pm, Tuesday, October 9. Jon Bell is organizing his "Astropardy" game quiz for eager contestants from all three regions. Winners from each of the regions will face off in the final round for "regional bragging rites".

Conference sessions will begin at 8:00am on Wednesday, Oct. 10. Sessions will include several papers, workshops, a poster session, vendor demonstrations and presentations as well as a vendor hall. These sessions will be held throughout the day at Wilson Lodge and/or the Benedum Planetarium on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday morning. There will be a short morning session at Wilson Lodge on Thursday, Oct. 11, before boarding the motor-coaches for a 1-hour trip to the Carnegie Science Center and Buhl Planetarium in Pittsburgh, PA. We will spend the afternoon attending presentations and demonstrations in the planetarium as well as getting an opportunity to explore the science center. A dinner is planned to be held at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in the Oakland section of Pittsburgh Thursday evening.

Speakers for the conference include noted astronomer and avid comet hunter, David Levy; (David will present his talk on Wednesday evening, Oct. 10, at Wilson Lodge). Charles A. Wood, author of the Sky and Telescope column "Exploring the Moon"; perennial favorite, Dr. Jim Kaler will present his annual "Astronomy Update"; and Dr. James Sweitzer will be the banquet speaker.

Susan Button is planning a series of Portable Dome workshops during the conference, which could involve as many as 4 portable domes.

ROOM INFORMATION

A block of 185 rooms (all 89 standard rooms and 96 of the intermediate rooms) have been set aside for the conference. Room rates have been locked in for standard rooms at $99.00 per night plus applicable taxes. Intermediate rooms are $129.00 per night plus applicable taxes. 4-bedroom cottages are $325 per night plus applicable taxes. Room check-in is 3:00pm, 4:00pm for cottages. For reservations, call 800-624-6988. When making reservations, please make sure to mention that you are with the "Triple Conjunction Conference".

Alternate lodging may be available, though could be difficult to secure with competing activities in town. Wheeling also has a dog racing track and slots facility, which draws from a wide area. If the table gaming vote wins in early June, hotel rooms will be more difficult to secure. A Hampton Inn [(304) 233-0440] is located 3 miles from Oglebay, on National Road, next to the Bob Evans restaurant. The Wheeling Island Race Track and Gaming Center Hotel [(304) 232-5050] is approximately 6 miles from Oglebay. The Hampton Inn is $109- $114/night. The Wheeling Island Track and Gaming Center is $112/night, Sun. through Thurs. and $139.50/night, Fri. and Sat. A 17% tax is added to both rates. Although not as convenient, other hotels are in the area.

IMPORTANT - The cutoff date for a guaranteed room or cottage is Thursday, August 9, 2007. The reservations department will begin releasing rooms and cottages after that date. Therefore, please secure your room reservations early. If you think you might attend the conference, but are not sure, you can secure the room with a credit card and cancel at a later date.

COST

Conference registration fees are $245.00, which will include all breakfasts, lunches, banquet, reception, breaks, coach costs and the dinner in Pittsburgh.

TRANSPORTATION

Construction Alert: If you are driving to the conference, read this important information!
Click on the following PDF file: conf-construction.pdf

The Greater Pittsburgh International Airport is the closest major airport to Wheeling. The airport is serviced by all major car rental agencies. Oglebay is a 1-hour drive from the airport, via I-279 east, I-79 south and I-70 west.

A limousine service is available out of Wheeling for small groups wanting to travel together. To reserve this service, call Wheeling Airport Limousine at 800-326-2907 for pricing and reservations. Persons using this service are responsible for making all the arrangements.

Maps are available in the Conference Information PDF file: conf-Delegate-Info.pdf [780K]

Conference Agenda Files
PDF file	conf-agenda.pdf Overall agenda for conference.	Updated Sept. 9th
PDF file	conf-pitt-itinerary.pdf Itinerary for Thursday's trip to Pittsburgh.	Updated Sept. 16th
See also Workshops section for paper, poster, and workshop abstracts.