Re-envisioning Euclid Galaxy Morphology: Identifying and Interpreting Features with Sparse Autoencoders

arXiv — cs.LGThursday, November 13, 2025 at 5:00:00 AM
The study on Sparse Autoencoders (SAEs) marks a significant advancement in the analysis of galaxy morphology, particularly through the application of these models to Euclid Q1 images. The MAE model, which has been publicly released, showcases superhuman image reconstruction capabilities, outperforming traditional methods like Principal Component Analysis (PCA) that primarily align with the Galaxy Zoo decision tree. Notably, SAEs have demonstrated a stronger alignment with Galaxy Zoo labels, indicating their potential to uncover interpretable features that lie outside conventional frameworks. This ability to identify astrophysical phenomena without being confined to human-defined classifications is crucial for advancing our understanding of the universe. However, the study acknowledges that challenges in interpretability persist, suggesting that while SAEs are a powerful tool, further refinement is needed to fully harness their capabilities in astrophysical research.
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