Posts by

Deborah Byrd

Alzheimer’s disease slows when you exercise body and mind

Hard evidence that Alzheimer's can be slowed by physical and mental exercise, a diet rich in plants, and by monitoring risk factors for cardiovascular disease.

Deborah Byrd

July 18, 2014

Cosmic rain over isle of Lindisfarne

Composite image capturing a night under the cosmic rain - aka last year's Perseid meteor shower - on Lindisfarne off the northeast coast of England.

Deborah Byrd

July 18, 2014

Mars Curiosity rover now crossing dangerous terrain

The car-sized rover is currently crossing a stretch of hard, rocky ground like that which previously dented and punctured its aluminum wheels.

Deborah Byrd

July 17, 2014

Swan landing

Allerton Bywater is a village in the city of Leeds, in West Yorkshire, England. The River Aire, popular with swans, flows through it.

Deborah Byrd

July 17, 2014

Three next-generation dark matter experiments get a green light

Next generation, in this case, is defined as experiments that will be at least 10 times as sensitive as the current crop of dark matter detectors.

Deborah Byrd

July 16, 2014

Large crater appears at ‘the end of the world’

A science team is investigating a mysterious crater on the Yamal peninsula of northern Siberia. It's about 80 meters (87.5 yards) across. No cause is yet known.

Deborah Byrd

July 16, 2014

NASA re-enacted Apollo 11 launch on 45th anniversary today

What if we'd had Twitter on July 16, 1969, the day Apollo 11 launched carrying the first humans to the moon? NASA did a live-tweet reenactment today as if we had.

Deborah Byrd

July 16, 2014

Geologic map of planet Mars

USGS released this cool geologic map of Mars this week, which was prepared for NASA. What to see first? Notice impact craters, in yellow.

Deborah Byrd

July 16, 2014

Rosetta spacecraft’s comet has a double nucleus!

More complex shape for 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko restricts potential sites for November 11 landing. "Wow, wow, wow! I can't wait to get closer!"

Deborah Byrd

July 15, 2014

Video: What New Horizons might see when it reaches Pluto next July

"Because Pluto has never been visited up-close by a spacecraft from Earth, everything we see will be a first," said NASA's Adriana Ocampo.

Deborah Byrd

July 15, 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.