Posts by

Deborah Byrd

Old moon over Kitt Peak

Founded in 1958 - on a mountaintop in Arizona - this observatory operates its own 3 telescopes and hosts 24 others.

Deborah Byrd

February 8, 2016

James Webb Space Telescope takes a giant step

It'll have 7 times the collecting area of Hubble, and it's scheduled for launch in 2018. James Webb Space Telescope ... and more on this episode of EarthSky News.

Deborah Byrd

February 8, 2016

Pluto has mysterious, floating hills

The hills are thought to be fragments of Pluto's rugged uplands that have broken away and are being carried along the flow paths of glaciers.

Deborah Byrd

February 8, 2016

U.S. Southwest is drying

Researchers identified 12 weather patterns across the region. Over the past 30 years, the 3 patterns bringing rain to the U.S. Southwest became less frequent.

Deborah Byrd

Eleanor Imster

February 7, 2016

Red Rectangle’s unearthly beauty

A Hubble Space Telescope image of the mysterious Red Rectangle Nebula.

Deborah Byrd

February 7, 2016

Fossilized lacewing butterfly

A record etched in rock from 120 million years ago shows the fragile beauty of an ancient butterfly-like insect.

Deborah Byrd

February 6, 2016

See it! All 5 bright planets at once

Best photos from the EarthSky community of the 5 bright planets now visible at once in the sky before dawn. Thanks to all who posted!

Deborah Byrd

Eleanor Imster

February 5, 2016

Violent, head-on crash created moon

On this episode of EarthSky News, an update on the idea that the early Earth collided with a Mars-sized proto-planet to make the moon. That and more. Join us.

Deborah Byrd

February 4, 2016

Darn. No caverns on Rosetta’s comet

Low density of comets suggested there might be huge empty caves honeycombed throughout their interiors. Maybe true for some, but not so for Rosetta's comet.

Deborah Byrd

February 4, 2016

Saturn ring density is an illusion

The most opaque parts of Saturn's rings - the parts that look most dense - don't always contain more material. Another great Saturn mystery!

Deborah Byrd

Eleanor Imster

February 3, 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.