Autonomous drones learn to find “hidden” meteor impact sites



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It’s easy to find large meteorites (or their craters) once they reach Earth, but the smaller ones are often overlooked – less than 2% of them have been recovered by scientists. However, it could soon be that he is simply sending a bot to do the job. the universe today Reports from advanced researchers A system with autonomous drones uses machine learning to find smaller meteorites at impact sites that are either “hidden” (even if observers are following the falls) or simply inaccessible.

The technology uses a combination of convolutional neural networks to identify meteorites based on training images, both from online images and staging snapshots from the team’s collection. This helps the AI ​​to distinguish space rocks from ordinary stones, even with a variety of shapes and terrain conditions.

The results are impeccable. While an experimental drone correctly spotted the implanted meteorites, there were also a few false positives. It may take some time before robotic planes are reliable enough to provide accurate results on their own.

The implications for space science are significant if the technology turns out to be correct. It will help scientists find meteorites that are too small or too far away to be found and possibly recovered. This, in turn, can help identify sources of meteorites and identify rock formations. Simply put, drones can fill the gaps in humanity’s understanding of cosmic debris landing on our doorstep.

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