Attractive simplicity.
We turn a scientific method into a focused interface people can understand and enjoy without stripping away what makes the contribution valid.
Citizen science · people-powered research · worldwide
Citizen science apps that turn citizens into scientists.
Put smartphones and sensors in the hands of many enthusiastic people and something remarkably powerful happens. Each person gets a clear, simple task; together, many well-structured observations, measurements or classifications become a dataset for serious analysis and data reduction. Pocket Science makes that scale possible with attractive interfaces, tailored feedback and science communication that gives people a reason to join, understand and return.
You do not just buy an app. You get the interface, feedback, science communication, outreach and long-term care needed to turn technology into participation.
Flagship research instrument
iSPEX2: low-cost water radiometry on a smartphone.
iSPEX2 is currently a professional research sensor—not a citizen-science app or public project. Plymouth Marine Laboratory successfully derived above-water remote-sensing reflectance (Rrs) with it during professional campaigns. The open programme benchmarks the phone-based workflow alongside established ocean-colour reference radiometry.
Smartphone-basedportable spectropolarimetry for professional researchers
Above-water Rrssuccessfully derived by Plymouth Marine Laboratory
Reference comparedWISP-3, So-Rad and TriOS-RAMSES in the campaign record
Evidence boundary: the comparison concerns the tested above-water Rrs workflow and campaign matchups. The systems differ in automation, calibration traceability, spectral range and deployment model.
Customers and partners
Trusted by universities, public institutions and research partners.
Citizen science is not limited to academia. We work with any organisation that wants people involved in real science—including research teams, public agencies, policymakers, NGOs, foundations and community organisations.
Customers and sponsors
- Radboud University Black Hole Finder
- Leiden University iSPEX1
- University of Exeter Mini Secchi
- Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation Mini Secchi
- University of Groningen Zicht op Licht
- RIVM Arctic March and iSPEX Polar Edition
- Oxfam Novib Aware Hero and Digital Diversity Wheel
- Wageningen University Digital Diversity Wheel
- International Astronomical Union Dark Sky Meter IAU
Scientific and public partners
- KNMI iSPEX collaboration
- Plymouth Marine Laboratory
- Leiden University
- Leibniz IGB
- Leibniz ZMT
- ICM-CSIC
- Plankton Planet
Since 2012specialised in citizen science
Worldwideprojects, participants and scientific partners
Self-hostedprivacy and security by default
Long-termsupport beyond launch and grant
Participation is designed
Mass participation is designed, not assumed.
Serious science underneath. No rocket science for the user. Our differentiator is the adoption layer: an experience people immediately understand, feedback shaped around what they contributed, and communication that makes the purpose worth sharing.
Tailored feedback.
Participants see a response shaped around their own observation, measurement or classification—not a generic thank-you screen.
Science communication.
The story, onboarding, guidance and results explain why the task matters and what each person becomes part of.
Designed for adoption.
Outreach, sharing, support and community care turn individual enthusiasm into many smart, structured contributions—and a credible route towards mass participation and useful scientific scale.
Proof across the portfolioPublic participation has repeatedly travelled beyond the project.
Transit of Venus was a crowd-science experiment: could a worldwide crowd repeat the historic method? It reached 130,000+ downloads. Dark Sky Meter moved from an amateur astronomer’s idea to BBC and CBS coverage and more than 50,000 measurements. Black Hole Finder became a SciStarter Top Ten project and reached the NRC front page in 2026.
No one can guarantee success. We bring almost fifteen years of enthusiasm, creativity, public-launch experience and honest judgment to improve its chances. We have also declined technically feasible apps when there was no credible route to momentum.
Choose the scope
One app, selected components, or a complete turnkey package.
Pocket Science can deliver the whole citizen-science environment: app, website, science communication, app-store releases, backend, live dashboards, data extracts, secure infrastructure, outreach and long-term support. Every part can be tailored to the method and audience.
A tailor-made app
Mobile, web or both. We translate the method into an accessible participant experience, including unusual interactions, multilingual delivery, offline use and connections to existing research systems.
Explore app developmentLive research tools
Add high-performance real-time dashboards, administration, maps, validated extracts, APIs and reporting tailored to the organisation—plus sensor integration, data processing or machine learning where needed.
Explore data and infrastructureThe complete package
App, website, science communication, app stores, backend, dashboards, reporting, infrastructure, outreach and support—delivered and operated as one coherent citizen science service.
Explore the complete observatoryTailored does not mean oversized or rebuilt entirely from zero. Pocket Science reuses proven foundations where they fit and scopes the first release around the available budget. A €20,000–€40,000 budget can be realistic for a focused production release; sensors, AI and the complete observatory are optional. See how focused scope works.
More than development
People, trustworthy data and someone who stays responsible.
Successful citizen science connects an inviting public experience, an active community and dependable scientific data in one living service.
