Last updated: 3 October 2026
We take the protection of your data seriously. This policy explains which personal data AstronomyLive processes, why, on what legal basis, for how long, and what rights you have. We do not sell personal data.
1. Controller
The controller under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is:
Sander Klieverik
Kalckreuthstrasse 16
10777 Berlin
Deutschland / Germany
Email: info@astronomylive.com
You can reach us at this address with any data protection question. A data protection officer is not required by law and has not been appointed.
2. Hosting and server log files
The Platform is hosted by IONOS SE, Elgendorfer Str. 57, 56410 Montabaur. Whenever a page is requested, the server processes technically necessary data: IP address, date and time, requested page, amount of data transferred, browser and operating system, and the previously visited page. This is needed to deliver the website and keep it secure.
Legal basis: Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR (legitimate interest in secure and stable operation). Log files are deleted or anonymised after 14 days at the latest unless needed to investigate a security incident. We have a data processing agreement with the host under Art. 28 GDPR.
3. Cookies and browser storage
We only use technically necessary cookies and browser storage:
- WordPress sign-in and security cookies while you are signed in;
- the
al_langcookie for your chosen language (1 year); - page settings in your browser’s storage, such as view or observing location.
Legal basis: Section 25(2) no. 2 of the German TDDDG and Art. 6(1)(b) and (f) GDPR. We currently use no analytics or advertising cookies. Should we do so in future, we will ask for your consent first.
4. Registration and account
To register you, we process your email address, username, password (stored only in encrypted form), account type (viewer, streamer or organization), and the time of registration and of your acceptance of the Terms of Use. Account management runs on our own server.
Legal basis: Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR (user agreement). Retention: until you delete your account; we keep records of your consent for up to three years after the agreement ends (Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR).
5. Public profile
Your profile is visible to visitors of the Platform. It includes your display name, profile picture, description, interests, equipment, gallery, link to your website, streamer status, and planned and past streams.
Voluntary information that you can change or remove at any time:
- Observing location (“Observes from”): shown only roughly, at city or country level, including on the globe. An exact address is never published.
- Nationality: shown as a flag and counted in the country statistics on the Members page.
- Age, gender and similar details: only if you provide them voluntarily; they are not shown publicly and are only analysed in anonymised form (section 10).
Legal basis: Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR; for voluntary information Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR (consent, which you can withdraw at any time by removing the information). Retention: until you remove the information or delete your account.
6. Streams and YouTube
When you plan a stream, we store its title, description, cover, start and end time, target or event, and the YouTube link. This information is public. Legal basis: Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR.
Streams are embedded from YouTube, provided by Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland. When an embedded stream is loaded or played, Google receives among other things your IP address, device data and the page visited, and may set cookies; if you are signed in to Google, Google may link the visit to your account. Data may be transferred to the USA (section 13). Legal basis: Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR and Section 25(1) TDDDG (consent) where we ask for consent, otherwise Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR (legitimate interest in showing the streams). More information: Google’s privacy policy, policies.google.com/privacy.
Connecting your YouTube channel (YouTube API Services)
AstronomyLive uses the YouTube API Services. Streamers can optionally connect their YouTube channel by signing in with Google. Connecting is voluntary; you can also add a stream by pasting its YouTube link.
- Access requested: read-only access to your YouTube account (Google scope
youtube.readonly). AstronomyLive cannot upload, change, start, stop or delete videos or broadcasts, and never sees your Google password or stream key. - Data we access: your channel ID and channel name, and the list of your live broadcasts (ID, title, status and visibility).
- How we use it: only to show you your livestreams in the streamer dashboard so you can link one to a planned stream, and to show its live status on AstronomyLive. We do not use this data for advertising and we do not sell it.
- What we store: the access and refresh token issued by Google, your channel ID and channel name, and the broadcasts you choose to link to a stream. Tokens are stored encrypted on our own server only and are never shown publicly.
- Sharing: we do not share data obtained through the YouTube API Services with third parties. Details of a stream you publish (title, link, status) are visible on the Platform as described above.
- Disconnecting and deletion: you can disconnect YouTube at any time in the streamer dashboard; we then revoke our access at Google and immediately delete the stored tokens and channel data. You can also revoke AstronomyLive’s access in your Google account’s security settings at security.google.com/settings/security/permissions. After disconnecting or revoking, we delete the stored tokens and channel data within 7 days; streams you have already published stay on the Platform as public links until you delete them.
- Cookies: the connection itself does not set any additional cookies on your device. Embedded YouTube players may set cookies as described above.
