Help NASA Explore Mars Online

Mr. Monkey — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 03:54:12 +0000

NASA has found itself a little bit overwhelmed with the large amount of images sent back of Mars’ surface over the years. They’re looking to the public – that means YOU – to help them map out the detailed photos of the Red Planet. They’ve set up a website, in partnership with Microsoft (*barf), where you can play games and have fun, but also do your part to contribute to science.

This practice, known as crowdsourcing, will allow anyone with an Internet connection to assist with two main games tasks:

1. Mapping the surface of Mars by matching detailed high-res photos onto larger, less detailed photos of the general location, taken from higher altitudes.

2. Counting the craters in undocumented photos. You won’t have to count really tiny craters just yet (NASA plans on doing that later), but simply count the larger craters that you find in the photos you’re provided.

When I tried my hand at NASA’s “Be A Martian” website, I found counting the craters to be a lot simpler than mapping the photos…that is until I was given a photo with over 40 craters in it.

They’ve tried to make the site into a Web 2.0 online social network, but Microsoft’s typical bulky coding slows things down a little bit. I can’t help but wonder how much faster and better designed the site would be if NASA had just partnered with Google, Apple, or…honestly…anyone but Microsoft.

That aside, the idea is still a great one. Lots of people who don’t work as professional astronomers are still avid Mars exploration enthusiasts. This is their (and your) chance to actually be a part of a scientific project.

To “be a Martian” and start exploring the surface of Mars, click here.

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Help NASA Explore Mars Online