A Pasadena High School senior has achieved what many professional astronomers spend careers pursuing. The discovery of more than 1.5 million previously unidentified cosmic bodies, all thanks to an artificial intelligence algorithm he developed himself.
Matteo Paz, 18, analyzed vast archives of data from NASA’s retired NEOWISE (Near-Earth Object Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer) mission, uncovering a treasure trove of stars, galaxies, variable objects, and other celestial bodies that had gone unnoticed in prior examinations.
His groundbreaking work, conducted largely as an independent project, has now been validated through peer review and published as a single-author paper in The Astronomical Journal, one of the premier publications in the field.
The project began during Paz’s participation in Caltech’s Planet Finder Academy in the summer of 2022, where he honed his interest in combining machine learning with astronomy.
Facing nearly 200 terabytes of understudied infrared observations from NEOWISE, a mission originally designed to hunt for near-Earth objects but rich with broader astrophysical potential, Paz trained a sophisticated AI model incorporating advanced techniques such as Fourier and Wavelet transforms to detect subtle patterns of brightness variation and other signals that traditional analysis methods had overlooked.
“What Matteo accomplished is extraordinary,” noted sources close to the project at Caltech. “He not only broadened the scientific legacy of a NASA mission long after its primary operations ended but demonstrated how accessible tools like AI can democratize discovery in astronomy, allowing even high school students to make contributions at a professional level.”
The findings earned Paz national recognition, including a spot as a finalist—and a $250,000 award—in the prestigious Regeneron Science Talent Search in 2025. NASA leadership has also publicly praised the teen’s ingenuity, highlighting how his approach revitalizes archived data and accelerates the pace of astronomical research in an era of increasingly massive datasets.
Experts say the implications extend far beyond the 1.5 million new detections. Paz’s methodology could inspire future efforts to re-examine other dormant telescopes’ archives, potentially revealing millions more hidden objects and refining our understanding of the universe’s structure, evolution, and transient phenomena.
For now, the Pasadena teen—who balanced this ambitious research alongside his senior-year coursework—stands as a striking example of how youthful curiosity, paired with cutting-edge technology, can push the boundaries of science.
His story highlights a growing reality: the next major astronomical breakthrough might not come from a mountaintop observatory, but from a high school laptop.
Naorem Mohen is the Editor of Signpost News. Explore his views and opinion on X: @laimacha.
Naorem Mohen
View More PostsNaorem Mohen is the Editor of Signpost News. Explore his views and opinion on X: @laimacha.
