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New AI-based technique identifies 6,000 new craters on the moon

Compared to manual counting, the method was able to identify twice as many craters, clocking up the crater count to 6,000.

New AI-based technique identifies 6,000 new craters on the moon (Representational image)

New Delhi: A new technique based on artificial intelligence (AI) has helped scientists detect 6,000 new craters on the surface of the moon.

“It’s the first time we have an algorithm that can detect craters really well for not only parts of the moon, but also Mercury,” said Mohamad Ali-Dib, from the University of Toronto Scarborough.

“Basically we need to manually look at an image, locate and count the craters and then calculate how large they are based on the size of the image. Here we’ve developed a technique from artificial intelligence that can automate this entire process that saves significant time and effort,” Mr. Ali-Dib said.

In order to determine the accuracy of the technique, the researchers first trained the neural network on a large data set covering two-thirds of the moon and then tested their trained network on the remaining third.

Compared to manual counting, the method was able to identify twice as many craters, clocking up the crater count to 6,000.

Knowing the size and location of craters on the moon is important because it offers a window into the history of the solar system.

(With PTI inputs)