Please note: There are very few positives about the COVID19 virus and pandemic, as numerous people died and incomes were lost and lives forever changed. But today, we are going to look at how could changes made during COVID19 affect the amateur astronomy community in the future in a positive way. That change that has affected many who now work from home is the rise of video conferencing software.

What started off years ago as each team or company using their own video conferencing tool such as Skype for essential meetings for years, video conferencing has grown into a burgeoning field of multiple competitors. With more workers working from home during COVID19, there has been a rise in Video Conferencing for every meeting as there are no in person meetings anymore.

There are a plethora of video conferencing tools available, such as Zoom, Google Hangouts, Skype, Bluejeans, GoToMeeting, Cisco WebEx, and much more! There are so many different options depending on how many attendees will attend the meeting, which features one wants to be available, how the videos will be stored, and much more!

The only potential issues with implementing a new video conferencing tool would be related to storing the recordings, getting approvals from speakers to have their presentations and themselves stored online, and operating the tool. There might be a learning curve for learning new software, however, if some time is taken to learn the tool, it can be really powerful. We understand that every amateur astronomy club will have different needs for a video conferencing tool in terms of usability, cost, and features; however, there are a plethora of options that all these different video providers provide. There will be some presenters who do not wish to be recorded, but for those who do wish to be recorded simply require a camera attached to a computer to broadcast the meeting over video conferencing.

In regards to the cost for video conferencing, it will depend on the number of users who will join the meeting, if the video will be recorded, and how the video call would want to be stored or integrated with a website. More visitors will mean a more expensive option is required; however, that also means that these companies will also have the ability to record said meetings and store them in a cloud. With the new software, the amateur astronomy club can have a member of the board, such as the communications office manage the account. Moreover, with cloud storage included for some accounts, it can provide the club with time to build a platform for only members to view the recordings on their website.

The benefits of video conferencing provides amateur astronomy clubs the unique opportunity to engage with existing members in new ways, offer features to attract new members, and engage those who are already in the process of considering joining. Although we might not necessarily be in the New York City area, if we saw an amateur astronomy club in the area that broadcasted their monthly meetings and other informational content such as lectures, we would definitely consider joining for sure. Although it is not possible to join every single astronomy club because the cost might get astronomical, if the local astronomy club records and broadcasts their monthly meetings, we would definitely seriously consider joining. For the cost of the license, providing the link to the video conference on the monthly invite, and hosting the recordings, the costs can easily outweigh the fees. For larger astronomy clubs with lots of members, this would be a great way for those members to view meetings if more members might attend a meeting than the meeting space can hold. Moreover, having recordings will easily allow future members to learn and grow from previous content. Getting started with video conferencing can also lead to other content from these astronomy clubs being placed online such as resources to helping their members get started with telescopes and share media and information like never before.

If you’re curious about how COVID19 could impact the space community, check out this article. If you’re curious about some astronomy related activities to do during coronavirus, check out our article here. If there are any questions about which video conferencing software is right for you, please feel free to contact us and we will be glad to help.