Citizen Science Opportunity: Research to Discover a Companion Galaxy to the Milky Way

The DELVE Dwarf Galaxy Quest: Milky Way Neighbors is an excellent opportunity for citizen scientists to contribute to the fascinating field of astronomical research. This project aims to identify potential new dwarf galaxy candidates, which are small and faint satellite galaxies that orbit larger galaxies like the Milky Way. These dwarf galaxies are of particular interest to scientists because they are believed to be incredibly rich in dark matter, a mysterious substance that does not emit, absorb, or reflect light, making it extremely difficult to detect directly.

Citizen Scientists are volunteers who give of their time to work on real science research projects. No or limited expertise is required on your part, and you determine the amount of time and when you want to work on the project.

Your role as a citizen scientist in this project would be to analyze plots generated from real astronomical images. You would be looking for signs of these elusive galaxies, which could lead to significant discoveries about the structure of the universe and the nature of dark matter. No specialized training or expertise is required to participate, as the project is designed to be accessible to anyone with an interest in astronomy and a willingness to learn.

“Similar to how the Sun is orbited by planets and asteroids, the Milky Way is surrounded by many satellite galaxies. However, many of these satellite galaxies are so small and far away that scientists have discovered fewer than a hundred of them, even with some of the world's largest telescopes. These galaxies are especially fascinating because they're thought to be the most dark matter-dominated objects in the universe. Finding more tiny satellite galaxies could help us uncover clues about the nature of dark matter and test different dark matter theories. Since we only know of a handful of satellite galaxies, we also get to give them cool names like Hercules, Leo VI, or Pegasus IV.

“We are a team of astronomers spanning multiple institutions who are using the 4-meter Blanco Telescope at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile to search for tiny satellites of the Milky Way. Our algorithms find possible dwarf galaxy candidates across the night sky, but with tens of thousands of images to sort through, we need your help to spot the real discoveries among the false positives. By joining DELVE Dwarf Galaxy Quest, you could be the first to lay eyes on one of our Milky Way's nearest neighboring galaxies and help expand our understanding of the universe!"

To learn more or try this project: https://www.zooniverse.org/projects/ywyh/delve-dwarf-galaxy-quest-milky-way-neighbors

About The Zooniverse:  the world's largest and most popular platform for people-powered research. This research is made possible by volunteers—millions of people around the world who come together to assist professional researchers. Their goal is to enable research that would not be possible, or practical, otherwise by utilizing the “wisdom of the crowd”.  https://www.zooniverse.org