We may not always notice it, but Artificial Intelligence (AI) is having an increasingly pervasive effect on our everyday lives: subtly altering the patterns of how we live, and how we work.
The same is true for astronomy, where AI (and machine learning more generally) is now acknowledged as an essential tool for extracting useful scientific information from the vast volumes of data being recorded by current and up-coming telescopes.
Professor Anna Scaife describes some of the ways that AI has recently been used very effectively in astronomy, why we need to continue developing new AI methods, and how these changes can lower the barriers to more people becoming involved in research.
Professor Anna Scaife is a leading astrophysicist based at the University of Manchester, where she holds the position of Professor of Radio Astronomy and leads the Jodrell Bank Interferometry Centre of Excellence.
Her research focuses on using artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to analyse vast datasets in radio astronomy, particularly from projects like the Square Kilometre Array (SKA). She is deeply involved in developing computational methods to extract scientific insights from these data, with a special interest in addressing uncertainty and bias in AI applications for astrophysics.
In addition to her technical contributions, Professor Scaife plays a key role in international collaborations, such as leading the computing design for the European SKA Regional Data Centre. She also spearheads initiatives aimed at fostering scientific talent, including training programmes for students from Southern Africa and Latin America. Her work has earned her numerous accolades, including recognition by the World Economic Forum as one of the top 30 scientists under 40 and prestigious awards like the Royal Astronomical Society’s Jackson-Gwilt Medal.
