1. The name of my project is the Galaxy Zoo.
2. The Galaxy Zoo is a volunteer science project that lets people classify a large number of galaxies (over 40 million!). I was quite shocked knowing that people are classifying hundreds of thousands of galaxies based on thorough research.
3. The Galaxy Zoo’s founder is Kevin Schawinski, an astrophysicist who attended Oxford University. There are 2,186 volunteers participating in the Galaxy Zoo, from various different backgrounds. The volunteers provide general information on various different galaxies, such as their appearance and location.
4. The role of citizens (volunteers) is to gain data on new galaxies that have not yet been classified. It’s volunteers are able to produce hundreds of studies on different types of galaxies. The website recieved over 70,000 classifications of galaxies in an hour.
5. The project monitors galaxies by gathering information about them and answering a set amount of questions. It asks questions like “Is it elliptical or spiral?” and “Does the galaxy have a bulge at its centre? If so, what shape?“
6. The Galaxy Zoo collects this information to understand the process of certain galaxies and find out what these galaxies can tell us about the past, present, or future world. The Galaxy Zoo is also used for other experiments that scientists need information for such as NASA projects.
7. The website benefits society by allowing its citizens to understand more of the universe. New discoveries from the Galaxy Zoo can lead to new advancements in technology and affect the lives of future citizens. The Zoo inspires technological thinking and creates curiosity about the universe for their citizens to experience.
