How many, and what kinds of birds are there around? How do we classify a million galaxies in sky survey images? How dark is the sky? Citizen scientists help to find out all of these things - and more. You could be a citizen scientist too.

Citizen Science in the Electronic Age

Click to see the current Zooniverse projects.

It isn't just adults that can join to to make discoveries. There are a number of different opportunities for young people too.

Young Astronomers at Work
Telescopes are essential for astronomy, but you don't need one of your own. A computer can be the right instrument. Big telescopes collect data faster than professionals can process it, so amateurs can help. There is also room for individual ingenuity. See what some young astronomers have done.

Young Astronomers at Work

Thousands of citizen scientists were involved with a project called Exoplanet Explorers (part of Zooniverse). They worked on Kepler data in 2017, and through their efforts a four-planet system was discovered. It was named K2-138, and since then a fifth planet was found, with a possible sixth. This is the first multi-planet system discovered entirely through crowdsourcing.

Here is an artist's concept of K2-138. All five planets have orbital periods shorter than 13 days and are incredibly hot, ranging from 800 to 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit.

In the film Deep Impact a teenage astronomer discovers a comet with a small telescope. In reality, teenage astronomers are more likely to make their discoveries in front of a computer - finding supernovae, pulsars, asteroids. The youngest discoverer was ten. Let them inspire you.

Young Astronomers Reveal the Universe

In July 2016 Zooniverse launched the Supernova Hunters project. The data has now all been seen by volunteers and the project has ended. While it lasted many new supernova candidates were discovered. There are various reasons why a star might flare up, not all pictures represent supernovae. But out of the thousands of photographs, volunteers were able to pick out possible supernovae for further study.

Hanny's Voorwerp was first seen in 2007 - a strange blue blob in the constellation of Leo Minor. Since then it has been imaged by large telescopes in visible light, ultraviolet light, infrared light, radio waves and x-rays, but astronomers still don't entirely agree about the mystery object.

What Is Hanny's Voorwerp