Posts by

Deborah Byrd

Waning crescent Venus

Venus orbits the sun one step inward from Earth. It'll pass between us and the sun in mid-August. Until then, telescopes will show Venus as a waning crescent.

Deborah Byrd

July 15, 2015

Dark matter bridge in cosmic neighborhood

Astronomers see a bridge of dark matter stretching from our Local Group to the Virgo galaxy cluster. It's bound on each side by vast bubbles devoid of galaxies.

Deborah Byrd

July 14, 2015

Tracking station in Australia to receive first Pluto images

New Horizons' data will take 4.5 hours to reach Earth. The radio signals will be weak, practically whispers. Afterwards, New Horizons data is expected to take up to a year to transmit fully back to Earth.

Deborah Byrd

July 14, 2015

Space artist depicted Pluto 36 years ago

Space artist Don Dixon captured Pluto in a painting 36 years before the New Horizons spacecraft revealed what it actually looks like.

Deborah Byrd

July 14, 2015

Last best look at Pluto’s farside

A cool New Horizons image of the side of Pluto the spacecraft won't see as it sweeps past. Likely our last, best look for decades to come!

Deborah Byrd

July 14, 2015

Rainbow over the desert

After a summertime desert shower ...

Deborah Byrd

July 11, 2015

Will James Webb Telescope find new Earths?

If we took Earth and Venus - and had them orbit a cool, red star not too far away - could the James Webb Space Telescope tell which planet was habitable?

Deborah Byrd

July 11, 2015

Cosmologists look beyond Standard Model

Cosmology - the science of the origin and development of the universe - has made progress in recent years. But many questions remain unanswered.

Deborah Byrd

July 10, 2015

Strongest magnets make biggest cosmic explosions

In other words, magnetars - tiny neutron stars that are the strongest magnets in the universe - power long-duration gamma-ray bursts.

Editors of EarthSky

Deborah Byrd

July 10, 2015

Galactic radio jets and dark matter

The afterglow of the Big Bang points to invisible dark matter, in places where galactic jets travel at near light speed.

Deborah Byrd

July 10, 2015

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.