pLay your parTdiScoVer our uNiVerSe

JoiN NoW aNd become a FouNdiNG member oF

SomeThiNG amaZiNGreGiSTer oNLiNe aTwww.theSkyNet.org

aNd receiVe a LimiTed ediTioN FouNdiNG

memberS cerTiFicaTe

Have a computer? Want to help astronomers make awesome discoveries and understand our Universe?

theSkyNet NeedS you!

Your computer is bored. It has spare processing power nearly all of the time that could be used to do something cool. So why not let it?

The ScieNce biT

By connecting 100s and 1000s of computers together through the Internet, it’s

possible to simulate a single machine capable of doing some pretty amazing stuff.

theSkyNet is a community computing project dedicated to radio astronomy. Radio astronomers use radio telescopes (of course) to observe the Universe at radio wavelengths (still with me?). All day, every day, signals from distant galaxies, stars and other cosmic bits and pieces arrive at the Earth in the form of radio waves. Once detected by a radio telescope the signal is processed by computers and used by scientists to support a theory or inspire a new one.

The compuTer biT

When you join theSkyNet your computer will help radio astronomers process information and answer some of the big questions we have about the Universe.

As a part of theSkyNet community your computer will be called upon to process small packets of data, but you wont even notice it’s going on. The key to theSkyNet is to have lots of computers connected, with each doing only a little, but it all adding up to a lot.

At the heart of theSkyNet is the website, theSkyNet.org where you’ll find astronomy news and info about the research you’re helping to make possible. In the members area you’ll find stats on how much data you’ve processed, the trophies you’ve earned along the way and how any alliances you’ve joined stack up against others. The more data you and your alliances process, the more status you’ll have within theSkyNet community.

But that’s not it, because as theSkyNet project evolves we’ll be adding more features for you to explore. In the pipeline we have visualisation tools to help you understand the data you’re processing and even an opportunity to help identify and catalogue radio wave sources.

WhaT you Need To do

It’s easy – just log on to theSkyNet.org today and play your part in discovering our Universe.