Proposal - Live Virtual Star Party?

[AstroBee]

I'm not sure where to post this or if the site mods can chime in and move this to a more appropriate location. Maybe site mods can take over this idea but I'm happy to run with it.
Here's what I'm thinking.
We pick a date and everyone that can, joins in and shares either a live-stream link or images taken THAT day and night. Yes, we can even get the solar imagers in on this.
If we have members around the world we could make this a 24hr event. Obviously, it's going to be day and night at different times for everyone and some locations will be cloudy but I think we could pull this off.
My local club has been doing virtual star parties for a while now since Covid hit us. Everyone could promote the event via their local astronomy clubs.
We could maybe do this on April 22nd which is Earth Day this year?

Thoughts?

[SkyHiker]

Great idea. Like your astronomy club, mine also has online meetings (weekly). The participants are an offspring from the DIY / mirror making and testing subgroup. We submit topics to talk about then the moderator streamlines it. That way it does not turn into casual chat and does not become chaotic. In these Covid times it is very nice to have some online face time with club members.

[starfield]

I'm game. Sounds fun.

[Ylem]

That does sound like fun
I'm in.

[AstroBee]

OK, two west-coasters and I'm in Nevada. We just need to get some particpants across the globe to make sure we have some clear weather and then decide on a date.

[messier 111]

Québec Canada is in to .

[Graeme1858]

Sounds like a great idea!

Could you, or anyone with experience, post up a quick summary of how to go about live streaming for those of us who are new to it please?

Regards

Graeme

[Star Dad]

I could do this on Zoom. This past week I did my first Zoom live stream of my telescope imaging the Moon in real time. It work out really well. I'm in - but I will have to say that I only have a 12% chance of a clear night. Zoom requires a license and the number of connections is part of the price one has to pay for. I only have DSL (Digital Subscriber Line - essentially over the phone) so I could not handle multiple connections - even if I wanted to. I don't know of any free streaming services - but that's just my ignorance showing.

Installing zoom is really easy - just go to zoom.org and download for your OS. I have it on both Windblows (7) and Linux. Easy peasy.

[Gordon]

This is an idea the team recently discussed. But we would need someone to take on the task....

@AstroBee Would you like to tackle it?

[kt4hx]

I would suggest that when setting up dates, to be cognizant of the lunar phase. While there are many who observe the moon regularly, there are also many, like myself, who only observe when the moon is not a deterrent to observation of DSOs. Having the moon available is good for some, but not so much so for others. Just a thought.

[jrkirkham]

It sounds interesting

[AstroBee]

I will look into it Gordon. I know with Zoom, the free account, you are limited to only a few people at once and I believe there is a 45-minute time limit.
If I'm able to perhaps only pay for one month of the upgraded service instead of some sort of a contract, I'd be willing to foot the bill for a single month. I'll look into costs.

Regarding internet speeds as StarDad with DSL is concerned, you are not responsible for the streaming of everyone connected, only your own feed. So as long as you are able to stream yourself, if you've attended a Zoom meeting in the past, then you would have no trouble participating in the event.

Alan's concerns regarding the moon are legitimate. I think if we scheduled it on an evening with a fairly new crescent moon, that would give those with only lunar or planetary capabilities the possibility of joining in on the fun. Then after a couple of hours after sunset, the moon would not be a consideration.

I think it would be awesome to try and coordinate a 24-hour event with people around the world and include some solar imagers too but maybe as a first test we limit it to 6 hours or so and that would probably limit the event to only a single hemisphere. If we can pull that off then we could expand to a 24hr event. UT time will have to be the standard.

Thoughts?

[kt4hx]

Alan's concerns regarding the moon are legitimate. I think if we scheduled it on an evening with a fairly new crescent moon, that would give those with only lunar or planetary capabilities the possibility of joining in on the fun. Then after a couple of hours after sunset, the moon would not be a consideration.

Thoughts?

That would work well. Besides, the moon is more interesting during its waxing up to first quarter. You get a lot of shadows which serves to enhance the experience. I will observe with a crescent moon in the western sky by observing more toward the east and northeast, which limits its impact to what I am doing. In that way, it gives something for everyone.

[AstroBee]

I might do a little YouTube LiveStream tonight from around 7p-9p PDT (Monday Jan.25th 03:00 UTC) I'll edit this post with a link later if anyone wants to join in and chat. Not the same as the interactivity of a Zoom call but it works for a single person streaming to many.

[AstroBee]

A little test stream tonight. It's a bit windy but I'm just fooling around anyway.

[AstroBee]

I had a great virtual meeting yesterday with Gordon and Graeme here regarding this event. A couple of things we discussed are as follows.
1. We do an initial short 1-2 hr test meeting amongst a few of the mods just to get the flow down pat.
2. Then we open it up to the forum for a 5-6 hour event that would probably be timed for evening viewers here in the states. Of course, anyone on the "Daylight" side of the planet at that time could also join in with some solar viewing.
3. Then we get really ambitious and try to run a 24-hour event with contributors from all over the globe. The long event would, or could, include not just electronic observations but maybe get some of the vendors involved in doing demos of their products or we have "learning" sessions that last an hour or so on different Astro programs such as SharpCap, NINA, etc...

Looking for feedback from those that are interested in assisting in an event like this. Any ideas will be considered.

[AstroBee]

The weather is looking nice here tonight which is a break from the horrible weather we've had this week. I may be going online again if anyone wants to join in. Probably around 6:30 pm PST (02:30 UT Sun.1/31)
I'll try and remember to come back here and provide a link. Would love to chat with anyone in the YouTube chat if you feel like it. At least say hello so I know I'm not talking to myself.

[Gordon]

I will try to pop in.

[AstroBee]

[Gordon]

I was able to jump on the the live YouTube presentation yesterday evening. I learned a lot of tips and tricks that I had heard about but never seen in action. I was impressed with the quality of images taken while live stacking. It's something I will be doing now.

Thanks @AstroBee (Greg) for taking the time to put this together!!!