Challenge.gov: Mapping Dark Matter

Mapping Dark Matter is a image analysis competition whose aim is to encourage the development of new algorithms that can be applied to challenge of measuring the tiny distortions in galaxy images caused by dark matter. The aim is to measure the shapes of galaxies to reconstruct the gravitational lensing signal in the presence of noise and a known Point Spread Function. The signal is a very small change in the galaxies’ellipticity, an exactly circular galaxy image would be changed into anellipse; however real galaxies are not circular. The challenge is to measure the ellipticity of 100,000 simulated galaxies.

From: National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Category: Science & Technology
Partners: Royal University Edinburgh, University College London, Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Submission Period: Start: May 25, 2011 End: Aug 18, 2011
Winners announced: Aug 25, 2011
Official page