Blobs and Blurs: Extreme Galaxies in Clusters

We’d like to thank the amazing 1,406 citizen scientists who helped us search for Blue Blobs and Diffuse Galaxies in the Fornax Cluster last June/July! We received 149,760 total classifications and have spent the past few months processing all of these data. We’re now ready to share some exciting updates from all of your hard work!

Results from the Fornax Cluster

Diffuse Galaxies

In order for an object to be considered a diffuse galaxy candidate, we required that at least 4 volunteers marked the same object. Using this metric, you identified 1,138 diffuse galaxy candidates in the Fornax Cluster! These candidates are plotted below in a map of Fornax, with some being identified by over 20 volunteers!

The candidates that were identified by a higher number of citizen scientists are most likely to exist in current diffuse galaxy catalogs of Fornax. We’re most interested in catalogs that were generated with automated detection methods, since their completeness is limited by the faint, smudge-like appearance of these galaxies. Many of these candidates have been cataloged by such methods, but you found 55 diffuse galaxies that were not found by any automated search! Here are a few standout examples of these objects:

This one is quite faint so we've included the VST image as well:

Possible reasons why automated searches missed these objects include:

• The diffuse galaxy was either too bright or too faint for the algorithm
• A nearby bright object (such as a star) obscured the diffuse galaxy from the algorithm

Although these objects don’t appear in any automated catalogs of Fornax, nearly all of them have been cataloged already through some form of visual inspection (usually focused on a subregion of Fornax). However, you found 4 completely new diffuse galaxy candidates that don’t appear in any existing catalogs—automated or visual—which is very exciting! We've included them here below:

Username of volunteers who contributed to the project

Here, we list all the usernames of all the citizen scientists who contributed to the Virgo Blue blob project. However, we don't list the names of people not logged in when making classifications.

