Posts by

Deborah Byrd

A spiral within a spiral galaxy

ESO 498-G5's spiral arms wind all the way into the galaxy's center. ESO 498-G5's core looks like a miniature spiral galaxy at the heart of the larger spiral.

Deborah Byrd

May 26, 2012

Jump in earthquake magnitude, what does it mean?

Each earthquake magnitude is 33 times more powerful than the one before. So each jump in magnitude means a lot! This animation can help you picture it.

Deborah Byrd

May 24, 2012

Aliens won’t want to enslave us, says alien hunter

SETI Institute's Jill Tarter disagrees with Stephen Hawking, and movies and TV shows, that depict angry aliens hoping to enslave or eat us.

Deborah Byrd

May 24, 2012

Smoke-shrouded skies in New Mexico

About 22,000 acres are now burning. Smoke from the fires shrouds southwestern New Mexico. Fire crews are standing by, waiting for the winds to die down.

Deborah Byrd

May 24, 2012

Neil deGrasse Tyson says science is in our DNA

In this video from BigThink's Humanizing Technology series, Neil deGrasse Tyson describes why science is a truly human activity.

Deborah Byrd

May 23, 2012

SpaceX launch on historic mission to ISS

The SpaceX Falcon-9 rocket successfully blasted off this morning and is now on its way to a history-making journey to the International Space Station.

Deborah Byrd

May 22, 2012

View from space: First named storm of 2012 Atlantic hurricane season

The storm watch for Tropical Storm Alberto along the U.S. East Coast was discontinued yesterday (May 20) as 5 p.m. EDT. See the view from space here.

Deborah Byrd

May 21, 2012

Earthquake in northern Italy on May 20

It was a very strong earthquake to shake the region, seismologists said. Older buildings suffered damage: collapsed roofs, cracks in buildings. At least four reported dead.

Deborah Byrd

May 20, 2012

Solar flare effects expected May 19

Beautiful movie of another CME leaving the sun's surface on May 17. Goodbye sunspot 1476 and hello solar flare!

Deborah Byrd

May 18, 2012

Urban heat island effect has upside for oaks in NYC

Red oaks in New York City grew eight times faster than rural oaks. Scientists think the the urban heat island effect was the primary reason.

Deborah Byrd

May 17, 2012

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.