The science project Galaxy Zoo aims to categorize visual astronomical data with the help of ordinary citizens. During the first stage, the participants analyzed millions of photographs of galaxies. Galaxy Zoo's official website includes information and downloadable tutorials on how to interpret the images. No special scientific training is needed to join the project.
Citizen Science
Galaxy Zoo is unique in that it relies on untrained volunteers to perform the bulk of its goals. Interested people may join the project online and immediately start contributing. This kind of public participation is called citizen science. NASA's Stardust@home is another citizen science project.
Discovery
Hanny Van Arkel, a 25-year-old teacher from the Netherlands, brought to the project leaders' attention a previously unheeded object that resembles a cloud of green gas. The finding was dubbed as Hanny's Voorwerp, voorwerp meaning object in Dutch. The gas cloud has also been referred to as the Cosmic Ghost.
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References
Fast Facts
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Fact:
Galaxies are classified as either spiral or elliptical
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Fact:
The galaxies were photographed by a robotic telescope
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Fact:
The telescope is a part of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, or the SDSS
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Fact:
The participant Hanny Van Arkel discovered a one-of-a-kind gaseous object
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Fact:
The project has been assigned funds for three more years
