Crowdsourcing Archaeology from Space
Space archaeology is an exciting field of research that uses satellite imagery to hunt for clues of past civilizations on Earth.
And you can become a space archaeologist from the comfort of your own living room or bedroom thanks to a forthcoming online crowdsourcing platform called Global Xplorer.
The citizen science initiative is being spearheaded by American archaeologist, space archaeologist and Egyptologist Sarah Parcak who is spending her $1 million 2016 TED Prize earnings to get it up and running.
“I wish for us to discover the millions of unknown archaeological sites across the globe,” Parcak said. “By building an online citizen science platform and training a 21st century army of global explorers, we’ll find and protect the world’s hidden heritage, which contains clues to humankind’s collective resilience and creativity.”
According to the Global Xplorer website, archaeologists have only explored less than 10% of the Earth’s surface, and it’s taken hundreds of years to search that much. However, through space archeology the remaining 90% could be explored in around 10 years.
Explore the Unknown Past
To help accelerate research, citizen scientists will analyze satellite images of vast tracts of previously unsurveyed land. In so doing, they may detect unknown archaeological sites. They will be able to do this by using their own laptops or other devices, and no formal training is required.
For more information on how Parcak wants to crowdsource exploration, and to sign up to take part, click here.
For a primer on the field of space archaeology, watch Sarah Parcak’s short TED talk below:
Add your Comment
[LOGIN FIRST] if you're already a member.fields are required.