Posts by

Deborah Byrd

Merging galaxies fuel mega black holes

It hasn't been easy for astronomers to peer into the cores of merging galaxies. Dust obscures the view. Now, new research has given astronomers a better look.

Eleanor Imster

Deborah Byrd

November 18, 2018

The night the stars fell

Check out this old engraving of the November 1833 Leonid meteor shower. It's one reason this shower - due to peak this weekend - is so famous.

Eleanor Imster

Deborah Byrd

November 16, 2018

Researchers walk back major ocean warming result

Late last month, a team of researchers said Earth's oceans had warmed 60% more than anyone had realized. Now that result appears unlikely, since a mathematician and climate contrarian has uncovered a scientific error.

Deborah Byrd

November 14, 2018

Sun pillar over Indiana

Charlie Winstead in southwest Indiana said, "Looked like there would be an interesting sky at sunrise, so headed out to shoot ... While en route, I noticed the sun pillar."

Deborah Byrd

November 13, 2018

Wow! Amazing timelapse of Beta Pictoris b

Not long ago, we couldn't see planets orbiting distant stars at all. Now astronomers have captured the passage of exoplanet Beta Pictoris b into the glare of its star … then its re-emergence 2 years later.

Deborah Byrd

November 12, 2018

See it! Moon sweeps past Saturn

The young moon passed Saturn in the early evening sky this weekend. The EarthSky community caught some beautiful views. Photos here.

Deborah Byrd

November 12, 2018

Pleiades ascending

The radiant point for the ongoing Taurid meteor shower is near this little, misty, dipper-shaped cluster, called the Pleiades, or Seven Sisters.

Deborah Byrd

November 8, 2018

One of the oldest stars in the universe

The star could be only a single generation removed from the Big Bang. It's the new recorder-holder for having the fewest "metals," that is, the fewest of the heavier elements made inside stars and released to space via supernovae.

Deborah Byrd

November 7, 2018

E.T., we’re home!

A new study from MIT suggests that existing laser technology could be used to signal alien astronomers on a distant world. But should it be used?

Deborah Byrd

November 7, 2018

See it! Moon sweeps past Venus

The waning moon swept past the brightest planet - Venus - in the east before dawn Tuesday morning, November 6. EarthSky community members from around the world captured them.

Deborah Byrd

November 6, 2018

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.