You can help researchers find previously unidentified black holes in the universe

Any web user can now take part in the search for the formation of new black holes in the universe. — AFP Relaxnews

Dutch researchers are calling on web users the world over to help them find new black holes in space. All you have to do is download an app and open it for a few minutes each day.

The “Black Hole Finder” initiative takes the form of an app proposed by the Dutch Black Hole Consortium (DBHC), so that anyone can take part in the search for new black holes. Users, referred to here as “citizen scientists”, can now actively participate in the elaboration of an algorithm dedicated to identifying the formation of black holes in the universe.

To do this, the app lets them study a whole series of images representing, a priori, explosions or reflections, and determine whether or not they are black holes in formation according to a few simple criteria, starting with the shape and diameter of the luminous phenomenon observed. For each case, the user is asked to validate or reject the image, the idea being to process as many images as possible each day, and to discard any irrelevant ones.

This participatory initiative will enable the researchers to train their famous algorithm so that, eventually, it will be able to track down potential black holes autonomously among all the images of space that are suggested.

The app is available now free of charge on Google Play (Android) and the App Store (iOS). – AFP Relaxnews