SIGNN - Star Identification using Graph Neural Networks

As a solution for the lost-in-space star identification problem we present Star Identification using Graph Neural Network (SIGNN), a novel approach using Graph Attention Networks.
Neural Network
Astrophysics
Computer Vision
Research
Conference
Authors

Floyd Hepburn-Dickins

Mark W. Jones

Mike Edwards

Jay Paul Morgan

Steve Bell

Published

February 1, 2025

Accepted PDF Google Scholar Bibtex Poster Video Presentation

Abstract

As a solution for the lost-in-space star identification problem we present Star Identification using Graph Neural Network (SIGNN), a novel approach using Graph Attention Networks. By representing the celestial sphere as a graph data structure, created from the ESA’s Hipparcos catalogue, we are able to accurately capture the rich information and relationships within local star fields. Graph learning techniques allow our model to aggregate information and learn the relative importance of the nodes and structure within each stars local neighbourhood to it’s identification. This approach, combined with our parametric data-generation and noise simulation, allows us to train a highly robust model capable of accurate star identification even under intensive noise, outperforming existing methods. Code and generation techniques will be available on github.com.

Citation

BibTeX citation:
@inproceedings{hepburn-dickins2025,
  author = {Hepburn-Dickins, Floyd and W. Jones, Mark and Edwards, Mike
    and Paul Morgan, Jay and Bell, Steve},
  title = {SIGNN - {Star} {Identification} Using {Graph} {Neural}
    {Networks}},
  booktitle = {accepted to Proceedings of the IEEE/CVF Winter Conference
    on Applications of Computer Vision (WACV)},
  date = {2025-02-01},
  url = {https://wacv2025.thecvf.com/},
  langid = {en}
}
For attribution, please cite this work as:
Hepburn-Dickins, Floyd, Mark W. Jones, Mike Edwards, Jay Paul Morgan, and Steve Bell. 2025. “SIGNN - Star Identification Using Graph Neural Networks.” In Accepted to Proceedings of the IEEE/CVF Winter Conference on Applications of Computer Vision (WACV). https://wacv2025.thecvf.com/.