Posts by

Deborah Byrd

Video takes you to Pluto’s surface

New video released on 1-year anniversary of New Horizons' visit to Pluto. It lets you ride aboard a Pluto spacecraft and then plunge toward its surface!

Deborah Byrd

July 19, 2016

Wow! Another 104 confirmed exoplanets

That's from 197 new exoplanet candidates. In its extended (K2) mission, the Kepler space telescope has been looking toward cool, small, red dwarf-type stars.

Deborah Byrd

July 18, 2016

Giant quake may lurk under Bangladesh

A huge earthquake could be building beneath Bangladesh, Earth's most densely populated nation. There's potential for some 140 million people to be affected.

Deborah Byrd

July 18, 2016

Orion before dawn, over Thailand

In January and February, Orion is an evening constellation. But at this time of year, people around the world begin watching for Orion before dawn.

Deborah Byrd

July 18, 2016

Why galaxies stop making stars

Nature and nurture in the evolution of galaxies, and what those factors mean with respect to whether galaxies continue forming stars, or not.

Deborah Byrd

July 17, 2016

Researchers recreate 1st steps on dry land

In a groundbreaking study, researchers explored a key evolutionary transition - from animals living in water to living on land - using a robot called MuddyBot.

Deborah Byrd

July 16, 2016

Noctilucent clouds over Europe last week

Time-lapse video of the amazing noctilucent cloud display over northern Europe on July 12-14, 2016. Adrien Mauduit called it a "storm" of these clouds.

Deborah Byrd

July 16, 2016

Gamma ray bursts and pencil-thin jets

Stellar mergers that cause gamma ray bursts might make pencil-thin jets. If true, since most jets won't be pointed our way, we'll see no sign of most mergers.

Deborah Byrd

July 15, 2016

1.2 million galaxies in 3D

A new map of the universe - based on observations of 1.2 million galaxies - confirms cosmologists' theories about the web of galaxies making up our universe as a whole.

Deborah Byrd

July 15, 2016

Noctilucent clouds over northern Europe

Photos from far northern Europe last night and this morning (July 13 and 14, 2016) of a wonderful display of noctilucent, or night-shining, clouds.

Deborah Byrd

July 14, 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.