AI finds Dyson sphere candidates

[Stuart LaForge]

A recent paper reported on a project called Hephaistos that used a
convolutional neural network (CNN) to sift through the spectral data of
5 million stars in the Gaia satellite database for stars with very high
infrared emissions relative to visible light. The AI found 7 candidates
for closer study.

https://academic.oup.com/mnras/article/531/1/695/7665761?login=false

ABSTRACT
The search for extraterrestrial intelligence is currently being pursued
using multiple techniques and in different wavelength bands. Dyson
spheres, megastructures that could be constructed by advanced
civilizations to harness the radiation energy of their host stars,
represent a potential technosignature, that in principle may be hiding
in public data already collected as part of large astronomical surveys.
In this study, we present a comprehensive search for partial Dyson
spheres by analysing optical and infrared observations from Gaia, 2MASS,
and WISE. We develop a pipeline that employs multiple filters to
identify potential candidates and reject interlopers in a sample of five
million objects, which incorporates a convolutional neural network to
help identify confusion in WISE data. Finally, the pipeline identifies
seven candidates deserving of further analysis. All of these objects are
M-dwarfs, for which astrophysical phenomena cannot easily account for
the observed infrared excess emission.
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I wonder if there is any overlap between these candidates and Schmidt's
cluster of Boyajian-like dimming stars. I hope these guys get time on
the JWST to take a closer look.

Stuart LaForge

[John Clark]

On Wed, May 29, 2024 at 10:07 PM Stuart LaForge <av...@sollegro.com> wrote:

> A recent paper reported on a project called Hephaistos that used a
convolutional neural network (CNN) to sift through the spectral data of
5 million stars in the Gaia satellite database for stars with very high
infrared emissions relative to visible light. The AI found 7 candidates
for closer study.
https://academic.oup.com/mnras/article/531/1/695/7665761?login=false

 

"the seven stars are less likely to be Dyson Spheres but instead some sort of extra galactic phenomenon. The most likely explanation is a distant galaxy obscured by dust! The presence of the dust would contaminate the Infrared energy distribution in the spectra of the two objects. The other candidate, candidate B is also thought to be a distant galaxy but one that was within very close line of sight of an M type dwarf star."

There’s Another, More Boring Explanation for those Dyson Sphere Candidate Stars

 John K Clark    See what's on my new list at  Extropolis

bcs

[Lawrence Crowell]

We might say it is not aliens until we know it really is aliens.

LC cs