Elain Brown Science 07.16.2022 04:Jul AM EDT

Scientists Discovers 40,000 Ring Galaxies Through New Cyborg Method

The galaxy will soon be further explored for the years to come.

The discovery of 40,000 ring galaxies was made possible by a novel process called "cyborg".

Scientists will make the announcement at this week's National Astronomy Meeting that 40,000 ring galaxies were discovered thanks to the collaborative efforts of both human and machine intelligence.

The new research will be presented by the collaboration of both the Galaxy Zoo and Dr. Mike Walmsley of the University of Manchester.

He will describe how this cyborg method measured the shapes of millions of galaxies.

Galaxy AI Algorithm Called Zoobot

Galaxy measurements were used to formulate a new AI algorithm called Zoobot, an algorithm that could be used as an assistant on discovering the galaxies in space.

Using the data collected by Galaxy Zoo volunteers over the course of ten years, Dr. Walmsley created a brand new artificial intelligence algorithm that he dubbed Zoobot.

According to the PHYS Organization, Galaxies have a tumultuous existence. The colors and orbits of billions of stars are changed as a result of collisions with other galaxies and bursts of energy from supermassive black holes. These events leave behind tell-tale markers on the Galaxy Zoo website.

The Galaxy Zoo websites house a scientific initiative created by normal citizens gathering volunteers that collects data on stars whose orbits have been disrupted as a result of bursts of energy from supermassive black holes and galactic collisions.

Not only is the algorithm, which has been endearingly termed "Zoobot," capable of accurately predicting what the volunteers will say, but it can also understand where it might be wrong.

It is possible that it will take human volunteers several lifetimes to sort through the overwhelming amount of data that has been accumulated. Here is where the intelligence of machines comes into play.

The help of machine learning in collaboration with human design helps advance science so much further.

Zoobot makes use of machine learning, which essentially means that it is trained repeatedly on a data set until it is able to perform the necessary function at incredibly high speeds.

Dr. Walmsley stated, "with Zoobot, humans and machines are collaborating to push the science of astronomy forward. We're helping other astronomers solve questions we never thought to ask."

Discovering 40,000 Ring Galaxies

Dr. Walmsley was able to find 40,000 rare ring-shaped galaxies, which is six times more than the total number of ring galaxies that were previously known.

This was made possible by the Zoobot AI. It takes billions of years for the rare galaxy type to form, and they are eventually wiped out by collisions with other galaxies, which are relatively common.

Therefore, the massive new dataset will assist scientists in their investigation of how the evolution of these isolated galaxies occurs.

According to Interesting Engineering, in the not too distant future, the work that has been done on Zoobot and other machine learning astronomical solutions will assist researchers in organizing and analyzing massive amounts of data.

Dr. Brooke Simmons, Galaxy Zoo Deputy Principal Investigator added that "Galaxy Zoo turns 15 years old this week, and we are still innovating."

Because of the work that Dr. Walmsley is leading, it will be possible for a new generation of breakthroughs to be made using upcoming large-scale surveys of the galaxy.

The field of astronomy already makes significant use of machine learning in a variety of contexts.

Zoobot was created to be easily reprogrammed for use in a variety of different scientific endeavors.

The new AI algorithm will help shape a new behavior scientifically as it can now be used to discover and answer questions that have been wondered for numerous years in the past.