To be fair to hobbyists, they contribute significant discoveries even in modern times. Far from pretty pictures of the sky. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amate

To be fair to hobbyists, they contribute significant discoveries even in modern times. Far from pretty pictures of the sky. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amateur_astronomy#Discoveries_with_major_contributions_by_amateur_astronomers https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amateur_astronomy#Discoveries_... Also I'd expect having an amateur community will feed people into a stronger professional community. While not on the same scale, consider taking the same its just hobbyists approach to software dev vs just leave it to the big guys like FB/Google. Edit: Spelling/clarity