Participation and outreach
We shape the invitation, onboarding, feedback and communication around a meaningful scientific task. Our work has brought thousands of people into real research, and we have operated our own communities for years.
Live insight and reporting
Behind the simple public interface, customers get high-performance real-time dashboards, validation, extracts, APIs and tailor-made reports built around the decisions they need to make.
Privacy and security
We run our own managed infrastructure rather than placing project data in an external public cloud. Data minimisation, access control, backups, monitoring and GDPR responsibilities are part of the architecture.
Continuity and support
We can handle participant questions, app-store releases, maintenance, hosting and integrations for years. Before a project ends, we agree how its app, data and community can continue or be transferred responsibly.
Selected work
From public participation to scientific measurement.
Science is always involved, but the format differs: citizen science, crowd science, science-backed public apps, research platforms and smartphone instruments all belong in the portfolio.
Professional research sensor · spectropolarimetry
iSPEX2
A low-cost smartphone instrument for researchers—not currently a citizen-science app. PML successfully derived above-water Rrs; the open campaign record includes professional reference data and So-Rad matchups.
Active observatory · astronomy
Black Hole Finder
Public classification, researcher workflows and machine-learning support around live astronomical candidates. A SciStarter Top Ten project in 2024 and NRC front-page story in 2026.
Water · field participation
Mini Secchi
A guided mobile workflow for observing water colour and clarity, developed through Horizon 2020 MONOCLE and supported in continuing field use.
Light pollution · complete suite
Dark Sky Meter suite
Invented and fully owned by Pocket Science, Dark Sky Meter has collected 50,000+ measurements and remains actively supported; Pro serves amateur astronomers and researchers, while Loss of the Night extends the suite to Android users.
Water quality sensors
Two distinct routes for water measurement.
iSPEX2 is a low-cost professional research sensor for above-water Rrs. Mini Secchi is a published citizen-science method for water colour and clarity. They share smartphone technology and scientific discipline, but they are not the same kind of project.
Mini Secchi
A published participatory method used across six principal international programmes. A new 2026 contract with the University of Exeter and the US SOCON collaboration is rebuilding and improving the software.
Mini Secchi research and publicationsiSPEX2
A smartphone spectropolarimeter that offers researchers a low-cost alternative to high-end field radiometry. PML derived Rrs successfully; reference data, protocols and processing are openly preserved.
iSPEX2 research and validationWater quality measurement
Compare iSPEX2, Mini Secchi and other sensor-connected routes by measurement property, evidence, readiness and limits.
Compare water quality sensorsWhy Pocket Science
We love citizen science. Enabling people to do real science—and helping make the world a little better—is our goal.
Almost fifteen years of turning citizens into scientists.
Pocket Science grew from an early belief that the smartphone in everyone’s pocket could give ordinary people real scientific power. In 2013, when citizen science was still unfamiliar to many, Norbert Schmidt gave a TEDxEutropolis talk about that vision.
The track record since then shows what the promise means in practice: 130,000+ Transit of Venus downloads, more than 50,000 Dark Sky Meter measurements, nationwide iSPEX1 participation and Black Hole Finder becoming a SciStarter Top Ten project by participation. Those results came from combining the science with interface design, feedback, communication, outreach and continuing care.
Today Norbert, Joep and Demelza share the same DNA: curiosity, love for the subject, respect for end users and the determination to make useful science last. Together we build apps and instruments, complete observatories, worldwide relationships and communities that continue beyond launch.
Projects and grants end. Valuable science should not have to. Sustaining the apps, instruments, communities and knowledge that deserve a future is part of the mission—and it is why we design outreach, support, self-hosting and long-term operation alongside the technology.
Built around people and science
Bring us in for one citizen science app, a complete observatory, or a relationship that outlives the project.
- A direct commission from a research team, NGO, public agency, foundation or community organisation.
- A public programme that needs participation and evidence for policy.
- A consortium role covering technology, participation, data or long-term operation.
- A support contract for hosting, releases, maintenance and end-user help.
- An institutional MoU for continuing scientific and technical collaboration.
- A responsible continuation or handover plan beyond the usual four-year grant.
How a project starts
Tell us the question before specifying the technology.
We can quote a clear app directly. Where the method, interaction or infrastructure is still taking shape, we begin with a bounded discovery phase and turn it into a responsible scope.
Research goal
What should participants observe, measure, report or classify—and why does it matter?
People and method
Who will participate, what must they do, and what makes the resulting data useful?
Scope and responsibilities
We define the app, optional components, integrations, ownership, support and route beyond funding.
Build and operate
We deliver with the research team, validate the workflow and stay for the agreed lifetime of the service.
Start with the science
What should people be able to observe, measure or discover?
Share the research goal, expected participants, required platforms, languages, data needs and desired lifetime. We will reply with the questions needed for a practical fit and initial quote.
Email: web@pocket.science
Phone: +31 45 20 31 008