Solarjazz
swapnaneel
Ariaanderson
E-AstroBio
canopus228
Sovanacharya
WildZubat
eagleclaw
dofurchina
Dmitrii-29
SAlexandrov
superfasol
opm92805
Agata_moretti_13
MgKaungSatThantfromMyanmar
JRocSmooth
Davarangers
FuzzyMovingDot
mike.jones.astro
blwright13
Jan225
TealPlates55
fabioterzi
Raine1787
K.Delvey
Mike8922
Slaytan17
Alex74
nstelson
GRG101
Hattie123
terryault
LadyVitality
I_wish_I_can_study_at_Starfleet_Academy
Nesluh
Galaxy-Discoverer
tomburgerpie
prime23
Juliabarnett
W--Va.V
pntha
hasharg
LjDawson
KoHi
victoriagreeman
Mayahn
TuesdayMuse
jsae-ger
Joshcozmo21
unschubladisierbar
VuDuong
Palumi
DavidVesterlund
snes1293
huskercr
lauraebrown
ellambrandt
pandriole
yeIlerer
Daniel1219
BostonP
Dixierose
fanshengmeng
timofeev
Kennycavanaugh
conner1
pga99
Luhman16_A
Melineh1
Missybee35
Rarebreed85
menaLO
BrayBray12
nmiles
ine
gdorough
sn375032
pbennet
GrahamChristenson
Barbalbero
Ankcorn712
cattolin
Readox
eschroen2
m1rr8555
Maika_mom
Prothon
Agata.brzo
safin
dsand
Isaacthecapybara
Larane
LMclark
jess.bailey
eelsa
Demonartis
gnieves
e.carter
havjane1
OregonHiker
Microsoft_Ruby
HelenShaw
erik01089
tanyaleemunter
Ayannahyman
StarryLight
xzendejas
salisburymike
jackphillips68
ingberh
KovuRice
Ahahnke
TriSarahtops1228
Websel
Fayry
Elres06
gaplunke
DanStef619
jchu526
OlEnglish
Lisyppia
tess.peyton
tailuong
PrinceofEuropa
Waterocean
JKing7
Bazzmanian
Eddy-0
ssonya7149
Dolanghini
ennder
PhiriUlfur42
eakadams
lindemose
jeanniebean
rlawjddnsa
Selene01
crsrs31
emilybray
braydenlloyd
ImaginaryHawk
BURGERMANa
mohamedkamesh
Monocalcium_Phosphate
em..souza
Jenetta
Thall282
Mark_Moffatt
stephdunphy
annah05
3016943
Varsha51964
RushilMandavia
Dejager2005
brinlong
tinkapuppy
errror23
vishalt
lalalazy
nish_cola
rosaw1
ZoeWhsd
KatBegelfer
igreenstein
Mcelrees
Roa
Figtoaster
Natblomst
Sopodabest
ChoBella
Kassad47
JHotten222
MARISSAMUNOZ
Khai_Noct
xxorlsxx
DemetriusAdams
Lwoiak
Ms.MartinEnvSci
Calkid
Nolomos
ozodbek
jdowney20
Liset
Boeuz
jstorm15
bogdancristiandincabnef
HappySisyphus
Pnkj
Fishquill
john_mann
katherine92539
mmaes
Hallo1701
Ilse89
Tiggw
josue2283
angeloxsanchez
Dcastrost3
nbianchi
eleonora2710
tracylan
Sly416
pritam25j
jordanlosoya
ChocolEE
Ciraxis
parmagnus_utep433
chrisoa
mCianph
KyleW342
qwertball2
mojeda
thomas_pinkie
jiipee
savi12390
kbrownie232
veverett
msminx
Gian1234
TT515
twillett0031
Shykuzo
Jeffrey-Zhang
shannonsstaples
Hmcchesney
dylankalebaugh
Adurice
masonroot
lazro49
JFEREstrada
958bacsal
YangLuket
joaniecramsey
VWmilwaukee
Utahraptor3
Ivana_orte
Itsug
27mbingham1
Byron22
jlvs
boyce1
Bill_Collins
NeelamSharma
cfernandezc
GothicAlice
kara-the-cheese
Addison2011
Starnewc08
ThomasAirton99
nmikhailova
HalenR6088
Nelson894
Vbrisa_12
Tsil0
Alexander_Cabrera777
Jian09
Ksenia_Laura
agirlcalledsoap
IanBarber
EvanB2
ABladt
lindasian
Jessane
angelikuh
winningtherace1
David_Santos
equidad1
diazad
DanielFinazzo19
heinz-helmuth
fannycarbajal
Cielo12reyes
ESwanson97
fljack123
leamcguigan1235
mgneal
rwbodge
parmagnus_utep497
gracieee
loncken
A.D.Scott
ktaft
spevak
NoahTera
jalynk
SpaceSnake
Leila21
Augyte
Brooke82
aflett
dilynns
gabijasaritas
Hudsonhb
Freethesouls
ProfessorProton2020
Naasir64
jobeydillon
Danielwoo
avalin
XiaoyingWang
Kaylarc
Leslet1
aefish
feliciaschnur
zarakomo
Caridean
jakechon
Minnavia
iammariexx
