The Active Asteroids Citizen Science Program: Overview and First Results
We present the Citizen Science program Active Asteroids and describe discoveries stemming from our ongoing project. Our NASA Partner program is hosted on the Zooniverse online platform and launched on 2021 August 31, with the goal of engaging the community in the search for active asteroids—asteroid...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
IOP Publishing
2024-01-01
|
| Series: | The Astronomical Journal |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-3881/ad1de2 |
| _version_ | 1797262523329675264 |
|---|---|
| author | Colin Orion Chandler Chadwick A. Trujillo William J. Oldroyd Jay K. Kueny William A. Burris Henry H. Hsieh Jarod A. DeSpain Nima Sedaghat Scott S. Sheppard Kennedy A. Farrell David E. Trilling Annika Gustafsson Mark Jesus Mendoza Magbanua Michele T. Mazzucato Milton K. D. Bosch Tiffany Shaw-Diaz Virgilio Gonano Al Lamperti José A. da Silva Campos Brian L. Goodwin Ivan A. Terentev Charles J. A. Dukes Sam Deen |
| author_facet | Colin Orion Chandler Chadwick A. Trujillo William J. Oldroyd Jay K. Kueny William A. Burris Henry H. Hsieh Jarod A. DeSpain Nima Sedaghat Scott S. Sheppard Kennedy A. Farrell David E. Trilling Annika Gustafsson Mark Jesus Mendoza Magbanua Michele T. Mazzucato Milton K. D. Bosch Tiffany Shaw-Diaz Virgilio Gonano Al Lamperti José A. da Silva Campos Brian L. Goodwin Ivan A. Terentev Charles J. A. Dukes Sam Deen |
| author_sort | Colin Orion Chandler |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | We present the Citizen Science program Active Asteroids and describe discoveries stemming from our ongoing project. Our NASA Partner program is hosted on the Zooniverse online platform and launched on 2021 August 31, with the goal of engaging the community in the search for active asteroids—asteroids with comet-like tails or comae. We also set out to identify other unusual active solar system objects, such as active Centaurs, active quasi-Hilda asteroids (QHAs), and Jupiter-family comets (JFCs). Active objects are rare in large part because they are difficult to identify, so we ask volunteers to assist us in searching for active bodies in our collection of millions of images of known minor planets. We produced these cutout images with our project pipeline that makes use of publicly available Dark Energy Camera data. Since the project launch, roughly 8300 volunteers have scrutinized some 430,000 images to great effect, which we describe in this work. In total, we have identified previously unknown activity on 15 asteroids, plus one Centaur, that were thought to be asteroidal (i.e., inactive). Of the asteroids, we classify four as active QHAs, seven as JFCs, and four as active asteroids, consisting of one main-belt comet (MBC) and three MBC candidates. We also include our findings concerning known active objects that our program facilitated, an unanticipated avenue of scientific discovery. These include discovering activity occurring during an orbital epoch for which objects were not known to be active, and the reclassification of objects based on our dynamical analyses. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-24T23:58:28Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-8ccaf1071a63427ea2ae7e43285e7876 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1538-3881 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-24T23:58:28Z |
| publishDate | 2024-01-01 |
| publisher | IOP Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | The Astronomical Journal |
| spelling | doaj.art-8ccaf1071a63427ea2ae7e43285e78762024-03-14T09:43:33ZengIOP PublishingThe Astronomical Journal1538-38812024-01-01167415610.3847/1538-3881/ad1de2The Active Asteroids Citizen Science Program: Overview and First ResultsColin Orion Chandler0https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7335-1715Chadwick A. Trujillo1https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9859-0894William J. Oldroyd2https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5750-4953Jay K. Kueny3https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8531-038XWilliam A. Burris4https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6023-7291Henry H. Hsieh5https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7225-9271Jarod A. DeSpain6https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7489-5893Nima Sedaghat7https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4734-2019Scott S. Sheppard8https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3145-8682Kennedy A. Farrell9https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2521-848XDavid E. Trilling10https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4580-3790Annika Gustafsson11https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7600-4652Mark Jesus Mendoza Magbanua12https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2113-3593Michele T. Mazzucato13https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2204-6064Milton K. D. Bosch14https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9766-2400Tiffany Shaw-Diaz15Virgilio Gonano16Al Lamperti17José A. da Silva Campos18Brian L. Goodwin19Ivan A. Terentev20https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0654-4442Charles