NASA has begun a crowdsourcing project that enlist the help of the world's citizens to identify erathbound locations in pictures taken from space.

The project is called, "Cities at Night."

All the photos astronauts have taken from outer space have been placed in an album called the "Gateway to Astronaut Photography." The album begins from the 1960s when NASA launched its Mercury Program that sent the first American astronauts into outer space..

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The album boasts the most complete collection of astronaut photography of the Earth online. Millions of photos of the Earth are included in the album.

More than half this massive total comes from the International Space Station (ISS).

The Cities at Night project calls for people to view photos in the gallery and try to figure out what city or place is in the picture. Participants can even georeference the cities.

The main purpose of the project is to identify the cities in order to study light pollution emittedby these cities.

NASA said the effects of light pollution can be measured from inside one's bedroom up to miles away.

"The light destroys the essence of the evening darkness. Humans have an ancestral fear of the dark, but too much light produces very negative effects on the ecosystem and our health," according to NASA.

The space images are helping compare and measure large lighted areas. With the photos, scientists will be able to measure how efficient the lighting of cities are in different places across the world.

The website also offers the opportunity for citizens to use "Citizen Science," a tool for educational and research purposes. With it, website visitors can learn more about geography.

NASA has turned to the citizens of the world because computers and algorithms can't differentiate between stars, cities, objects, and astronomical object like the moon.

People can participate in the project by heading to www.citiesatnight.org.

The project was launched in partnership with the Complutense University of Madrid.

TagsNASA, Cities at Night, Gateway to Astronaut Photography