🔭 Reposting for the feed 🔭

Paul McMillan@mcmillan-astro.bsky.social · 7d ago

Good news from the launch of the Roman telescope. A successful economical launch has extended the mission lifetime to 22 years! science.nasa.gov/blogs/roman/...

Good news from the launch of the Roman telescope. A successful economical launch has extended the mission lifetime to 22 years! science.nasa.gov/blogs/roman/...

Fuel Savings Double Potential Lifetime for NASA’s Roman Mission - NASA Science

The results are in: NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope’s very accurate first mid-course correction, along with other fuel savings, are expected to more

science.nasa.gov

I can't emphasise enough how grim having the Swedish Democrats in power would have been. If you're in the UK, think a party more like Restore than Reform www.theguardian.com/world/live/2...

Swedish centre-left opposition widens lead to three seats with 95% of votes counted – Europe live

The parliament isn’t set to meet until late September to elect a new speaker, and then prime minister

theguardian.com

Reading the review reminds me of William Press' assessment of Hawking in his memoir:

Philip Ball@philipcball.bsky.social · 2w ago

I knew that some folks will not be delighted by this review of Graham Farmelo's new biography of Hawking, but so be it. The book itself is good - as I say, Farmelo lets people's words speak for themselves, and many are quite damning. www.theguardian.com/books/2026/s...

We're back on Only Connect tonight! We take on the Culture Club, who we had met in the hotel bar the night before and are great.

Is there anything worse than an AI assistant trying to be funny?

The best thing to use as an eclipse pinhole is, of course, the lid of a microwave rice cooker

Breaking news: RFK Jr calls on people to stare directly at the eclipse. Calls solar eclipse glasses "vaccines for eyes".

This was incredible to watch. I've not always been a fan but after everything he's been through, the end of this race was 👨‍🍳🤌 www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/a...

Jakob Ingebrigtsen returns from injury woe to win historic European 5,000m gold

Jakob Ingebrigtsen, in his first race for 11 months after injury, won the men’s 5,000m final to become the first man to win four European titles in the same event

theguardian.com

Wonder if this will get the same level of media attention that other Cambridge news always seems to get.

21 Group@21group.bsky.social · last mo.

Breaking news Cambridge University loses the whistleblowing tribunal Vice Chancellor Deborah Prentice is among the respondents found to have retaliated against a whistleblower Never rains but it pours 21percent.org?p=4148

Never let it be said that the people of BlueSky don't have their fingers on the pulse

Plenty of 'discoveries' that hold sentimental value in my career xkcd.com/3281/

Antiques Roadshow

xkcd.com

In case anyone was considering taking the flag campaign at their word, they were careful to also be awful in other ways

Oxford Clarion@oxfordclarion.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Leaders of flag-raising group Raise the Colours Oxfordshire placed trackers on highway workers’ cars to find out their home addresses, the High Court has heard. RTC then attempted to intimidate the highway staff into no longer removing flags by repeating their addresses to them.

I am all for saving Jodrell Bank, but please don’t lose sight of the fact that it is simply the most visible manifestation of a much bigger problem, which isn’t solved if someone magically finds the money to keep it going, simply to shut people up. 🔭🧪

I was just reminded off a brilliant thing that the brilliantly creative @sprawld.sprawledoctopus.com made: The periodic table, with the squares scaled to the fraction of the universe that is that element! 🔭🎢 sprawledoctopus.com/periodic-tab...

If you were to pick something to symbolise the damage being done to UK astronomy by the cuts we are facing, you couldn't do much better than this 🔭🎢 www.theguardian.com/science/2026...

Jodrell Bank Observatory facing closure after major funder cuts support

Scientists say decision is blow to UK astronomy as deep space observatory is home to world-leading facilities

theguardian.com

Prof Daisuke Kawata is looking for a student to study the Milky Way using simulations. I can't emphasise enough how good a PhD supervisor he appears to be, so if you know anyone (UK or otherwise) who might be interested, let them know! www.ucl.ac.uk/mathematical...