J. A. Dukes21Sam Deen22https://orcid.org/0009-0004-6814-5449Dept. of Astronomy & the DiRAC Institute, University of Washington , 3910 15th Ave. NE, Seattle, WA 98195, USA ; coc123@uw.edu; LSST Interdisciplinary Network for Collaboration and Computing , 933 N. Cherry Ave., Tucson AZ 85721, USA; Dept. of Astronomy and Planetary Science, Northern Arizona University , P.O. Box 6010, Flagstaff, AZ 86011, USA; Raw Data Speaks Initiative , USADept. of Astronomy and Planetary Science, Northern Arizona University , P.O. Box 6010, Flagstaff, AZ 86011, USADept. of Astronomy and Planetary Science, Northern Arizona University , P.O. Box 6010, Flagstaff, AZ 86011, USADept. of Astronomy and Planetary Science, Northern Arizona University , P.O. Box 6010, Flagstaff, AZ 86011, USA; Dept. of Astronomy and Steward Observatory, University of Arizona , 933 North Cherry Ave. Rm. N204, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA; Wyant College of Optical Sciences, University of Arizona , 1630 E. University Blvd., Tucson, AZ 85721, USA; Lowell Observatory , 1400 W Mars Hill Rd., Flagstaff, AZ 86001, USADept. of Astronomy and Planetary Science, Northern Arizona University , P.O. Box 6010, Flagstaff, AZ 86011, USA; Dept. of Physics, San Diego State University , 5500 Campanile Dr., San Diego, CA 92182, USAPlanetary Science Institute , 1700 East Fort Lowell Rd., Suite 106, Tucson, AZ 85719, USA; Institute of Astronomy and Astrophysics , Academia Sinica, P.O. Box 23-141, Taipei 10617, TaiwanDept. of Astronomy and Planetary Science, Northern Arizona University , P.O. Box 6010, Flagstaff, AZ 86011, USADept. of Astronomy & the DiRAC Institute, University of Washington , 3910 15th Ave. NE, Seattle, WA 98195, USA ; coc123@uw.edu; Raw Data Speaks Initiative , USADept. of Terrestrial Magnetism, Carnegie Institution for Science , 5241 Broad Branch Rd. NW, Washington, DC 20015, USADept. of Astronomy and Planetary Science, Northern Arizona University , P.O. Box 6010, Flagstaff, AZ 86011, USADept. of Astronomy and Planetary Science, Northern Arizona University , P.O. Box 6010, Flagstaff, AZ 86011, USADept. of Astronomy and Planetary Science, Northern Arizona University , P.O. Box 6010, Flagstaff, AZ 86011, USA; Southwest Research Institute , Boulder, CO 80302, USADept. of Laboratory Medicine, University of California San Francisco , 2340 Sutter St., San Francisco, CA 94143, USARoyal Astronomical Society , Burlington House, Piccadilly, London, W1J 0BQ, UK; Physical Sciences Group, Siena Academy of Sciences , Piazzetta Silvio Gigli 2, I-53100 Siena, ItalyDept. of Astronomy & the DiRAC Institute, University of Washington , 3910 15th Ave. NE, Seattle, WA 98195, USA ; coc123@uw.eduDept. of Astronomy & the DiRAC Institute, University of Washington , 3910 15th Ave. NE, Seattle, WA 98195, USA ; coc123@uw.eduDept. of Astronomy & the DiRAC Institute, University of Washington , 3910 15th Ave. NE, Seattle, WA 98195, USA ; coc123@uw.eduDelaware Valley Amateur Astronomers , 112 Pebble Beach Dr., Royersford, PA, 19468 USAAstronomical Society of Southern Africa , P.O. Box 9 Observatory 7935, Cape Town, South AfricaDept. of Astronomy & the DiRAC Institute, University of Washington , 3910 15th Ave. NE, Seattle, WA 98195, USA ; coc123@uw.eduDept. of Astronomy & the DiRAC Institute, University of Washington , 3910 15th Ave. NE, Seattle, WA 98195, USA ; coc123@uw.eduDept. of Astronomy & the DiRAC Institute, University of Washington , 3910 15th Ave. NE, Seattle, WA 98195, USA ; coc123@uw.eduDept. of Astronomy & the DiRAC Institute, University of Washington , 3910 15th Ave. NE, Seattle, WA 98195, USA ; coc123@uw.eduWe present the Citizen Science program Active Asteroids and describe discoveries stemming from our ongoing project. Our NASA Partner program is hosted on the Zooniverse online platform and launched on 2021 August 31, with the goal of engaging the community in the search for active asteroids—asteroids with comet-like tails or comae. We also set out to identify other unusual active solar system objects, such as active Centaurs, active quasi-Hilda asteroids (QHAs), and Jupiter-family comets (JFCs). Active objects are rare in large part because they are difficult to identify, so we ask volunteers to assist us in searching for active bodies in our collection of millions of images of known minor planets. We produced these cutout images with our project pipeline that makes use of publicly available Dark Energy Camera data. Since the project launch, roughly 8300 volunteers have scrutinized some 430,000 images to great effect, which we describe in this work. In total, we have identified previously unknown activity on 15 asteroids, plus one Centaur, that were thought to be asteroidal (i.e., inactive). Of the asteroids, we classify four as active QHAs, seven as JFCs, and four as active asteroids, consisting of one main-belt comet (MBC) and three MBC candidates. We also include our findings concerning known active objects that our program facilitated, an unanticipated avenue of scientific discovery. These include discovering activity occurring during an orbital epoch for which objects were not known to be active, and the reclassification of objects based on our dynamical analyses.https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-3881/ad1de2Asteroid beltComet tailsComaeAstronomy data analysisCCD observationAstronomical methods |
