Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Siddiqa, Adiba Amira, Mahmud, Sayed Shafaat, Martinez-Galarza, Rafael
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
Subjects:
Online Access:https://arxiv.org/abs/2511.12737
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1866915621516607488
author Siddiqa, Adiba Amira
Mahmud, Sayed Shafaat
Martinez-Galarza, Rafael
author_facet Siddiqa, Adiba Amira
Mahmud, Sayed Shafaat
Martinez-Galarza, Rafael
contents We introduce a Variational Autoencoder (VAE)--Normalizing Flow (NF) framework for rapid probabilistic inference of galaxy properties and emission line fluxes at $z \leq 0.3$ from SDSS \textit{gri} imaging and photometry. Our model probabilistically infers stellar mass, star formation rate (SFR), redshift, gas-phase metallicity, and central black hole mass for a given galaxy. The model accruacy matches current non-spectroscopic methods for stellar mass and redshift, surpasses them for SFR and metallicity, and introduces the first probabilistic central black hole mass estimates from imaging + photometry. It also delivers probabilistic estimates of H$α$, H$β$, [N~\textsc{ii}], and [O~\textsc{iii}] emission line fluxes directly from imaging, enabling SFR, metallicity, dust, and AGN/shock diagnostics without spectroscopy. This approach opens new pathways for scalable, physics-informed inference in upcoming surveys such as Roman and Rubin LSST.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2511_12737
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle From Images to Physics: Probabilistic Inference of Galaxy Parameters and Emission Lines via VAE & Normalizing Flows
Siddiqa, Adiba Amira
Mahmud, Sayed Shafaat
Martinez-Galarza, Rafael
Astrophysics of Galaxies
Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics
We introduce a Variational Autoencoder (VAE)--Normalizing Flow (NF) framework for rapid probabilistic inference of galaxy properties and emission line fluxes at $z \leq 0.3$ from SDSS \textit{gri} imaging and photometry. Our model probabilistically infers stellar mass, star formation rate (SFR), redshift, gas-phase metallicity, and central black hole mass for a given galaxy. The model accruacy matches current non-spectroscopic methods for stellar mass and redshift, surpasses them for SFR and metallicity, and introduces the first probabilistic central black hole mass estimates from imaging + photometry. It also delivers probabilistic estimates of H$α$, H$β$, [N~\textsc{ii}], and [O~\textsc{iii}] emission line fluxes directly from imaging, enabling SFR, metallicity, dust, and AGN/shock diagnostics without spectroscopy. This approach opens new pathways for scalable, physics-informed inference in upcoming surveys such as Roman and Rubin LSST.
title From Images to Physics: Probabilistic Inference of Galaxy Parameters and Emission Lines via VAE & Normalizing Flows
topic Astrophysics of Galaxies
Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2511.12737