PhD Projects and Application Process

Applications are open for a STFC funded PhD studentship for an Astrophysics project starting in October 2026.

ucl.ac.uk

Interesting idea. Start with wage theft by employers.

Ian Smith@iankmsmith.ft.com · 2mo ago

Crazy stat "Fraud accounts for 46 per cent of all crime in England and Wales, yet only 2 per cent of resources are dedicated to it, Adams said." it is remarkable how little we seem to do about fraud, from the gazillion little fraudulent motor claims to the big stuff www.ft.com/content/f0f7...

Tragic ending to Vikram Dhillon's plenary talk at #NAM2026, where he tells us that the STFC cuts have robbed us of the future of this wonderful instrument.

This is happening on Monday next week. That's me, lower right. I love Only Connect and filming it was a joy. Now I'm deeply nervous for people to watch me 1) get stuff wrong and look silly; or 2) get stuff right and look smug. www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m...

BBC Two - Only Connect, Series 22, Two Hearts v Ad Astra

A team keen on science fiction take on three fans of science fact.

bbc.co.uk

Really excited about the return of Only Connect to our screens. Always a joy, sometimes a bit nerve wracking. First episode this evening www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m...

BBC Two - Only Connect, Series 22, Culture Club v Makeweights

Three rowers take on a team of microbiologists to find connections between clues.

bbc.co.uk

Sorry to say #OnlyConnect will return 13th July, with a twist - it's a longer series! Contestants will need an extra step to get to the endgame. That would be my fourth series as a setter - very pleasing 😌

I'm pretty sure I once gave a talk (at a group meeting, not a conference) which ended with me saying something like "and the analysis has been running while I'm talking, let's see what results I got!"

Emily Hunt@emily.space · 3mo ago

I am slowly changing from someone who finishes presentations a week before to someone who finishes presentations the night before... I really hope I don't become "... on the day of" or "... in the hour before" 😅

An exciting moment. The LSST will be a deluge of data that will be fascinating to explore

Rubin LSST:UK@lsstuk.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Who knew clouds of dust and hints of far-off galaxies could be so mesmerising? The @vrubinobs.bsky.social LSST has begun and we’re here for the ride! This project is decades in the making, and the hard work of thousands of people around the world. Read more: www.lsst.ac.uk/news/2026-06... 🔭

Attention has been drawn to the difference in earnings for different degree types in the new IFS study, but I think the more egregious and obvious gap is still the gender pay gap!

And so ends the premiership of the dog that chased the car, caught up with it, then had no idea what to do www.theguardian.com/politics/ng-...

Frozen by the challenges of power: how Starmer turned triumph into tragedy

Starmer appeared ruthless in banishing the influence of Jeremy Corbyn, and winning power – but far less certain on how to wield it

theguardian.com

🔭 I'm giving a webinar at 4:30pm today. Sign up here! 🔭

University of Leicester, Physics & Astronomy@physicsuol.bsky.social · 3mo ago

🔭🎢 🌌 A reminder that TODAY at 16:30 BST our Dr Paul McMillan @mcmillan-astro.bsky.social, is giving a webinar about incredible recent discoveries about the Milky Way. Sign up below: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/ten-things...

Football. Bloody hell.

hill I will die on: the world became worse when "staycation" was co-opted to mean "holiday in your home country" not "holiday where you stay at home, with day trips" www.theguardian.com/travel/2026/...

Micro-staycations: why are people holidaying an hour away from home?

Mindful of steep airfares and global uncertainty, more and more UK holiday-makers are staying close – very close – to home. Does this mean Milton Keynes is the new Malaga?

theguardian.com

🔭 Congratulations to three brilliant astronomers who have won this year's Kavli Prize "for uncovering the fossil evidence of past mergers proving that the Milky Way galaxy was built through hierarchical accretion" www.kavliprize.org/prizes/astro... 🔭