| spellingShingle | Colin Orion Chandler Chadwick A. Trujillo William J. Oldroyd Jay K. Kueny William A. Burris Henry H. Hsieh Jarod A. DeSpain Nima Sedaghat Scott S. Sheppard Kennedy A. Farrell David E. Trilling Annika Gustafsson Mark Jesus Mendoza Magbanua Michele T. Mazzucato Milton K. D. Bosch Tiffany Shaw-Diaz Virgilio Gonano Al Lamperti José A. da Silva Campos Brian L. Goodwin Ivan A. Terentev Charles J. A. Dukes Sam Deen The Active Asteroids Citizen Science Program: Overview and First Results The Astronomical Journal Asteroid belt Comet tails Comae Astronomy data analysis CCD observation Astronomical methods |
| title | The Active Asteroids Citizen Science Program: Overview and First Results |
| title_full | The Active Asteroids Citizen Science Program: Overview and First Results |
| title_fullStr | The Active Asteroids Citizen Science Program: Overview and First Results |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Active Asteroids Citizen Science Program: Overview and First Results |
| title_short | The Active Asteroids Citizen Science Program: Overview and First Results |
| title_sort | active asteroids citizen science program overview and first results |
| topic | Asteroid belt Comet tails Comae Astronomy data analysis CCD observation Astronomical methods |
| url | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-3881/ad1de2 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT colinorionchandler theactiveasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT chadwickatrujillo theactiveasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT williamjoldroyd theactiveasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT jaykkueny theactiveasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT williamaburris theactiveasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT henryhhsieh theactiveasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT jarodadespain theactiveasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT nimasedaghat theactiveasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT scottssheppard theactiveasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT kennedyafarrell theactiveasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT davidetrilling theactiveasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT annikagustafsson theactiveasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT markjesusmendozamagbanua theactiveasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT micheletmazzucato theactiveasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT miltonkdbosch theactiveasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT tiffanyshawdiaz theactiveasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT virgiliogonano theactiveasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT allamperti theactiveasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT joseadasilvacampos theactiveasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT brianlgoodwin theactiveasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT ivanaterentev theactiveasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT charlesjadukes theactiveasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT samdeen theactiveasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT colinorionchandler activeasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT chadwickatrujillo activeasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT williamjoldroyd activeasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT jaykkueny activeasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT williamaburris activeasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT henryhhsieh activeasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT jarodadespain activeasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT nimasedaghat activeasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT scottssheppard activeasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT kennedyafarrell activeasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT davidetrilling activeasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT annikagustafsson activeasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT markjesusmendozamagbanua activeasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT micheletmazzucato activeasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT miltonkdbosch activeasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT tiffanyshawdiaz activeasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT virgiliogonano activeasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT allamperti activeasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT joseadasilvacampos activeasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT brianlgoodwin activeasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT ivanaterentev activeasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT charlesjadukes activeasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults AT samdeen activeasteroidscitizenscienceprogramoverviewandfirstresults |