I was camping along the coast for a week with my dog Vega, and each night Orion and his dogs would be hanging high in the sky above our camp when we went to bed. This particular night was unseasonably clear; the few thin clouds that spread across the lower sky were easily pierced by Sirius and Procyon. Vega (my dog — not the summer Harp Star, of course) even showed up clearly in the 15-second exposure because she was watching intently for raccoon invaders that lived in the brush behind the truck. The glow is from the cities of Florence and Reedsport, Oregon.
Deborah Byrd 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. Today, she serves as Editor-in-Chief of this website. She has won a galaxy of awards from the broadcasting and science communities, including having an asteroid named 3505 Byrd in her honor. In 2020, she won the Education Prize from the American Astronomical Society, the largest organization of professional astronomers in North America. 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.
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