Posts by

Deborah Byrd

New clues to possible Venus auroras

For 40 years, astronomers have puzzled over signs of a green aurora on Venus, despite the planet's lack of a magnetic field.

Deborah Byrd

November 15, 2014

Philae lander completes its main mission, then falls silent

The first-ever comet lander - Philae - made history this week by spending some 57 hours gathering data on the surface of Comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko.

Deborah Byrd

November 15, 2014

Orion always comes up sideways

Patricia Evans shares her new skill at astrophotography and a poem by Robert Frost.

Deborah Byrd

November 14, 2014

Nevada earthquake swarm intensifies

Earthquake activity in northwest Nevada over the past week has been more than in previous months combined, says the Nevada Seismological Laboratory.

Deborah Byrd

November 13, 2014

Rosetta mission places Philae lander on its comet

As of Thursday morning, November 13 - after initially failing to attach to the surface - Philae is now stable and is sending back pictures.

Deborah Byrd

Andrew R. Brown

November 13, 2014

As Philae detached from its mothership, an eerie comet song

Listen in on a mysterious sound produced by Rosetta's comet. ESA says the comet song is due to "oscillations in the magnetic field in the comet's environment."

Deborah Byrd

November 13, 2014

We’ve landed on a comet!

New images from the Philae lander are expected on Thursday, November 14. In the meantime, despite challenges ... a cause for celebration for all humanity.

Deborah Byrd

November 13, 2014

Light pillars over northern Sweden

As winter comes to the far north, sky conditions may be just right to produce a beautiful light phenomenon called "light pillars."

Deborah Byrd

November 12, 2014

Extraterrestrial oceanography reveals depths of Titan sea

The Cassini spacecraft - which has been orbiting Saturn since 2004 - used radar to sound the depths of a sea of liquid methane and ethane on Saturn's large moon Titan.

Deborah Byrd

November 11, 2014

Moonset behind trees

Increasingly golden or orange color as the moon sets is due to the fact that - as it sinks - you're seeing the moon through more and more of Earth's atmosphere.

Deborah Byrd

November 10, 2014

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.