It is certainly not easy to understand exactly what thousands of scientists are looking for in space and what phenomena are observed by the state-of-the-art telescopes that operate continuously far from Earth.
Play is traditionally a way to facilitate learning - and NASA seems to be using it to help people understand what is happening "up there". In an attempt to bring science into our homes, the space agency has created a game that explains the mission of the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, a telescope that, according to current planning, will begin collecting data by 2027.
The Roman Space Observer game, which can be played on any computer, is aimed at adults and children, and is designed in such a way that each player can understand the challenges of the space telescope. As one logs on to the platform, one immediately becomes an operator of the telescope.
The goal is to detect as many astronomical phenomena as possible within a one-minute period - a time that is renewed every time we have time to capture a phenomenon with the telescope. In front of the screen you can see supernovae exploding, galaxies, exoplanets or black holes passing by at high speed, spot areas where dark matter exists, or even happen to see the James Webb Space Telescope which is on its own autonomous course!
The designers have attempted to transfer some of the basic laws governing astronomical phenomena into the two-dimensional environment. Thus, dark matter can be detected through the slight distortions it causes in celestial bodies that pass through it, while black holes, from which not even light can escape, can barely be seen to pass through. At the same time, the most frequently detected celestial bodies are galaxies.
Trigger for further search
Of course, the aim of the platform is not to accurately reproduce the wondrous phenomena that take place in space, but to trigger users to search for more information about both the operation of the telescope and the phenomena that scientists intend to observe using the telescope. As noted in the digital magazine Popular Science by Cartney Lee, who oversaw the development of this particular game, "I wanted to create a game to help educate people and meet them where they are."
The Future Telescope
The infrared space telescope will be used by scientists to seek answers to fundamental questions related to dark matter, search for extra-solar planets in order, among other things, to investigate more systematically the possibility of life beyond Earth and to collect data that will complete the "puzzle" of the history of the Universe. At the same time, the telescope will test advanced technologies that will allow the detection of a large number of exoplanets and the observation of protoplanetary disks, i.e. gas disks that surround stars as they form.
Source: in.gr
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