Homepage
Localize site content
    • About
    • History
    • Who was Vera Rubin?
    • Construction Updates
      • Rubin in Chile
      • Cerro Pachón
      • Observatory Site Selection
      • Organization
      • Leadership
      • Science Collaborations
    • Funding Information
      • Work With Us
      • Jobs Board
    • Explore
      • How Rubin Works
      • Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST)
      • Rubin Technology
      • Alert Stream
      • Rubin Numbers
    • Science Goals
    • Rubin Voices
    • Get Involved in Rubin Research
      • Activities, Games, and More
      • Space Surveyors Game
      • Animated Video Series
      • Join Rubin Observatory’s 3200-Megapixel Group Photo!
    • Gallery
      • Main Gallery
    • Slideshows
    • Construction Archive Gallery
    • Media Use Policy
    • News
    • Press Releases
      • Rubin Observatory First Look
      • Rubin First Look Watch Parties
    • Media Resources
    • Press Releases
    • Name Guidelines
    • For Scientists
      • News, events, and deadlines
      • Rubin Science Assemblies
      • Rubin Data Academy
      • Rubin Community Workshop
      • Resources for scientists
      • Rubin Community Forum
      • Early Science Program
      • Workshops and seminars
      • Tutorials
      • LSST Discovery Alliance
      • Code of Conduct
      • Survey, instruments, and telescopes
      • Key numbers
      • The Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST)
      • Instruments
      • Telescopes
      • Data products, pipelines, and services
      • Data access and analysis
      • Recent data releases
      • Alerts and brokers
      • Data processing pipelines
      • Future data products
      • Data Policy
      • Simulation software
      • Documentation and publications
      • Technical documentation
      • How to cite Rubin Observatory
      • Publication policies
      • Glossary & Acronyms
      • Science Collaborations
      • Galaxies Science Collaboration
      • Stars, Milky Way, and Local Volume Science Collaboration
      • Solar System Science Collaboration
      • Dark Energy Science Collaboration
      • Active Galactic Nuclei Science Collaboration
      • Transients and Variable Stars Science Collaboration
      • Strong Lensing Science Collaboration
      • Informatics and Statistics Science Collaboration
    • Citizen Science
      • Committees and teams
      • Science Advisory Committee (SAC)
      • Survey Cadence Optimization Committee (SCOC)
      • Users Committee
      • Community Science Team (CST)
      • Research Inclusion Working Group (RIWG)
      • Project Science Team (PST)
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Education
    • Education FAQs
    • Educators
    • Glossary
    • Investigations
    • Calendar
Localize site content

Let's Connect

  • Visit the Rubin Observatory on Facebook
  • Visit the Rubin Observatory on Instagram
  • Visit the Rubin Observatory on LinkedIn
  • Visit the Rubin Observatory on Twitter
  • Visit the Rubin Observatory on YouTube
  • Jobs Board
  • Intranet
  • Visual Identity Guide
  • Image Gallery
  • Privacy Policy

Contact us

The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science will support Rubin Observatory in its operations phase to carry out the Legacy Survey of Space and Time. They will also provide support for scientific research with the data. During operations, NSF funding is managed by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA) under a cooperative agreement with NSF, and DOE funding is managed by SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC), under contract by DOE. Rubin Observatory is operated by NSF NOIRLab and SLAC.

NSF is an independent federal agency created by Congress in 1950 to promote the progress of science. NSF supports basic research and people to create knowledge that transforms the future.

The DOE Office of Science is the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States and is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time.

Funding agency logos
  1. For Scientists
  2. Citizen Science

Citizen Science

Using the collective observational insights of the general public, citizen science opens the door to unique research with Rubin Observatory and engages the public in cutting edge science. Rubin Observatory is facilitating crowd science projects by providing a pipeline directly from the Rubin Science Platform to the Zooniverse, a popular citizen science platform. Our team does not directly manage individual projects—our goal is to support scientists in successfully running their own projects using this pipeline, associated documentation, and support from our team and the Zooniverse. We’re here to help you!

If you are a volunteer and are looking to get involved in Rubin projects - check out these resources and projects!

For scientists interested in becoming a future project lead of a project, our pipeline is still under development and we welcome your insights and suggestions. We have a recorded demonstration of the basic version of our pipeline below.

Please check back soon as we further develop resources here, fill out our interest form and reach out to us at cscience@lsst.org.

FAQ

How to use the pipeline?

You can check out our recorded demo of the pipeline now and we will release a Principal Investigator (PI) Guide with all the details soon - Stay tuned!

We hope to reduce the challenges of starting and maintaining a project for our project leads by reducing the "learning curve" of creating and managing a project; supporting data management, storage and security; and facilitating engagement with the public.

Who will be able to become a PI/Project lead?

Anyone with Rubin data rights! Our pipeline is designed to be run via the Rubin science platform and anyone with data access can use it. We also have advice and support for navigating the sharing of data with the public.

I have an idea now, what can I do to prepare?

Great! Please fill out our interest survey and indicate you’d like to be an early tester. You can get started on designing and mocking up your project as we all eagerly await Rubin observations.

What’s the timeline?

The Rubin timeline is available here with first light expected in early 2025 and the start of science operations in late 2025. Before then, we invite you to design and test a project (fill out our interest survey) and check back here for updates and more information.

‌
Recorded demo of the citizen science pipeline

Email Us About Citizen ScienceFill out our Citizen Science Interest Form

Our partnership with Zooniverse

We knew that public participation in science would be a huge part of Rubin Observatory's success, so we partnered with Zooniverse, the largest and most popular platform where everyone can get involved. With our input, the team at Zooniverse has made it easy for researchers to build projects that use Rubin data. That means there are lots of Rubin science projects for you to get involved with, and your help will contribute to cutting-edge astronomy and astrophysics discoveries!

Zooniverse is more than a work space—it’s a community. Ask questions or have conversations about the work you’re doing together and participate at any level that’s comfortable for you. Each project gives you the information and guidance you need to make a meaningful contribution, no prior training required. Give it a try, and have fun!