Citizen science
Citizen science is research in which members of the public help scientists by collecting or analysing data.
Citizen science means real scientific research carried out with the help of volunteers. In meteoritics and astronomy, ordinary people have made many important contributions.
Volunteers report fireballs, helping locate fresh meteorite falls. Amateur observers count meteors during showers, building records that go back many decades. Some run cameras in their gardens as part of fireball networks. Others have searched online images for comet dust tracks in aerogel from the Stardust mission, or spotted comets in images of the Sun from the SOHO spacecraft. After the Winchcombe fall in 2021, members of the public were among those who found meteorite fragments and reported them quickly.
You can take part, too. Watching a meteor shower and counting what you see, reporting a fireball or joining a local astronomy society are all good ways to start. Citizen science shows that you do not need to be a professional to add to human knowledge.
Related terms
Level: Beginner Ages 7 and up