Hi TTM,Neuromorphic Cameras in Astronomy: Unveiling the Future of Celestial Imaging Beyond Conventional Limits
By Keith Cowing
Status Report
astro-ph.IM
March 26, 2025
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Filed under astro-ph.IM, astronomy, imaging, Spectroscopy, Stellar Cartography, telescope
High dynamic range of neuromorphic camera: (a) Image of the Trapezium cluster formed by accumulating events in 200ms window from the neuromorphic camera with a slewing telescope, where red represents positive events and green indicates negative vents. (b) Optical image of the Trapezium star cluster observed through the Hubble Space Telescope [86]. (c) Image of Vega and a nearby faint star, ∼ 200′′ apart, demonstrating a dynamic range exceeding 100dB. (d) High dynamic imaging of star Betelgeuse, with a neighbouring faint star visible at roughly ∼ 170′′ distance. — astro-ph.IM
To deepen our understanding of optical astronomy, we must advance imaging technology to overcome conventional frame-based cameras’ limited dynamic range and temporal resolution. Our Perspective paper examines how neuromorphic cameras can effectively address these challenges.
Drawing inspiration from the human retina, neuromorphic cameras excel in speed and high dynamic range by utilizing asynchronous pixel operation and logarithmic photocurrent conversion, making them highly effective for celestial imaging.
We use 1300 mm terrestrial telescope to demonstrate the neuromorphic camera’s ability to simultaneously capture faint and bright celestial sources while preventing saturation effects.
We illustrate its photometric capabilities through aperture photometry of a star field with faint stars. Detection of the faint gas cloud structure of the Trapezium cluster during a full moon night highlights the camera’s high dynamic range, effectively mitigating static glare from lunar illumination.
Our investigations also include detecting meteorite passing near the Moon and Earth, as well as imaging satellites and anthropogenic debris with exceptionally high temporal resolution using a 200mm telescope. Our observations show the immense potential of neuromorphic cameras in advancing astronomical optical imaging and pushing the boundaries of observational astronomy.
Satyapreet Singh Yadav, Bikram Pradhan, Kenil Rajendrabhai Ajudiya, T. S. Kumar, Nirupam Roy, Andre Van Schaik, Chetan Singh Thakur
Comments: Optical astronomy, Neuromorphic camera, Photometry, Event-based, Asynchronous, High dynamic range, High temporal resolution, Meteorite imaging
Subjects: Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics (astro-ph.IM); Emerging Technologies (cs.ET); Neural and Evolutionary Computing (cs.NE)
Cite as: arXiv:2503.15883 [astro-ph.IM] (or arXiv:2503.15883v1 [astro-ph.IM] for this version)
https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2503.15883
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Submission history
From: Satyapreet Singh Yadav
[v1] Thu, 20 Mar 2025 06:11:29 UTC (4,364 KB)
https://arxiv.org/abs/2503.15883
Astrobiology, Astronomy, Stellar Cartography,
Keith Cowing
Explorers Club Fellow, ex-NASA Space Station Payload manager/space biologist, Away Teams, Journalist, Lapsed climber, Synaesthete, Na’Vi-Jedi-Freman-Buddhist-mix, ASL, Devon Island and Everest Base Camp veteran, (he/him)
Much of this seems to relate to the DVS side of neuromorphic. It discusses the performance characteristics of the pixels:
"asynchronous pixel operation and logarithmic photocurrent conversion"
"simultaneously capture faint and bright celestial sources"
However, there may be a role for SNN with motion detection:
" detecting meteorite passing near the Moon and Earth, as well as imaging satellites and anthropogenic debris with exceptionally high temporal resolution"
One of the authors, Andre Van Schaik, from WSU, is on our Scientific Advisory Board, and several others are from the Indian Institute of Science.
https://brainchip.com/company/
Dr. André van Schaik
Dr. André van Schaik is a pioneer of the field of neuromorphic engineering. He received the M.Sc. degree in electrical engineering from the University of Twente, Enschede, The Netherlands, in 1990 and the Ph.D. degree in electrical engineering from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland, in 1998.He has authored more than 300 publications, invented more than 35 patents, and is a founder of four start-up companies: VAST Audio, Personal Audio, Heard Systems, and Optera.
In 1998 he was a postdoctoral research fellow in the Department of Physiology at the University of Sydney, funded by fellowship from the Garnett Passe and Rodney Williams memorial foundation. In 1999 he became a Senior Lecturer in the School of Electrical and Information Engineering at the University of Sydney and promoted to Reader in 2004.
In 2011 he became a research professor at Western Sydney University and leader of the Biomedical Engineering and Neuromorphic Systems (BENS) Research Program in the MARCS Institute for Brain, Behaviour, and development. In 2018, he became the Director of the International Centre of Neuromorphic Systems, a world leading research concentration in the field.
His research focuses on neuromorphic engineering and computational neuroscience.
) until after the transfer to the USA, meaning after the RS. It would have been too good to be true… Can anyone provide a counterargument? I’d welcome that.
