Steve Desch
@deschscoveries.bsky.social
Professor of astrophysics / planetary science / meteoritics at Arizona State University.
So happy the IAU approved my idea to name two asteroids for Tom Lehrer and “Weird Al” @alyankovic.bsky.social news.asu.edu/20260929-sci...
ASU astrophysicist instrumental in naming asteroids in honor of Tom Lehrer and 'Weird Al' Yankovic | ASU News
Thousands of asteroids have been named after people, but not just anyone can garner that honor.The International Astronomical Union (IAU) governs asteroid naming and sets the rules. The asteroid disco...
news.asu.edu
#OTD in 1901, #EnricoFermi was born. His scientific work stands out for originality and range. He was an exceptional scientist, capable of lightning-fast intuitions, but also a tireless worker, deeply human towards colleagues, students, family, friends. A thread.⤵️ ⚛️🔭🧪 #HistSci #Physics
Nereide@drnereide.bsky.social · 8mo ago🧵1/19 Picture a 25-year-old Italian guy who, in 1926, changed #physics ⚛️forever—paving the way for computers, smartphones, & understanding #stars. 🔭 This is #EnricoFermi & his famous “statistics.”🧪 Let’s walk through the story from Florence to “fermions,” 100 yrs later. ➡️ arxiv.org/abs/2602.04484
Two of my musical heroes now have asteroids named after them. (14330) Tomlehrer and (14331) Alyankovic
Steve Desch@deschscoveries.bsky.social · 2w agoIt’s me! I got the ball rolling a year ago. Tim McCoy was instrumental and Allison McGraw helped. We got two asteroids named, thanks to discoverer Bobby Bus: (14330) Tomlehrer and (14331) Alyankovic. Two of my musical heroes, as you can tell from the citations I wrote.
Not even a Mars-crosser, so no worries about hitting any planets. Looks like a couple of kilometers in size, part of the Nysa-Polana complex which is a real mess in terms of sorting out histories, so tough to make an educated guess about composition.
Al Yankovic@alyankovic.bsky.social · last wk.
Interested by ISOs like 3I/ATLAS? PhD opportunity in interstellar object observations, here in New Zealand. Join our Ōtautahi-Oxford group & the NZ Gravity collaboration. Start by March 1. ☄️🔭
PhD Scholarships – Statistics, Astrophysics, Cosmology and Gravitational Wave Astronomy | New Zealand Gravity
About us The NZ Astrostatistics and General Relativity Group (NZ Gravity) is a cross-institutional research team spanning astrophysics, cosmology, ma...
gravity.ac.nz
And here are their orbits and where they both are today
It’s me! I got the ball rolling a year ago. Tim McCoy was instrumental and Allison McGraw helped. We got two asteroids named, thanks to discoverer Bobby Bus: (14330) Tomlehrer and (14331) Alyankovic. Two of my musical heroes, as you can tell from the citations I wrote.
Mark Marley@markmarley.bsky.social · 2w agoLPL alum honors Weird Al.
El flash central de Plutón Un equipo francés estudió un fenómeno interesante observado en las ocultaciones estelares provocadas por Plutón y Tritón: la aparición de destellos centrales en la sombra. Este fenómeno conecta la física… https://todoastronomia.net/2026/09/20/el-flash-central-de-pluton/
El flash central de Plutón
Un equipo francés estudió un fenómeno interesante observado en las ocultaciones estelares provocadas por Plutón y Tritón: la aparición de destellos centrales en la sombra. Este fenómeno conecta la física ondulatoria del siglo XIX con la atmósfera de estos cuerpos celestes, revelando propiedades luminosas que desafían nuestras expectativas.
todoastronomia.net
Martin Longman sees further into the future than almost any other political prognosticator. He’s earned this birthday victory lap. Definitely worth following or buying a subscription! (HB Booman!)
Martin Longman@booman23.bsky.social · 2w agoWhy My Senate Predictions Are More Accurate Than the Experts martinlongman.substack.com/p/why-my-sen...
As the #Arctic loses its ice, it loses its inhabitants. With the Arctic warming, it has lost a third of summer sea ice since 1993, reducing the habitat availability for some of its most iconic species. #DataViz #OSR10 #CopernicusMarine
For the 1st time, an extrasolar planet has left a radio fingerprint of its own, distinct from its star’s. 🔭 That fingerprint also tells us how strong its magnetic field is.⚛️ The planet is called β Pictoris b.🧪 Illustration Credit: ESO/L. Calçada/N. Risinger (skysurvey.org) #planetsci #astronomy
Very informative explanation if what math AI did and did not do.
