Posts by

Deborah Byrd

Glacier melt rate in West Antarctica tripled in last decade

A comprehensive, 21-year analysis reconciling four different techniques. A word about this year's sea ice extent. And why is info about Antarctica so hard to come by?

Deborah Byrd

December 3, 2014

Wisdom is back!

World’s oldest known albatross - at least 63 years old - has been seen with her mate for the first time this mating season at Midway Atoll.

Deborah Byrd

December 1, 2014

Days of darkness this December? Of course not.

Heard the rumor that "NASA says" Earth will experience several days of total darkness in December 2014? Not true, of course.

Bruce McClure

Eleanor Imster

Deborah Byrd

December 1, 2014

Super-Earth transit detected from the ground

The astronomers say their technique should let others make ground-based characterizations of dozens of super-Earths, expected to be found in space surveys.

Deborah Byrd

December 1, 2014

Night-shining cloud season begins in Antarctica

Noctilucent clouds - aka night-shining clouds - are thought to be made of ice crystals that form on fine dust particles from meteors.

Deborah Byrd

December 1, 2014

Bar-headed geese in India

A beautiful shot of bar-headed geese - one of the world's highest flying birds - over a wetlands in India in November 2014. Photo by Abhinav Singhai.

Deborah Byrd

November 30, 2014

Using supermassive black holes to measure cosmic distances

"Eye of Sauron" is a nickname for an active supermassive black hole at the core of a distant galaxy. Researchers measured its distance at 62 million light-years.

Deborah Byrd

November 29, 2014

NASA is tracking a gargantuan iceberg, escaped from Antarctica

After six months of winter darkness in Antarctica, NASA has re-acquired satellite images of the huge iceberg B31.

Deborah Byrd

November 28, 2014

Video: Astrophysicists discuss the film Interstellar

Black holes, worm holes, exoplanets, time dilation. Three astrophysicists discuss them all in a presentation of the science behind the film Interstellar.

Deborah Byrd

November 28, 2014

Earth has its own Star-Trek-like invisible shield

Scientists studying Earth's Van Allen belts have found an invisible shield that blocks ultrafast electrons from moving deeper into Earth’s atmosphere.

Deborah Byrd

November 28, 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.