Posts by

Deborah Byrd

More evidence for a 9th planet

Is a hypothetical large planet - far beyond Neptune - causing a tilt in the sun? Plus, evidence for a 9th planet based on "extreme Kuiper Belt objects."

Deborah Byrd

October 21, 2016

If we could see Mars in ultraviolet …

We'd see how winds circulate at high altitudes, and how ozone amounts change over the seasons, and how afternoon clouds form over giant Martian volcanoes. Images here.

Deborah Byrd

October 20, 2016

ESA’s Mars craft landed, but not softly

"We have data coming back that allow us to fully understand the steps that did occur, and why the soft landing did not occur.” Meanwhile, the orbiter is A-OK.

Deborah Byrd

October 20, 2016

Juno in safe mode for Jupiter flyby

A sudden safe mode halted planned data collection during the spacecraft's perijove - or closest point to Jupiter - on October 19. Next perijove December 11.

Deborah Byrd

October 19, 2016

Setting supermoon

Every full moon sets around dawn. Watch how much how much the sky brightened in the 3 minutes it took for the moon to disappear.

Deborah Byrd

October 19, 2016

Animation: Schiaparelli’s descent to Mars

Computer-generated animation of the descent of the Schiaparelli lander to the surface of Mars. Real one will happen this Wednesday, October 19.

Deborah Byrd

October 17, 2016

Is asteroid 2016 HO3 a second moon?

No, it orbits the sun. But its orbit keeps it as a constant companion of Earth, and it'll remain so for centuries to come.

Deborah Byrd

October 17, 2016

The sound of climate change

Two scientists have set the CO2 record at Mauna Loa - world’s longest-running measure of atmospheric carbon dioxide - to music.

Deborah Byrd

October 17, 2016

The ghost of Loulouda

Manolis Thravalos caught this Brocken Spectre recently while mountain-climbing in Greece, near a medieval castle. A chilling experience, he said. Here's why.

Deborah Byrd

October 17, 2016

China joins search for alien life

China's big new radio telescope - now the largest of its type in the world - will join Breakthrough Listen experiments in the U.S. and Australia in seeking extraterrestrial signals.

Deborah Byrd

October 15, 2016

Deborah Byrd

Deborah Byrd (asteroid 3505 Byrd) helps edit EarthSky.org and is a frequent host of EarthSky videos. Deborah created the EarthSky radio series in 1991 and founded EarthSky.org in 1994. Prior to that, she had worked for the University of Texas McDonald Observatory since 1976, and created and produced their Star Date radio series. She has won a galaxy of awards from the broadcasting and science communities, including having an asteroid named in her honor in 1990, a Public Service Award from the National Science Board in 2003, and the Education Prize from the American Astronomical Society in 2020. A science communicator and educator since 1976, Byrd believes in science as a force for good in the world and a vital tool for the 21st century. "Being an EarthSky editor is like hosting a big global party for cool nature-lovers," she says.