Classifying Supernova Explosions Using Artificial Intelligence
Image Credit: Shutterstock/NASA images
Machine learning and classification could help astronomers better understand and classify the Universe’s most explosive events.
Supernovae, massive cosmic explosions that represent the final death throes of stars, offer astronomers and cosmologists a vital tool for understanding the Universe. In particular, one type of these massive explosions Type Ia supernovae can be used to measure distances in the depths of space. Aside from this, learning more about supernovae can tell us how stars live and die and how elements are dispersed throughout galaxies.
Currently, supernovae are studied by using their observed spectra the set of colors into which light from these objects can be split which contains characteristic ‘gaps’ that tell astronomers what light is being emitted and absorbed, and thus, which elements are present in the explosion’s remains.