Posts by

Deborah Byrd

Crashing comets may explain lunar swirls

Scientists see wispy swirls of bright soil on the moon. A computer simulation suggests the cause may be collisions by ancient comets.

Deborah Byrd

June 2, 2015

Shock collision inside black hole jet

Time-lapse movie of plasma jet blasting from a black hole in a distant galaxy. It shows a rear-end collision between two high-speed knots of the jet's matter.

Deborah Byrd

June 2, 2015

Bioluminescent surf in Tasmania

The beaches around Tasmania, an island off Australia's south coast, had a strong display of bioluminescence last month.

Deborah Byrd

June 1, 2015

Strong earthquake strikes off Oregon coast

No tsunami warming, no apparent problems, from this 5.8-magnitude earthquake that struck in the ocean 281 miles west of Waldport, Oregon.

Deborah Byrd

June 1, 2015

LightSail phones home after 8-day silence

Planetary Society CEO Bill Nye said, "LightSail called home! It’s alive! Our LightSail spacecraft has rebooted itself, just as our engineers predicted."

Deborah Byrd

May 31, 2015

Humans tell whales apart by their voices

Detailed analysis of a particular type of call - known as an upcall - let human researchers single out whales as individuals.

Deborah Byrd

May 30, 2015

Video: 40 hours at Ningaloo Reef

No beach days yet? This wonderful video by Colin Legg lets you spend two days and nights at a reef in Australia.

Deborah Byrd

May 30, 2015

Octopus opens a jar, from the inside

Check out this video. More evidence that octopuses are amazing.

Eleanor Imster

Deborah Byrd

May 30, 2015

New human ancestor found in Ethiopia

According to scientists who made the discovery, the find provides conclusive evidence that, millions of years ago, there was more than one human species.

Deborah Byrd

May 30, 2015

Comet Lovejoy near star Polaris

Comet Lovejoy on May 22, 2015. The comet is the brilliant green dot near the center of the photo. At the upper right of the photo is the star Polaris, aka the North Star.

Deborah Byrd

May 30, 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.