Some Astronomical databases are so extensive and the data is so complicated that computer algorithms cannot exactly or reliably sort through all of the data to find the kinds of interesting things that Astronomers are looking for. So Astronomers often recruit passionate volunteers to pitch in and help examine data in these projects. In return, citizen scientists get a chance to access incredible data sets and photos of the sky that no one has seen before, and they get an opportunity to be the first to make some pretty incredible discoveries. Through the “Variable Star Zoo” citizen science initiative, you can help scientists to decide which variable star they are seeing in the center of our Galaxy.
About Variable Star Zoo
“Variable Star Zoo” is the citizen science project that aims at involving the citizens in scientific research and takes part in the major discoveries. Scientists are seeking the help of the curious young volunteers to identify the useful variables, and be able to build a 3D map of the center of our own Galaxy as never before! With the contribution of fellow citizens, scientists will be able to classify thousands of variable stars that are discovered in the center of our Galaxy.
We have plenty of light curves for variable stars that we have not yet recognized. It would take many years if one or more scientists were to classify them. This makes the addition of people even more significant, as they would not only help scientists do the work faster but also it serves to combine them in a scientific project.
Several computer codes do these classifications automatically, however, they are faster than the human brain, they are not often accurate. Besides, another perspective of this call for help is that the human classified variables can be used to advance the current automatic classification codes.
How To Participate in Variable Star Zoo Project?
“Variable Star Zoo” is an official project launched by Zooniverse.org that is the world’s largest and most popular platform for people-powered analysis. To participate in “Variable Star Zoo” the citizens are not necessarily required to be trained in astronomy but must carry the enthusiasm and curiosity to get involved in this project. It is not mandatory to register to classify variables on the website. Volunteers can simply join the teams through the home page or contact then via the Contact Us page.
Volunteers will not only receive a certificate of participation but also various awards from the researchers when reaching different milestones such as 500, 1,000, 3,000, and 10,000 classifications. Apart from this, the most productive volunteers will be included as co-authors in the scientific research that can result from this ambitious project.
This project could be beneficial for the school teachers, who could encourage their students to learn more about astronomy, but at the same time have fun and become more passionate about scientific research and collaborate with it in the process.
Get Involved
Whether you’re actively seeking out to take part in interactive data analyses or are simply wanting to sit back and allow your computer to do all the work, engaging in these projects is vitally significant to the scientific community.
Computers may be getting more robust, but the human brain hasn’t been made redundant just yet. Scientists still require the citizens, more now than ever.
With the hope of finding a new galaxy from your smartphone, who wouldn’t want to be a citizen space scientist?
