Citizen science is scientific research conducted, in whole or in part, by amateur (or nonprofessional) scientists. Citizen science is sometimes described as "public participation in scientific research," participatory monitoring and participatory action research. We partner with the public and scientists to conduct education and public outreach programs for a number of research projects. The research carried out by these scientists involves many areas, including: the physics of Earth's atmosphere and magnetosphere, the Sun and space weather in the Solar System, asteroids and meteors, star dust, brown dwarfs, finding new planets, the birth of new stars and planets, the overall structure of the Universe—and much more.

We develop broad educational programs involving partners across the United States for multiple audiences. For smaller projects, we conduct focused activities in more localized regions. Our overall goal for these projects is to communicate the science and engineering of the research to educate and inspire the next generation and increase the science literacy of citizens of Earth.