We recently reported on how the mountains of data produced by astronomical instruments are “perfect for AI.” We’ve also started reporting on several use cases for different AI algorithms. Now, a team of researchers from the University of Texas has developed a new use case that focuses on discovering the interior makeup of exoplanets by looking at a specific type of star. That particular kind of star is known as a “polluted” white dwarf. White dwarves are the end stage of stars that are too small to go supernova. After going through a red giant phase, our sun will turn into one in a few billion years. Typically, they only have hydrogen and helium in their upper atmosphere, making them mundane by the standards of stars – unless they happen to be tearing apart one of their planets. Every once in a while, a white dwarf draws in one of the planets in its solar system, ripping the planet apart in the process. The planet’s interior materials are then absorbed into the star’s outer shell, making them “polluted” with the heavy metals that typically comprise a planet’s interior.  Another researcher from Boston University details how “polluting” a white dwarf can be translated into an understanding of planetary makeup.Credit – Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics Analyzing those heavy metals in a star’s atmosphere would allow astronomers to understand the makeup of the former exoplanet. As such, finding polluted white dwarves to analyze has been a focal point of exoplanet hunters for some time. However, saying the process is time-intensive is an understatement. Astronomers have to manually check astronomical surveys to find evidence of heavy metals in white dwarves’ atmospheres, and some of those surveys, needless to say, are big. However, searching for needles in a haystack sounds like the perfect use case for AI. So, researchers at the University of Texas did just that. They developed an algorithm using an AI technique called manifold learning and let the algorithm loose on data from Gaia, ESA’s astrometry mission. They filtered data from around 100,000 white dwarves, which resulted in 375 potentially polluted candidates. Follow-up observations on those 375 candidates by the Hobby-Eberly Telescope and the McDonald Observatory, both of which are at least partially controlled by UT, showed that the algorithm was 99% correct in detecting the existence of heavy metals in a star’s atmosphere, thereby classifying it as “polluted.” Given the sheer volume of white dwarves in our galaxy, tens of thousands more candidates can likely be found by allowing the algorithm to trawl through other data collected on them. Fraser discusses the possibilities of habitable planets around white dwarves. What that means for astronomers is the ability to understand the interior makeup of exoplanets as their host star is ripping them apart. Understanding their interior makeup would allow astronomers to develop models about their chances for harboring life. So, this paper is a step towards developing that astrobiological model and an excellent use case for AI in astronomy. It just so happens to be built on the back of dying planets that might be taking their own form of nascent biospheres with them. Learn More:UT Austin – Astronomers Use AI To Find Elusive Stars ‘Gobbling Up’ PlanetsKao et al. – Hunting for Polluted White Dwarfs and Other Treasures with Gaia XP Spectra and Unsupervised Machine LearningUT – What Can AI Learn About the Universe?UT – Astronomy Generates Mountains of Data. That’s Perfect for AI Lead Image:Artist’s depiction of a star ripping apart a planet.Credit – NASA, ESSA, Joseph Olmsted (STScI) The post Astronomers Use Artificial Intelligence To Find Elusive Stars “Gobbling Up” Planets appeared first on Universe Today.

Suspect Dead After Opening Fire On SWAT Near Ohio State Campus [VIDEOS]

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has ordered a guided missile submarine to the Middle East and is telling the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier strike group to sail more quickly to the area, the Defense Department said Sunday. The moves come as the U.S. and other allies push for Israel and Hamas to achieve a cease-fire agreement that could help calm soaring tensions in the region following the assassination of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran and a...

In a series of posts on X, the billionaire owner of the platform threatened legal action "so that the people of Europe can know the truth" Elon Musk has hit out at the European Commission, claiming it tried to make an "illegal secret deal" with X over compliance with new EU rules to prevent online misinformation. It comes as the Commission announced on Friday that Musk’s social media platform, formerly known as Twitter, had breached elements of the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA). "The...

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Ann Coulter said she will vote for former President Trump in November, despite thinking he is an “awful, awful person,” because of his pick of Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) as his running mate. The conservative media pundit has mostly sworn off Trump and urged on his rivals in the 2024 primary election, but told C-SPAN’s “Washington Journal” on Sunday that she will still give him her vote. “Donald Trump, because if he loses he will be running again in four years, and then he will have...