Posts by

Deborah Byrd

40,000 feet over Greenland

A clear day over one of the world's two great ice sheets.

Deborah Byrd

April 1, 2016

Global astronomy month begins April 1

April, 2016, is Global Astronomy Month 2016 (#GAM2016), organized by Astronomers Without Borders, whose motto is One People One Sky.

Deborah Byrd

March 31, 2016

Notice the tilt in Saturn’s rings

You can see in this composite by Scott MacNeill that - in the past few years - Saturn's rings have been appearing increasingly open from our earthly perspective.

Deborah Byrd

March 31, 2016

The extremely hot heart of quasar 3C273

Scientists combined telescopes on Earth and in space to learn that this famous quasar has a core temperature hotter than 10 trillion degrees! That's much hotter than formerly thought possible.

Deborah Byrd

March 30, 2016

See it! Moon sweeps past Mars and Saturn

Both planets are up after midnight now, but soon will be rising earlier … at their best. Enjoy these photos from the EarthSky community!

Deborah Byrd

March 30, 2016

Another record low for Arctic sea ice

At 5.6 million square miles, 2016 had the lowest winter sea ice maximum in the 37-year satellite record. It's slightly lower than the previous record, set last year.

Deborah Byrd

March 29, 2016

Pavlof Volcano in Alaska erupts

Huge ash plume caused airline re-routings. Falling ash, volcanic lightning and lava fountaining from summit. By Tuesday morning, eruption was declining.

Deborah Byrd

March 29, 2016

Moon and Empire State Building

A distant view of an iconic building, with the moon behind it.

Deborah Byrd

March 26, 2016

Video of closest comet in 246 years

It's small, but, because it's so close to us, it appears to be moving very fast across our sky. Image and video by EarthSky community member Greg Hogan.

Deborah Byrd

March 25, 2016

Moon’s tilt has changed over time

Did the 'man in the moon' look different from ancient Earth? Yes, according to new research showing that the moon has undergone what's called True Polar Wander.

Deborah Byrd

March 24, 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.