First picture of a black hole gets an AI makeover

The first image of a black hole (L) gets an AI makeover (R). Credit: Lia Medeiros via AP

Four years ago, the first ever image of a black hole revealed a blurry ball of fire.

Now, scientists have used artificial intelligence (AI) to give the picture of the place in space a makeover.

The updated picture was published on Thursday, in scientific journal the Astrophysical Journal Letters.

It still has the original round shape but instead shows a slimmer ring and a sharper resolution.

The original image, released in 2019, gave a peek at the enormous black hole at the centre of the M87 galaxy, 53 million light-years (95.8 trillion miles) from Earth.

It was made using data gathered by a network of radio telescopes around the world, showing swirling light and gas.

But even with many telescopes working together, there were still gaps in the data.

In the latest study, scientists relied on the same data and used machine learning - a type of AI which uses data and algorythms to further its learning - to fill in the missing pieces.

The resulting picture looks similar to the original, but with a thinner “doughnut” and a darker centre, researchers said.

“For me, it feels like we’re really seeing it for the first time,” said Lia Medeiros, an astrophysicist at the Institute for Advanced Study in New Jersey.

By having a clearer picture, researchers hope to learn more about the black hole’s properties and gravity in future studies.

Medeiros said the team plans to use machine learning on other images of celestial objects, including possibly the black hole at the centre of our Milky Way galaxy.

But this is not the only space development today. The launch of a spacecraft bound for Jupiter's moons had to be halted for the day, due to lightning strikes and adverse weather.

Juice, which stands for JUpiter ICy moons Explorer, was due to blast off today from French Guiana to begin its eight-year journey.

The spacecraft is to be the first ever to orbit a moon other than our own - Jupiter's largest moon Ganymede.

But that journey will have to wait at least another day, with the European Space Agency (ESA) believed to be planning another attempt on Friday at 1.14pm - weather permitting.

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