Gravity Spy

Gravity Spy is a Zooniverse people-powered research project that invites volunteers to help LIGO scientists improve gravitational-wave detectors. Launched in 2016, it focuses on identifying glitches: short bursts of noise that can obscure faint gravitational-wave signals in detector data. These glitches can have instrumental or environmental origins, and recognizing recurring patterns is an important first step toward understanding and reducing them.

Through online classification activities, participants examine gravitational-wave data alongside other measurements that record detector conditions. Their work helps researchers investigate glitch types and narrow down possible causes. Gravity Spy reports that volunteers have identified multiple new types of glitches, and the project also asks them to explore additional detector data.

The project offers staged learning activities, including classifications about neutron stars, supernovae, and black-hole mergers, as well as Gravity Spy 2.0 workflows. Participants can connect with the research team and fellow volunteers through Zooniverse Talk and consult project resources, including a wiki, tools, and detector logbooks.