By connecting your channel you are also bound by the YouTube Terms of Service. Google’s handling of your data is described in the Google Privacy Policy.
7. Chat
In a stream’s chat we process your message, its time and your username. Messages are visible to viewers of the stream. Legal basis: Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR. Retention: as long as the stream is stored on the Platform; after you delete your account your messages are anonymised.
8. Images and content
We store uploaded images (profile picture, equipment, gallery, stream covers) on our server. Images may be adjusted technically, for example resized or cut out. How we may use your content is governed by sections 6 and 6a of the Terms of Use. Please remove metadata such as GPS coordinates from photos before uploading if you do not want to share your exact location.
9. Location, Tonight’s Sky and weather
For the Tonight’s Sky view and visibility calculations we use a location that you enter or share through your browser. Calculations run in your browser. For weather data, the coordinates of the chosen location are sent to Open-Meteo (Open-Meteo.com, Switzerland). We load further sky data from public bodies such as the NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center and the NASA Solar Dynamics Observatory (USA) and CDS Strasbourg (France); your IP address is technically transmitted to these servers when doing so.
Legal basis: Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR for sharing your location, Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR for retrieving public sky data. We do not store your device location on our server unless you expressly save it in your profile.
10. Anonymised statistics and market data
We analyse information on the Platform statistically, for example equipment used, interests, observed targets, countries of origin, voluntary details of age and gender, and use of the Platform. This produces only aggregated, anonymised statistics; every group reported contains at least 20 people. Only these anonymous results are published, used or sold by us, for example to manufacturers of telescopes and cameras (section 6b of the Terms of Use). Buyers receive no personal data.
Legal basis for creating them: Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR (legitimate interest in funding and developing the Platform). You can object to the inclusion of your data at any time (section 15). We do not collect information on health, religion, political opinion or similar special categories.
11. Emails and newsletter
We send you emails required for your account, for example to confirm registration, reset your password or announce changes to our terms (Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR). Notifications, for example about streams or events you sign up for, are only sent if you request them, and you can unsubscribe at any time.
All emails from the Platform are sent via Google Workspace (Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4). In the process, your email address and the content of the message are transmitted to the provider. Legal basis: Art. 6(1)(b) and (f) GDPR (reliable delivery). A data processing agreement under Art. 28 GDPR is in place with Google.
You will only receive a newsletter if you expressly subscribe and confirm via a confirmation link (double opt-in). For this we store your email address and the time and IP address of subscription and confirmation. Legal basis: Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR. You can unsubscribe at any time via the link in every issue. The list is managed on our own server.
12. Fonts
Some pages currently load fonts from Google Fonts (Google Ireland Limited), which transmits your IP address to Google. Legal basis: Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR (consistent presentation). We are working on serving all fonts from our own server.
13. Transfers to third countries
With YouTube, Google Fonts, email delivery via Google Workspace, NOAA and NASA, data may reach the USA. For Google there is an adequacy decision of the European Commission (EU-US Data Privacy Framework) under which Google is certified. For the public data sources in the USA only your IP address is transmitted when data is retrieved.
14. Reports and moderation
If you report content or are affected by a moderation decision, we process the report, the reported content, the accounts involved, our decision and its reasons. Legal basis: Art. 6(1)(c) GDPR in conjunction with the Digital Services Act, and Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR (protecting the community). Retention: six months after the case is closed, longer only where needed to establish or defend legal claims.
15. Your rights
You have the right of access (Art. 15 GDPR), rectification (Art. 16), erasure (Art. 17), restriction of processing (Art. 18), data portability (Art. 20), and to withdraw consent with effect for the future (Art. 7(3)). An email to info@astronomylive.com is enough.
Right to object: Where we process data on the basis of legitimate interests (Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR), you may object at any time on grounds relating to your particular situation (Art. 21 GDPR). You may object to inclusion in anonymised statistics and to the use of your content for promotion without giving reasons.
Right to lodge a complaint: You may complain to a data protection supervisory authority, for example the authority responsible for us, the Berlin Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information, Alt-Moabit 59–61, 10555 Berlin, Germany, or the authority where you live.
16. Children and young people
AstronomyLive is intended for people aged 16 and over. We do not knowingly process data of younger people. If we learn of it, we delete the account.
17. Security
The connection to the Platform is encrypted (HTTPS). Passwords are stored only as hashes. Backups are made regularly; older backups are deleted on a rolling basis, and deleted content is removed from backups within 30 days at the latest.
18. Changes
We update this privacy policy when the Platform or the law changes. We inform registered members of material changes by email.