~ The AI & Kepler-90 planetary system ~ The Astronomy revolution ~

1 - Scheme of machine learning in a deep neural network - Credit: Google

In this technological revolution that we are experiencing every day, the IA is more present in the treatment of big data. As shown in this scheme that seems to mimic the functioning of the human brain each "neuron" performs a simple mathematical calculation before passing it to the next level of processing or "layer". In this way the computer manages to learn by itself how to differentiate cats from dogs or in this specific case exoplanets among the thousands of light readings of the thousands of stars that the Kepler Space Telescope has collected over the years.

Thanks to this type of data processing performed by the Google AI and the predictions of the mathematical models that suggested the existence of a planet orbiting Kepler-90, it has been possible the discovery of another new exoplanet.

Kepler-90i

2 - Kepler-90 planetary system - Credits: NASA/Ames Research Center/Wendy Stenzel

This star of the Draco constellation is located far away from our solar system, at 2545 light-years.

Although there is not much data regarding its composition and whether or not it has atmosphere, what we know is that a year in Kepler-90i lasts only 14.4 days. What taking into account that the star Kepler-90 is very similar to our sun gives us a fairly approximate idea that the temperature of the planet is very high on its surface. NASA estimates tell us that its average surface temperature is around 800 degrees Fahrenheit ( 426.6° Celsius). According to what NASA tells us, there are few real possibilities of finding life as we know it.

3 - Planetary systems by number of known planets - Credit: NASA / Ames Research Center / Wendy Stenzel and The Texas University at Austin / Andrew Vanderburg

Thanks to this discovery we already know another planetary system formed by eight planets, besides ours. Many are the planetary systems detected with at least one planet, according to NASA they are more than two thousand. But this can change rapidly as the IA continues to study Kepler's data. And it is possible that in the near future the planetary systems formed by eight or more planets are more numerous than previously thought.

---

The date December 14, 2017 will be recorded in the history of the Astronomy forever. Being the first time a planet is detected thanks to the AI. Also for being the first planetary system formed by eight planets in a distant star.

This new data processing system will allow detecting the light footprints of many more exoplanets in their orbital transit. Even the weakest footprints like Kepler-90i that according to the statements of NASA astronomers would have been almost impossible to detect for a human being.

Astronomers will disappear by the irruption of the AI ​​in the Astronomy?

According to the creators of this project, human revision is still fundamental for the review of the results obtained by this artificial intelligence. So without removing the work to astronomers. This new technology will make available to the Astronomers many more detections of exoplanets that would have gone unnoticed by them.

What in my opinion leads us to the "Astronomy Revolution".

What do you think?

---

References

---

1, 2, 3
https://www.nasa.gov/ames/kepler/briefing-materials-eighth-planet-circling-distant-star-discovered-using-artificial-intelligence

---

---

Gift-thanks to @markperandin

Let's take care of the pale blue dot

Enjoy your day. Enjoy your life.

---

Gift-thanks to @stellabelle