Posts by

Deborah Byrd

See it! Star Aldebaran near the moon

On Sunday, as seen from North America, the moon "occulted" or passed in front of the star Aldebaran. Many then saw Aldebaran near the moon Sunday evening.

Deborah Byrd

April 11, 2016

Planet 9 not affecting Cassini at Saturn

"Although we'd love it if Cassini could help detect a new planet, we don't see any perturbations in our orbit that we cannot explain with our current models," said Cassini project manager Earl Maize.

Deborah Byrd

April 9, 2016

Crab Nebula

Visible only through telescopes, the Crab Nebula - aka M1 - is all that remains of a cataclysmic supernova explosion that lit the daytime sky in A.D. 1054.

Deborah Byrd

April 9, 2016

Moon in front of Earth

It's the fully illuminated far side of the moon - the side not visible from Earth - set against the fully illuminated (dayside) of the Earth.

Deborah Byrd

April 7, 2016

Supernovae showered Earth with radioactive debris

The supernovae may have been less than 300 light-years away. The evidence comes from radioactive iron-60, found in ocean sediments and crust.

Deborah Byrd

April 6, 2016

SETI turns focus to 20,000 red dwarf stars

Astronomers with the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence had their reasons for ignoring red dwarf stars in the past. But now that thinking has changed.

Deborah Byrd

April 6, 2016

Snow goose moon

To our knowledge, Snow Goose Moon isn't one of the commonly used moon names. But, at least in some parts of the world, it should be.

Deborah Byrd

April 6, 2016

Asteroid swept within moon’s distance April 5

Astronomers did know in advance that asteroid 2016 FW13 would pass closely - but safely - on April 5, 2016. Check out a photo from the Virtual Telescope Project.

Deborah Byrd

April 5, 2016

Check it out! Full-sphere astrophotos

A new camera records a 360-degree full-sphere panorama with only one single shot. It's bound to set off a small revolution in astrophotography, says Project Nightflight.

Deborah Byrd

April 5, 2016

How to make a mountain on Mars

They're not mountains in the earthly sense. They're mile-high mounds, which - a new study says - were carved over billions of years by wind and climate.

Deborah Byrd

April 4, 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.