Nereide@drnereide.bsky.social · 3w agoYou've probably read that an OpenAI system has "solved" a #MillenniumProblem on the fluid equations. The headline is strong. Better to ask: which problem, under which assumptions, and what would still be open. 🧪⚛️ #mathsky #science #NavierStokes
👀👀👀 First direct measurement of exoplanet magnetic field 🪐🧲 ECMI between exoplanet's magnetosphere-ionosphere interaction, with two bursts eight hours apart (rotation ~9 hours) And look at that Stokes V switching handedness as B_field orientation rotates! 🤩 Magnetic fields are the best!
Michael Busch@michael-w-busch.bsky.social · 3w agoToday on the #arXiv: @kortizceballos.bsky.social, Berger, and @whereisyvette.bsky.social 2026, "Discovery of radio emission from the exoplanet β Pictoris b" - arxiv.org/abs/2609.16720. Beta Pic b shows up quite neatly in L- and S-band radio, with bursts that imply a kilogauss (!) magnetic field.
✔️ El telescopio espacial James Webb descubre que los invisibles anillos de Chariklo están cambiando 🌐 www.iaa.csic.es/noticia/jwst... @csic.es @csicandalucia.bsky.social
Amateurs. If I fetishized death, I’d pick names from the *really* big killers, names like Plague, or Toxin, or Musk.
Lance Ellisor@ellisor.net · 4w agoI thought I'd seen it all (in quoted thread), but now we have .... tactical baby names
Today, September 8, 2026 marks the 60th anniversary of Star Trek’s premiere on American network television. From the beginning, there was something special about this show. >> [more]
Maybe Trump No Longer Know What He Did On 9/11 martinlongman.substack.com/p/maybe-trum... Yeah, he was not pulled from the burning Twin Towers by firemen.
Maybe Trump No Longer Know What He Did On 9/11
He’s told so many lies about that day, and for so long, that it’s possible that he can no longer distinguish the truth from his fabrications.
martinlongman.substack.com
Sixty years ago today, the starship Enterprise launched and with it, a vision of the future where humanity had moved beyond its divisions. I was there at the beginning, and I can tell you...
Scientists have mapped a route to chase down Halley's Comet and fly alongside it for months when it returns in 2061 Gravity assists from Jupiter and Saturn plus ion engines would match its backward orbit Launch has to happen before 2040 or the window closes
⭐️ Star Trek Day ⭐️ STAR TREK premiered 60 years ago today on September 8, 1966, just four days before the premiere of THE MONKEES on September 12!
Granada en la misión Comet Interceptor El Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía (IAA) participa activamente en la misión Comet Interceptor, liderada por la ESA. Aporta experiencia en instrumentos de imagen que estudian… https://todoastronomia.net/2026/09/05/granada-en-la-mision-comet-interceptor/
Granada en la misión Comet Interceptor
El Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía (IAA) participa activamente en la misión Comet Interceptor, liderada por la ESA. Aporta experiencia en instrumentos de imagen que estudian el cometa, analizan el entorno cometario y conectan observaciones terrestres con datos espaciales, contribuyendo al entendimiento de la formación de los planetas.
todoastronomia.net
1/10 The LUX-ZEPLIN experiment — LZ — sits in a South Dakota mine. In the liquid xenon it caught one unusual flash. A hint of #darkmatter? It’s far too soon to celebrate. Here are the facts — with the caveats. ⚛️🧪🔭 newscenter.lbl.gov/2026/09/01/l... Image by M. Kapust / Sanford Research Facility
Comet Interceptor La Agencia Espacial Europea está planificando la misión Comet Interceptor, que estudiará cometas completamente nuevos y potencialmente objetos interestelares. Lanzada en 2029, se ubicará en el punto L2 y esperará a… https://todoastronomia.net/2026/09/02/comet-interceptor/
Comet Interceptor
La Agencia Espacial Europea está planificando la misión Comet Interceptor, que estudiará cometas completamente nuevos y potencialmente objetos interestelares. Lanzada en 2029, se ubicará en el punto L2 y esperará a interceptar un cometa prometedor. Su enfoque innovador y flexible podría cambiar la exploración del Sistema Solar y permitir descubrir materiales primitivos.
todoastronomia.net
1/12 Under Gran Sasso (Italy), a detector built for dark matter has seen the Sun’s faintest neutrinos: a very light knock on an electron (elastic scattering). It is the lowest energy threshold ever reached for detecting any #neutrino.⚛️🧪🔭 www.physics.columbia.edu/news/xenonnt... #physics
The city of Tempe, Arizona, says it is ending its Flock program
When Texas Falls to the Dems, That’s the End of Modern Conservatism martinlongman.substack.com/p/when-texas...
When Texas Falls to the Dems, That’s the End of Modern Conservatism
Long ago, I predicted this day would come in 2028, but it could come two years early.
martinlongman.substack.com
