Artificial intelligence is making the impossible possible, and revolutionising countless industries. It’s already being integrated into astronomy and is set to play a major role in its future.
Leeds researchers have been at the forefront of AI developments in space exploration and have harnessed its power to discover a plethora of new stars. This breakthrough is just a glimpse of the overwhelming power of AI and what it means for astronomy.
Widespread Interest in Space
There’s a widespread interest in space across the UK, with Leeds among the leading cities for research. There have been loads of important developments from the city, including the recent findings on Be stars being part of triple systems. There was also the Moon Palace Mobile Observatory in the city in 2023, which gave people a chance to gaze up at the stars.
The entertainment industry in the UK highlights how space is of great interest to many. The Starburst slot, for instance, takes players to the outer reaches of the galaxy where they can spin the reels in the hope of discovering winning matches. The game from NetEnt has been around for years and is one of the simplest titles out there, but it still attracts loads of players in the modern age of highly advanced slots.
Celebrity physicists such as Brian Cox have helped people develop a greater interest in space in recent years as well. The 56-year-old has made various hit shows about the great expanse, with the recent Solar System up there with his best works. He has also appeared on mainstream podcasts such as Joe Rogan, and this has helped his ideas reach a wider audience.
Leeds Researchers Used AI to Discover New Stars
According to a piece in Warp News, astronomers in Leeds used machine learning algorithms to uncover more than 1000 proto-stars. This was a huge breakthrough because, prior to the discovery, only around one hundred of these were known.
Modern-day telescopes have become far too advanced and produce way too much data for humans to understand and interpret on their own. This is where AI has stepped in and helped, allowing the data to be processed and used more efficiently. Because of this, Leeds researchers were able to spot these stars that are still in their formation phase.
AI Set to Play a Huge Role in Astronomy
The success of this research has shown a glimpse of the incredible potential that AI has in the future of astronomy. Machine learning algorithms can process enormous datasets, such as those produced by telescopes like Gaia, far faster and more accurately than traditional methods.
AI is set to start taking over from humans in various realms of astronomy, from mapping distant galaxies to predicting the behaviour of stars and black holes. The best thing about it is its scalability. It will continue to learn and develop, and could even come up with its own inventions in the future.
It’s great that Leeds-based researchers are leading the way when it comes to AI integrations in astronomy. Hopefully our scientists will discover plenty more cool things in the years ahead.
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