Amateur astronomers’ perspectives on bright satellites in the age of megaconstellations: affected observations and willingness to act

Abstract This paper presents an overview of the attitudes and awareness within the amateur astronomical community regarding modern satellite megaconstellation projects. A series of interviews and polls to assess the perspectives of this large community was conducted, aiming to uncover their concerns and issues. Additionally, the potential to involve respondents in community-driven projects focused on satellite data acquisition and processing was investigated. The objective is to enhance data quality for astronomical imagery protection and improve existing tools for scientific research, including satellite tracking, trajectory prediction, and the detection of space debris and orbital objects.