‘Citizens Science’ – NASA seeks public help in studying galaxies

NASA appeals to volunteers who will classify thousands of galaxies in images of the James Webb Space Telescope, some of which date back to the beginnings of the universe.

Volunteers involved in Galaxy zooa « Citizens Science » program are called upon to consider 500,000 images of James Webb to recognize the shape of galaxies and their changes over time.

The findings will help to understand the evolution of the universe, the US Space Service said in a statement.

The James Webb can look farther into space and time than any telescope – in its infrared vision, can distinguish galaxies whose light took billions of years to reach Earth.

Recent observations show that the first galaxies appeared earlier than astronomers believed, a few hundred millions of years after the great explosion that gave birth to the universe.

« It’s a great opportunity to see images from the newest space telescope, » said Christine McMillan, a volunteer from Older, Scotland.

« Galaxies from the edge of the universe become visible for the first time as they begin to form. Just sign up and answer simple questions about the galaxy you are looking at. « 

« Everyone can do it, ages 10 and over! »

Galaxy Zoo uses an artificial intelligence algorithm to automatically classify galaxies. When this is not possible, the images are examined by volunteers.

The program continues since 2007 with images of various other telescopes.