Using AI to predict Earth's future

A recent "deep learning" algorithm--despite having no innate knowledge of solar physics--could provide more accurate predictions of how the sun affects our planet than current models based on scientific understanding. For decades, people have tried to predict the impact of the sun on our planet's atmosphere. Up until now, algorithms based on solar physics have been used to predict the shifting density of Earth's atmosphere. But with so many variables affecting the complex and dynamic layers of gases around Earth, artificial intelligence (AI) could provide real improvements in this area because of its ability to handle vastly more complex data, with important implications for how we fly missions in Earth orbit. The conditions in space vary depending on the mood swings of the sun, known as "space weather."