Limerick’s TUS partners with DIAS in landmark AI and Astronomy deal

THE INAUGURAL Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Technological University of the Shannon (TUS) and the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies (DIAS), was signed this Monday, June 23. 

The agreement between TUS and DIAS was signed during the celebrations of the Institute’s 85th year anniversary, marking its lauded track record since it was set up by Eamon De Valera’s Government.

The MOU was signed by Dr. Eucharia Meehan, CEO of DIAS, and the President of TUS, Professor Vincent Cunnane. It aims to strengthen collaboration in research and innovation between the institutions. 

The main focus of the MOU is on advancing education and practical knowledge in Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML) and Computer Vision (CV) and their application to Radio Astronomy.

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The signing was witnessed by James Lawless, Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science. Congratulating both institutions, Minister Lawless TD said, “I warmly congratulate DIAS and TUS on the signing of this important Memorandum of Understanding. Strategic collaboration such as this strengthens our research base and positions Ireland globally at the forefront of technological progress”.

Under the agreement, two TUS-funded PhD research students will be appointed as DIAS Scholars. They will receive mentorship from DIAS’s leading researchers at Dunsink Observatory and engage in cutting-edge research on the prestigious I-LOFAR project at Birr Castle in Offaly. I-LOFAR stands for Irish Low Frequency Array and it is Ireland’s largest radio telescope.

The I-LOFAR is part of a Europe-wide collaborative astronomy project, where Irish scientists and students participate in pan-European research across fields such as: Astrophysics, Cosmic magnetism, Space weather, Solar physics and Big Data and AI applications in astronomy.

I-LOFAR generates massive volumes of complex data — often terabytes per day - and CV and ML play a crucial role in how that data is processed, analysed, and interpreted.

DIAS and TUS will jointly collaborate on applying High Performance Computing including AI, ML and CV to the detection, classification and characterisation of targeted phenomena in the I-LOFAR data. Initially this will focus on Space Weather/Solar Phenomena but will be expanded to include others. 

The research outputs will be held in a new centralised Astrophysics storage and High Performance Computing facility at TUS which will benefit all researchers nationally. This new facility will train undergraduates in modelling large datasets.

Together TUS and DIAS have also committed to regional educational and industrial workshops to create awareness of the expertise available from the collaboration.  The first workshops will be held in conjunction with the LEO office in Offaly.

Dr. Eucharia Meehan, CEO of DIAS commented on the event saying, “With this MOU we are further strengthening the research ecosystem to support talent, to foster innovation, and to deliver real impact for our research community and our economy.”

“Building on our track record of developing research infrastructure for the benefit of research in Ireland and further afield, the establishment of a new centralised Astrophysics storage and High Performance Computing facility in partnership with TUS will provide an important resource for current and future generations of researchers.” said Dr. Meehan. 

President of TUS, Professor Vincent Cunnane, said, “TUS is proud to embark on this new frontier with DIAS which will enable our students to explore previously undiscovered areas of research in the disciplines of engineering, science and technology.”

“We are also incredibly excited by the opportunity to further unlock learning potential through the use of the i-LOFAR telescope at Birr Castle Demesne, Co. Offaly.” said Prof. Cunnane.