AsterScope Privacy Policy

Effective Date: April 23, 2026

Introduction

AsterScope ("we", "our", or "the app") is an astronomy observation planning app developed by an independent developer. We respect your privacy and are committed to protecting your personal information. This Privacy Policy explains what data the app collects, how it is used, and your rights regarding that data.

Data We Collect

1. Coarse Location

AsterScope requests access to your device location to calculate visible celestial objects, rise/set times, sky conditions, and observation plans based on your geographic position. Inside the app, your precise location is used only on-device for things like ranking nearby dark-sky sites by distance. Before any coordinates are sent to a third-party weather or astronomy service, the app rounds them to a coarse grid of roughly one kilometre (two decimal places of latitude and longitude). We do not operate any servers, so we never store your location ourselves. No personal identifier accompanies outbound requests.

2. Purchase Information

When you make an in-app purchase, Apple handles all payment processing. We only receive a purchase confirmation (transaction receipt) to unlock app features. We do not collect your name, Apple ID, email address, or payment details.

Data We Do NOT Collect

• Personal identifiers (name, email, phone number)
• Device identifiers or advertising IDs
• Usage or analytics data
• Browsing or search history
• Contacts, photos, or other sensitive data

Third-Party Services

AsterScope uses the following third-party services. Each request contains only geographic coordinates (latitude and longitude) and carries no personally identifiable information.

• Apple WeatherKit — weather forecasts. Apple's Privacy Policy applies.
• Open-Meteo — fallback weather forecasts when WeatherKit is unavailable. See Open-Meteo's Terms.
• 7Timer! ASTRO — astronomical seeing and transparency forecasts for selected dark-sky sites. Requests carry the site's coordinates, not your device location.
• NASA GIBS — public light-pollution map tiles. Requests are tile coordinates only.
• Public RSS feeds (Space.com, EarthSky, In-The-Sky, Astronomy.com) for the News tab. No personal data is sent.

Data Storage

All user preferences and observation data are stored locally on your device using standard iOS storage (UserDefaults and local files). No data is uploaded to external servers.

Children's Privacy

AsterScope does not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. The app is suitable for all ages and does not require account creation.

Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Any changes will be posted on this page with an updated effective date.

Contact

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy, please contact us at: qixiaobing54673@gmail.com