Toolkit for Librarians: Building community and science literacy through NASA citizen science projects
Access the resource itself via this link.
Scroll down the page for frequently asked questions and their answers.
00:00 - Welcome, Kara Reiman, Sarah Kirn, and special guest Dr. Marc Kuchner introduce themselves
01:54 - Overview of Agenda
03:31 - Libraries and Science - why are they such a good match?
06:27 - What is NASA citizen science? An overview and an introduction to some of the people participating
09:35 - How to prepare yourself and your library to host a NASA citizen science event
13:13 - Model event agenda, including: Tips on finding information on NASA sponsored projects on the science.nasa.gov website An introduction to Daily Minor Planet as you might introduce it to your patrons in your event
37:50 - Wrapping up your event with group discussion and the resource for selecting your next NASA-sponsored citizen science project
41:37 - An overview of the table of contents of the Toolkit for Librarians
41:40 - Invitation to subscribe to the NASA Citizen Science monthly newsletter to learn about new projects and news from projects
43:28 - The toolkit link!
Event Overview
NASA sponsors dozens of research projects that need help from people - lots of people - in order to succeed. These projects invite everyone who’s interested to collaborate with scientists to investigate mysteries from how star systems form to how climate change impacts our planet. Volunteers might discover a near-Earth asteroid or help to identify a plant to feed future astronauts. Some projects invite people to make observations with their cell phones, others ask volunteers to examine fresh data from spacecraft like the James Webb Space Telescope. Project participants learn new skills and knowledge, and get to know scientists and other people around the world with similar interests.
If you are interested in sharing these opportunities with your patrons, take a look at the event recording (above). In it librarian Kara Reiman and participatory science professional Sarah Kirn walk through their “Toolkit for Librarians: Building community and science literacy through NASA citizen science projects.” The kit is designed to prepare a librarian to plan, prepare, and deliver a NASA Science Program for library patrons of all ages (8 to 108 year olds are the recommended audience). The kit includes:
A guide to help you prepare for the event, from choosing and equipping a space to becoming familiar with the project that is the focus of the event.
An editable 8.5” by 11” poster to advertise the library-hosted event.
An editable model agenda to follow during your event.
Frequently asked questions:
Where can I learn more about citizen science?
SciStarter has an online, do-anytime interactive introduction to citizen science.
To hear about the latest projects, subscribe to our NASA citizen science newsletter! Send an email do-nasa-science-join@lists.nasa.gov with the subject “subscribe.”
Am I allowed to use NASA images and logos to advertise my event?
Yes! All NASA imagery is free to use for educational purposes.
May I use these resources for other purposes or groups (afterschool programs, 4H, retirement community programming, etc.?)
Yes, absolutely! NASA citizen science projects are open to everyone. And we’d love to hear about how and with whom you use these resources - please use the feedback link in the toolkit to tell us how you use it and how well it works, and how else we might be able to support you.
We have really low bandwidth and/or access to devices to connect to the internet. What projects can we do?
International Astronomical Search Collaboration (IASC, pronounced “Isaac”) is designed for just this scenario! Join a “campaign” to receive an email with a set of images taken at different times of the same corner of dark sky, much like the images presented in Daily Minor Planet.
Growing Beyond Earth is a project designed to engage classrooms of students in conducting growth experiments in a plant growing chamber that models the one on the International Space Station.
What projects besides Daily Minor Planet reliably have data for participants to examine?
A few come to mind:
For the space enthusiasts: Galaxy Zoo: the James Webb Space Telescope data edition. This project is investigating newly collected data from one of the most powerful scientific instruments that humans have ever built, the James Webb Space Telescope. This telescope collects so much data, even though the projects is very popular, chances are that there will be data to classify.
For the animal lovers: Snapshot Wisconsin needs people to help identify the animals in images captured by a statewide network of trail camera traps.
A new project will be announced in autumn 2025 to investigate data from the Vera C. Rubin Observatory… Sign up for the NASA Citizen Science Newsletter to get notified when this project and other new projects go live!
And by the way, you should read up on Vera C. Rubin! She was a really impressive scientist and mentor.
What ideas do you have for projects to do after Daily Minor Planet?
Pick a project of interest to your community and one that you have the equipment to do and can do from your location. The second page of the handout for participants to help them explore other NASA-sponsored citizen science project opportunities has a handy decision tree to help you find projects that will work for you.
Which NASA citizen science projects have specific resources for children?
Snapshot Wisconsin, which needs people to identify animals and their behavior in images captured by a network of trail cameras, is a great project for animal lovers. The project also has a webpage with information and resources to support participation by classrooms.
GLOBE Observer, which asks people to use their smartphone app to make and share observations of clouds, land cover, tree heights, and mosquito breeding habitat, has a Family activities page.
The Zooniverse platform, which hosts many NASA-sponsored projects, has a Zooniverse In Schools webpage of resources, including some Galaxy Zoo activities.