Conference Schedule August 12-15 2026

Some notes about the schedule:

Conference Soft Start and Hard Start
While there is activity on Wednesday night and Thursday morning, the conference schedule is designed to allow guests who would normally arrive the Wednesday night before, to forgo the extra hotel night if they choose, and arrive later in the morning on Thursday the 13th, as the official start to the conference is at 1:00PM on Thursday.

Thursday morning is considered our “soft start” in order to offer guests a shorter hotel stay at the front of the conference, either for budgetary reasons, or because of the necessary hotel stay for those attending the Sunday afterparty.

All programs are subject to change.

(The schedule below as of April 12th 2026)

Wednesday August 12th

5:00 - 7:00PM Early Conference Registration Check-in
Outside Covington Ballroom at the Marriott RiverCenter.

7:00PM - Welcome Dinner and Social (ticketed activity)
Molly Malone’s Irish Pub - Covington KY

See details on our special events page HERE

Thursday August 13th

8:00AM Registration Check-in Table Opens
Outside Covington Ballroom

10:00AM - Conference Soft Start and Meet & Greet Brunch (ticketed activity)
Atrium (Second Floor)

See details on our special events page HERE

11:00AM - Soft Start Presentation - John Ventre - The Case of the Stolen Lens
Atrium (Second Floor)

12:00PM - Vendor tables open

1:00PM - Official Conference Start
General Session - Welcome (& Urban Astrophotography?)
Covington Ballroom

2:00PM - General Session - Dr Nick Abel - Teaching Scientific Ideas to Non-science People
Covington Ballroom

3:00PM: Break 

3:30PM - General Session - Dusty Segretto - Micrometeorites; A History and How-to
Covington Ballroom

4:30PM - Registration Check-in Closes.

5:00PM - Vendor Tables Close for the Day

6:00PM - StarBQ (ticketed activity)
Cincinnati Museum Center

See details on our special events page here

9:45PM - StarBQ Ends
End of Scheduled Activities for Thursday

Friday August 14th

8:00AM - Registration Check-in Re-Opens
Outside Covington Ballroom

9:00AM - Vendor Tables ReOpen 
Kentucky Room

9:00AM - General Session - CAS Citizen Science
Covington Ballroom

10:00AM - BREAK

10:30AM - Astronomical League Business Meeting
Covington Ballroom

11:30AM - Dr Wes Ryle - Citizen Science Photometry
Covington Ballroom

12:30PM - Send-Off Instructions for Discovery Day
Covington Ballroom

1:00PM - Explore Cincinnati Activity

Tour at The Cincinnati Observatory Center  (ticketed activity)

Underground Brewery Tour (ticketed activity)

Explore with CAS Ambassadors (ad hoc events)

See details on our special events page HERE

7:00PM - Vendors close for the day.

7:00PM - General Session Featured Speaker - Pranvera Hyseni (see bio and topic HERE)
Covington Ballroom

8:00PM - BREAK COMPLIMENTARY ICE CREAM SUNDAE BAR

8:30PM - General Session Featured Speaker - Dr Shane Larson (see bio and topic HERE)
Covington Ballroom

9:45PM - Featured Session Ends
End of Scheduled Activities for Friday

Saturday August 15th

8:00AM - Registration Check-In Table ReOpens
Outside Covington Ballroom

9:00AM - Vendor Tables ReOpen 
Kentucky Room

9:00AM - Panel on Engaging Young Scientists - Dr Jeremy Huber / Eimee Donbar / Emmy Bursk / and Catherine Heile moderated by Terry Endres
Covington Ballroom

10:00AM - BREAK

10:30AM - General Session Jericho Kuehl - Citizen Science
Covington Ballroom

11:30AM - Bryan Simpson / Dieter Moeller - The Moeller Observatory and CAS Partnership
Covington Ballroom

12:30PM - Lunch Break - No formal offering - guests discretion

1:30PM - General Session Scott Harrington - Much Ado About Nebulae
Covington Ballroom

2:30PM - Special Youth Award Sessions - 2 Speakers TBD
Covington Ballroom

4:30PM - Registration Check-In Table Closes

4:30PM - Vendors Close

5:30PM - SOCIAL HOUR - Complimentary Beer and Wine Bar
Music Performance by members of the Cincinnati Civic Orchestra
Atrium

6:30PM - ALCON 2026 Keynote Banquet & Awards (•••ticketed activity•••)
Covington Ballroom

8:00PM - Keynote Speaker - Dr Rebecca Williams - Snapshots of Mars Watery Past from NASA Rovers
Covington Ballroom

9:00PM - Astronomical League Awards
Covington Ballroom

10:00PM - Conference Ends

** End of Scheduled Conference Activities **

Sunday August 16th

Adams County, Ohio

2:00PM - Afterparty at The Moeller Observatory (ticketed event - no additional charge*)
Hosted by Dieter Moeller and the Cincinnati Astronomical Society

*See the Moeller Afterparty Page for More information

** The Moeller Afterparty is not officially part of ALCON 2026 but is open to attendees of ALCON only

11:59PM - Afterparty Ends for attendees taking the motorcoach back to Cincinnati. Other attendees may camp overnight.