Hunting Programs for all
I created the Merger Checking (which now has over a million clicks), three Pea Hunts (All finished) and now an unofficial irregular galaxy classification. What started as 80 lines of Perl code is now 800 (about 50 of the original 80 lines still survive), but can now support almost any Galaxy Zoo mini-project.These mini-projects will never be as pretty as the main GZ sites, but they are quick to build, modify and use.
The Road Show- catch it online!
A quick followup to last week’s announcement of my talk on the Zoo and Hanny’s Voorwerp – the PDF visuals and MP3 narration are now available online. Truth in advertising compels me to point out that we ended up not being able to record the talk live, so I redid the narration later. As best I can tell, this version was less entertaining than the one for a live audience (as well as being a good bit shorter). You also have to figure out when to page forward…
Spin paper accepted
Just a quick notice that our spin correlations paper was accepted by the Monthly Notices of Royal Astronomical Society (where all Galaxy Zoo papers go)
Zoo 2 arrives…
We’re now inviting our loyal blog and forum readers to give us a hand in testing Zoo 2, which is in beta as they say on the internet. To take part, follow this link to complete a short survey about your experiences with Galaxy Zoo so far. The whole thing shouldn’t take more than 10 minutes, and you’ll be rewarded with the link to our trial site for Galaxy Zoo 2. Once you’re classifying away, share your thoughts with us either here or in the forum.
The Hanny's Voorwerp Road Show – US Tour (part I)
For those Voorwerp aficionados (we decided on the Forum that these might collectively be known as a Vreemdelingen Voorwerp Vrienden Vereniging or something) living in the area, take note that I’ll be giving a presentation on the Zoo and especially Hanny’s Voorwerp next week in Birmingham (Alabama, not England, although steel production has been important in both). It will be at the meeting of the Birmingham Astronomical Society, 7 p.m. on Tuesday, October 21. The location will be in the planetarium on the campus of Samford University. Anyone interested is heartily invited to attend. For those not so close, I plan to post a PDF of the visuals later.In less pleasant news, the Hubble observations are obviously on hold, since the servicing mission by shuttle astronauts has been delayed. This is to allow time for mission planners to assess the failure of crucial electronics which format science data for relay to the ground, whether its backup system comes on line properly, and whether a replacement can be added to the mission’s already-crowded manifest. The mission has now been pushed into early 2009, and observations with the new and repaired instruments will be gradually phased in afterward.
Galaxy Zoo West Coast Meet Up
Zooites of the U.S. West Coast organized a meeting.
Michelle described it as follows:
“It quickly became clear to me as a newbie that most of our members are in Europe…but we still have a hefty-and lively-bunch here in America! I (code name diver4skynsea!) was perusing threads one day and stumbled across the information on Galaxy Zoo‘s first member meet up held in February at Astrofest and, too, of the subsequent gatherings since then. Garrett spearheaded the project of trying to get a similar meet up of members started here in the States. I noticed in the thread that a lot of Americans were concerned about how much harder it is logistically for our members here to “gather” as one big group.
Guest Blog: Newbie at Heart
Today’s guest blogger is Thomas J from the Galaxy Zoo forum.
My interest in astronomy goes back almost as far as I remember. I recall, after dinner with my grandparents one afternoon, my father sitting down and telling me about the Big Bang. I was amazed at the concept and my interest was piqued, although at the time, I didn’t really understand it. If I am totally honest, I understand it little more today! I should really say that, at that age, it was more of an interest in ‘space’ diluted with plenty of science fiction. After all, it’s much easier for a child to comprehend ‘Flash Gordon and the Mud Men’ than the angular separation of galaxies. I did, however, own a large hard back book on astronomy which I would read in bed almost every night.
Hanny's Voorwerp On Tour – Part 2
Previously I wrote about the ‘kickoff’ of my tour and I can tell you all now that I’m back on the road again.
I’ll be giving a few talks about ‘Galaxy Zoo and the discovery of Hanny’s Voorwerp’ soon and the first one starts tomorrow evening, at science centre ‘Explorion’, in my hometown all the way South in the Netherlands: Heerlen. It’s open for everyone interested and after my talk there is the possibility to gaze at the stars, using their more-than-a-hundred-years-old telescope.
Next Thursday I’ll be travelling all the way up North, to a nice hotel in Groningen. The next morning I’ll talk to – and with – a group of students from the ‘Hanze University’. After my talk we’ll classify some galaxies and brainstorm about how to get this science closer to kids. Before I need to go back I can have a look around in their ‘Discovery bus’.
Utrecht (in the middle of the country) will be my next stop after that. There is the ‘Sterrenwacht Sonnenborgh’ based, where the ‘Stichting De Koepel’ asked me and Prof. De Jager to give a talk on the 23rd of November. I’ll be explaining the project and my weird blue/green blob to an audience of amateur astronomers!
General director of ASTRON – Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy, Michael Garrett, invited me to give a talk in Dwingeloo, also for amateur astronomers, but this time in English! That will happen on Thursday the 27th of November. I’m staying at their guesthouse overnight, but will be back on time for the Galaxy Zoo Get-together in the Netherlands.
It’s great and much fun to be able to ‘spread the word’ and I’d like to thank all zookeepers and zooites who helped me with preparing the talks.
I’m looking forward to seeing you all there.
Galaxy Zoo 