A BOINC1 based, citizen-science project for pixel spectral energy distribution fitting of resolved galaxies in multi-wavelength surveys

In this work we present our experience from the first year of theSkyNet Pan-STARRS1 Optical Galaxy Survey (POGS) project. This citizen-scientist driven research project uses the Berkeley Open Infrastructure for Network Computing (BOINC) middleware and thousands of Internet-connected computers to measure the resolved galactic structural properties of ∼∼100,000 low redshift galaxies. We are combining the spectral coverage of GALEX, Pan-STARRS1, SDSS, and WISE to generate a value-added, multi-wavelength UV–optical–NIR galaxy atlas for the nearby Universe. Specifically, we are measuring physical parameters (such as local stellar mass, star formation rate, and first-order star formation history) on a resolved pixel-by-pixel basis using spectral energy distribution (SED) fitting techniques in a distributed computing mode.