Nono59
AS2049
merx773
averagestudent1234
ru7
bigbadbagel
Bunnbunn
ryliemw
Cesar_Contreras
Satchey77
SpacePenguin87
nklimek
thanatforos
warrenst
bramboro
JacobThadius
larseck
parmagnus_epcc058
Linda_J.Berkel
Rebekah27
Fred_Lewis
Kwte84
KaiChess08
ZombieMeX7
Goth_Gallo
steventran
josephc24
hardicnut
hopopop
Luis_btg13
100107
dog1956
multifandom_issues
Ems16
Neural89
cjh059
mollyinkailua
mckinleyjarnagin
meganevans308
RedAgent13
hriven
ARL7NA
cade.117
JB46
Erlinda
AnthonyAlv
day008
tomato97
ConnorSands
Zofmui
jbible69
carolinehorne
aelizondo75
tablitd
Bailey_Russell
outatime
lschaeffer99
sienna1115
Dant3
emileexnadine
julie76
Exite.on.exoplanets
Katherinewatkins
Cyborg101a
ScientificMethodMan
Kostula
charitymonarch
luciagreen05
Bryankim
mjoakley55
WyattH1
Jaida522
astro_ashlee
inca
grace9867
Kendalldroesch
bronwynhouse
vectorfan29
welliott
maryi13
cosmo-nautical
sierragoode42
christiansmith66
mmensi95
obwalburn
ekeeling
Gallifreyan_1970
colton31
leb037
lkf23a
cedartree
brimkins
jonathan.fox
Kaileak
DannyGrieco
davidmccornack
lunnrya
WillJarratt
stoby
lesherc00
vapourer
CarterWilliams444
spencerdoolen
aaronv232
sierale
Rupecure
beyondcommunication
Paul.Singh.BLP.TA
skwilliams
ash3763
vela_reynolds
Oriopia
Kirachan
Zmil345
zachpizzoli2112
ZuhayrD
Shantanu_Bloomberg_NEF
tyranlexmiu
Andra1984
Staceyann116
rev82
joanJAV
OlesyaPashkova
reeegs
Trevsully77
savvyisme06
Camilladesano
gumy
sryamane
CainMiller
micahkiddo
Ineedspace
htorres0526
Margaretbianco
thedestroyer4839
JBell33
bigmurk
jmintz03
Manda_755
kadyann
mmbenz
hkansky
Lou_klh3
Tybo1075
alissnoda
paytonluzardo
stillingsryan
Fleishour
baasilenewton
srbngabriel
HenrikJensenDK
davidgie
morenadanti
gaytan.abel96
kirstenwong
saramarathas
JohannesL
GYurchak
Wholesome_Soup
jromeo721
Megrose1234
kgutierrez75
itsbao
mseison
miriamlkessler
Bradley25
clsmith3
Gkalama2
oliviafm
agcaballero
br43
emirmutlu
tfreiberg
jonahmafua
calebse
AnastasiaEE
Usteevan
mdmmars
GiulianaCelentano
jordynsworld
Sophia_5
chenmm
Molly01
lepag1ac
aprado36
libentianimo
Refap
MadisonSchislerGenAstro
EllaDeer
simonemarcorini
SteveRD50
Briyee
Rmccroey034
dmont96
moichain
thespacelink
geezyboykin
astroCC
ElisabethB
altairpraz
marylandheng
griff827
Chapeecharli
david.oprea
paleognaths
Jailah02
jordinqueens
JaxonDawson
vsotto07
62856
AkiraQ
miamid8co
Sageberry
Zyrbus
DesJarlais.Landon
Npauls
Sugar_Sticks
Aro--ush
tsimon25
reecemwalker5
Lucymarion0
brewater2282
Clrussell3166
faninh
assodicuori
rubyrows
esmeraldag101
egu
RRam
tristakuddar
Quothraven
DrKlahn
laleksyuk
angelikabellinghausen
pomios
danielagarcia14
Marcossilva
kewlkeed
Jarotaa
makolol
dianakrasnova
Lexjohnstone
Serenity...06
fullo88
XxVxX898
Fardo
kornstar
WYZZ-Yoshi
RonLucc
adamcash2k
4kapa
cosmoaka_410
OmarioS
Europais1
the.matik
MaxHW
Username713
snez67
MintMist
Nritchie91
starcastle
Cosmos1
imdra
Alissja
Ernest2008
12365548
domasgavelis
sdeff
katmaybe
joewolf12
Naoufel67
radfordr
mrwhippy
clarkstudioarts
Rfairbro
VanTheMan2100
meesch3
KARIPATTA
Terri-ann
fouriertenn
Christopher_2007
cbreitnauer
Geoviking
CindyQuack
RicardoChavezSr
FyshFynn
billthecoward
nikhil_sharma6
alexdoens
Notri
ak24
Carbonbow1415
Wrenyyx
ttrujillo
sujay.trivedi
Hlear
gracelhoulihan
Ariel
aidan_mott
ifrankel24
glatella
megangray
punkigertekno
Marsza
LilaSeroy
aehser
rhunt1
Edeinard24
Shannen212
Arunfromspace
Hushaan
Lola0119
RodrigoAsencios
M.Novanta
jkirincich
ldenk28
TheEpicPrimius123
vilchezj
Kapybara79
rrakosRVCC
KhalilaRedBird
peakscience7
Gege1125
StephenPatrickBrennan
Eggboi
FraYsTer
B21
Collin556
Moonlightsilverstacker
marciakishi
baszoetekouw
basketball1234
Robb-e
alexob6
Nib1943
scruffygit
EmergeHolographic
Evasquez2003
Jujubean9734
Forck
leelaht
rpildis
jarphys
twtracy
bert_willard
Martinius
straddo
pratheekshashetty
puffferfish
Astro_Denny
AF10
DarkGlu
harrietk
Rachel
NicoleAgueev
bluecucumber
marcobanchini
Kidbid
Anababkw
TheaRobertson61
Csxmd
hibs2009
3affuzail
Jagvent27
goodmorning
Violet28
HippyPhysicist
apotterdd
Jessicaashleymm
wgeoghegan
FoxicusMetallicus
n.gotkiewicz
Qsarkiss
wforrester
KenanA.
emilyclr
ishaan_
Malucas
Jahzia1234
Minsuh
janster123
broxes
ProfessorKurt
Adrian747
aria.nawab
Ravenprince1
Lindsayleilani
Soggy_Mo1st
DrBoots
Alexis23
Akathop77
wsnell
styeve5006
amilani5
Jonnie.pehrson
shtolenciya
Silly464
RedCoat360
Haroyan
KonstantinosK
Menna127
helios1235
Hammond1212
AstroAryush
FlameFrontFalcon
LewisGatewood
Aprilwitch
JSather
tictacktca
Jvaswani5195
wreck-ims
Ryan_Hovious
Loganaw
dander99
md_shamimreza
k.14.low
miichellebi
JustDanny
Kauppakassi
Diffy
vinegar_chip
ddomino87
asavla
Rachelleclimbeck
natpir
tlstell
Ecooper01
AlexanderBell127
annasimpso
Nytruze
kian.ahani
mohsen.shadmehri
nazaninzahra
B.F.A.2000
Dim1mits
funnyfrisch
dborges
aoifemarron
scientificpanda
armando_zamora
AJChad77
Alya_084
JosephBrom
Sunray_2013
LehmannPeggy
gianlucawey
bellachilli
Jahlizzz
MarieKennedy
Kimchi165
lazer_luna
Anpena
Ak1220
Adrian_Z
Thomas.Buryiak
DWP17
THDA1
ttham
joshuatruong
caiobarros
anguskhan
rylancbotts2
Rorar
JackCSki
George_Louis
zs6cr
40057095
victoria.espinoza
tlucius
Danzo79
littleck
leonie_van_vliet
Dhuertas
Hernandez-Velasquez_Sara
rws
josko.franic90
zackmacattack
DarisRincon
keiragreen916
StojanBacvarovski
tiffanylloyd
Stubbs3
lem048
Eboileau
mario28
Yugam12
Bernie_T
izzievd
villnz7
memlock
KorupM
DiabloYeti
Carmen01
EKincaid13
Raichelle256
SNX_9lzn
draugarnatt
lorenz32
HayleyTrebcock04
akvolunteer
sunshards
savannahfall
Pightls
erm.1326
Pokemonmaster12345
TheOneAsainDude
AnanthanK
lfwestfa
WeaverJacob
JenithaChetty
Alandis2024
allennhan
nmazziotti
pitt502
Chillverio
bkboyer
Agenor
jad1212
matias_reyes
fwmh
Laraarce
Jernesto
Markseis
7475
Whoandwhatitis
JBisman
Michaelgunion
Cloke1
peccon
rdonks
JSHuisman
kkramery
josek
AdamStirz
RefugeZero
Bailey1568
JoachimDuru
jphilipsz
AnikKulk
ivanrodriguez24
AshC
Ushanka
sidbw
spiritedaway
parmagnus_utep273
dianasironi
smartalice
askinsmyke
TrinaD923
jayceebee03
cadebradford12
mckenajensen
Hudson.Humphries
tpetera
ares.n
k3vinnguyen
Drk67
millicenthayosh
ChaseNowicki
NXBirdsofaFeather
Demon_Girl
SingularidadeO
juliannamanning2003
Philrec
bskjoren
annamunford
SaRvEsHaLaGaPpAn
JorgeFlores_27
emilykelliher
LydraXord
Gracjan
Alexander_bell
Bimmer
hannahnelson
SFinn1
Marvinrm2025
mgoeckerman
Carl0s_9
groveec24
FloorGoossens
WillDittmer
sirpeppy
Primax
Steelerguy
xx0746
ranby
aubreyschwager
Prestonprather
Flipvo
Johnrf
ijamesjones
a.westenberger
Cartoonari
bobolino
SDupree4
Bogdang35
shiva.kumar.m
Ayuda
Eemre
Ayaka-Kami
ManavC
gowri.venugopal
gas_station_sushi
Parth_bhawsar
LisaPeters
jyoo2