Vital Fernández

Schmidt AI in Science Fellow, Michigan Institute for Data Science

My research involves the analysis of emission line spectra. The captivating and colourful images obtained from the cosmos are primarily composed of photons emitted by particles heated by stars. A spectrum is a plot that depicts the number of photons observed as a function of their wavelength/colour. This tool provides a reliable fingerprint to quantify the physical conditions and composition of the universe. Building on these principles, my astrophysics PhD conducted at the INAOE in Mexico, focused on measuring the amount of helium the universe was born with. My work at the University of Michigan Ann Arbor involves developing new tools, utilizing neural networks, to explore the complex chemo-dynamic parameter space of Big Data astronomical observations. 

  • AI Mentor: Xun Huan, Mechanical Engineering, College of Engineering
  • Science Mentor: Sally Oey, Astronomy, LSA
  • Research Theme: Deep Learning for spectral analysis for distant galaxies

COntact

vgf@umich.edu