CCP Games allows players of the space MMO EVE Online to search for distant planets outside our solar system, for exoplanets.
Project Discovery is a scientific crowdsourcing project undertaken in collaboration with the EVE Online developers, Massively Multiplayer Online Science (MMOS), the University of Reykjavik, the University of Geneva, and its honorary professor Michel Mayor, winner of the prestigious Wolf Prize in Physics in 2017.
EVE players search for alien planets
As part of the project, EVE players analyze long-term measurements of the brightness of distant stars from the CoRoT telescope to discover extrasolar planets toward outer space. Before the start of this project, 37 exoplanets had already been discovered based on data from the CoRoT telescope.
While players conduct their analyses and send them to the MMOS citizen science platform and the University of Geneva for review, they can earn in-game rewards such as PLEX, SKINs, and blueprints for the coveted CONCORD ships.
Yves Flückiger, the rector of the University of Geneva, praises the initiative. “The University of Geneva is pleased to pioneer this new method of interacting with so many people. The notion of alien research is no longer tenable when hundreds of thousands are invited to contribute to scientific discoveries.” Professor Michel Mayor adds: “I discovered a new world with the telescope 20 years ago – just as I did this year when I discovered EVE Online and its players during the EVE Fanfest in Iceland.”
How the search works
Anyone participating in Project Discovery is first welcomed by a digital version of Professor Michel Mayor. He explains the basics and how players can search for exoplanets. You will then receive a large amount of data that you can use for your search directly in the game.
You analyze this data in a window, and if you find something, you submit it to the University of Geneva. The whole thing runs like a mini-game. Your discoveries and completing tasks unlock rewards for the game. How precise your analyses are also plays a role.
Your analyses should always be over 50 percent accuracy, or you will not receive in-game items. You look at the recorded light data of a star over a certain period and check for anomalies such as a drop in the light intensity of the star.
You then investigate these irregularities more closely, and if you believe you have found an exoplanet, you submit this result. The better you get at analyzing, the more EXP you earn, and through leveling up, you will reach even higher quality rewards.
July update brings many innovations
The July update of the MMO EVE Online brings many innovations, including a complete rebalancing of the Tech 3 cruisers, new models for Rupture, Muninn, and Broadsword, and much more.
More articles about EVE Online:
