Amateur astronomers are scanning the night skies looking for asteroids, comets and supernovae, and making vital discoveries in our quest for knowledge. Meanwhile space missions produce millions of images, but who is to say which ones are truly unusual and interesting? It is a job that computers struggle with, but one in which humans excel. This, more than ever, is the age of the amateur astronomer and Sir Patrick Moore explains how everybody can play a part whilst also enjoying the beautiful cosmos.