What's Surya? IBM-NASA 'AI Telescope' That Will Predict Solar Weather

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration, in a collaboration with the International Business Machines Corp., have launched, 'Surya', an "AI telescope for the sun" to track solar weather better with a 16% more accuracy than previous systems. The name of the model has been derived from the Sanskrit word for 'Sun'.

In practice, the open-source foundation model will apply machine learning to solar image interpretation and forecasting. It was discovered in preliminary tests that the system is 16% more accurate at answering "will there be a solar flare in the next 24 hours?" than previous systems.

The most powerful geomagnetic storm in 20 years hit the earth last year and highlighted the importance of preparedness in the face of such huge geomagnetic storms. These storms are a menace to energy providers.

A solar flare or a geomagnetic storm can seriously disrupt critical infrastructure such as satellites, smartphones and even the internet. 

According to IB Research Europe, UK and Ireland's Director, Juan Bernabe-Moreno, Surya has been trained with nine years of high-resolution images from a satellite NASA has been using to study the Sun since 2010, called the Solar Dynamics Observatory. He also coined the phrase 'AI telescope for the Sun' for the model.

The director is reportedly looking into the accuracy of even longer lead time predictions. Moreno also informed that Surya would not have actualised without NASA's help.

The announcement comes at a time when US President Donald Trump has plans to cut NASA's science funding by nearly half.