Posts by 

Deborah Byrd

A gas cloud is sweeping past the Milky Way’s central black hole

Astronomers are observing the "noodle effect" as the black hole's powerful gravity stretches and elongates the cloud.

Crazy weather? You can’t blame HAARP anymore

The High Frequency Active Auroral Research Program (HAARP) — target of conspiracy theorists — has closed down.

Hear a seismic scream from Alaska’s Redoubt Volcano

Scientists say they have now solved the mystery of Redoubt's scream prior to eruption.

Now 7.2 billion humans, and counting

The United Nations says global human population reached 7.2 billion in mid-2013. The "medium-fertility" projection for the year 2050 has been revised upward to 9.6 billion.

A true-blue world, 63 light-years away

Earth appears blue from space because it has oceans. Planet HD 189733b appears blue because of molten glass "raindrops" blowing sideways across its surface.

Video: Our solar system’s comet-like tail

Visualize the sun's tail - which space scientists call the "heliotail" - with this video.

Delicate Arch illuminated by flashlight

Delicate Arch in Arches National Park, illuminated here by a woman with a flashlight.

Update on sunspot group 11 times as wide as Earth

AR1785 and AR1787 comprise one of biggest sunspot groupings of Solar Cycle 24. So far, though, the grouping has been surprisingly quiet.

Milky Way over boat launch at Lake St. George, Maine

Notice the reflections of the stars and the Milky Way next to the dock in this shot by Mike Taylor.

Shell of a recent supernova

The object G1.9+0.3 is 28,000 light-years from Earth, near the center of our Milky Way. It's an expanding shell in space, left behind by a recent supernova.