What should I do if I have an observing account on Twitter?
Switch to another platform. We strongly recommend adopting the Mastodon interface, but Facebook messenger, Text Message (for Canadian and US phone numbers), and Email are all available. Users can browse the available social media platforms on the Getting Started page.
Users switching platforms will bring all of their past observations and current requests with them and in most cases an individuals Observer ID will stay the same.
The most straightforward method for migrating accounts will be to request to be #authorize'd on a new platform. In your message, please include a note that you are migrating from Twitter. As you would typically with an #authorize request, include your name and location. If you know your current observer ID, that will help - you can find it by searching for your name on this webpage. Examples:
#authorize I am Sally Stargazer in New York, USA migrating from Twitter to Mastodon.
#authorize I'm migrating from Twitter and my observer ID was 15343, my name is Tiffany Fields from Nova Scotia
When you do this, a human will review the authorization request and will attempt to change your method of communication to the new platform you requested authorization from. In most cases, you will keep your original Observer ID.
You can also contact a human by email, using the email in the Contact page. Include your current observer ID, your new platform, and the handle or username on that new platform.
No past observations, processed observations, or requested observations will be lost in the migration but it is important that the human knows you're migrating from one platform to another so that all of those items will be successfully moved.
What does this mean for the robotic telescope?
The BGO telescope will no longer be tweeting and can no longer robotically read tweets from users. The human will keep an eye on tweets and DMs to @smubgobs, but the robotic telescope can no longer read or post to Twitter. The nightly tweets have ended.
However, there is still good news: public messages still continue on both the observatory's website Public Messages page and on its Mastodon account.
