> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://www.projectpanoptes.org/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://www.projectpanoptes.org/master.md).
# Project PANOPTES
A citizen science project that aims to make it easy for anyone to build a low cost, robotic telescope that can be used to detect transiting exoplanets.
{% hint style="info" %}
Hi! Welcome to Project PANOPTES, the **P**anoptic **A**stronomical **N**etworked **O**bservatories for a **P**ublic **T**ransiting **E**xoplanets **S**urvey!
{% endhint %}
## Overview
PANOPTES is a build-your-own robotic telescope citizen science project designed to find new exoplanets!
What does that mean?
:ringed\_planet: **Exoplanets** :ringed\_planet:
There are planets out there orbiting stars besides our Sun. We use robotic telescopes, called PANOPTES units, to try to find them.
:tools: **Build-your-own** :tools:
Each PANOPTES unit is built by someone just like you! No prior experience or advanced degrees required!
:robot: **Robotic** :robot:
A PANOPTES unit is fully automated and once built and deployed it will work together with the PANOPTES network to find those planets!
:telescope: **Telescope** :telescope:
However each robotic telescope is also capable of being controlled manually, meaning that in addition to finding exoplanets you can use your unit to take pretty pictures or research something in the night sky besides exoplanets, like variable stars, or satellite and meteor counts.
## How can you participate?
Join our group, and participate in any way you wish, according to your area of expertise and/or taste. You can build a robotic camera yourself (and improve our design), explore new hardware solutions, write/improve software, come up with a new idea to use the robotic cameras, get other citizen scientists to join, analyze existing images, etc. How will you contribute to PANOPTES?
To see what others are doing, check out our community forum:
## Quick Links
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[Start Building!](/build/getting-started.md)
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[PANOPTES Units](/overview/panoptes-units.md)
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{% content-ref url="/pages/-MDvC1gyC6p66G7ztP5A" %}
[FAQ](/overview/faq.md)
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[Data](/science/data.md)
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[Contact](/overview/contact.md)
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## Partners
A big thanks to our partners and sponsors who help make the project succeed!
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