It is Tucson hot today in Pasadena 102°F/39°C! At least Tucson usually gets monsoons this time of year. No rain in sight here. 🥵
Kevin Hardegree-Ullman
@kevinkhu.bsky.social
Research Scientist at Caltech/IPAC-NExScI studying all things related to exoplanets! Opinions are my own. https://kevinkhu.com
Almost every time an #exoplanet news article comes out...
Phil Plait@philplait.bsky.social · last wk.BTW if you've ever thought, "Hmmmm, I wonder what kind of person could get Scientific American to print a lyric from Queen's 'Fat-Bottomed Girls' in an article about exoplanets", now you know. www.scientificamerican.com/article/eart...
In recent years, Astronomy on Tap events have grown, hopefully reaching audiences that wouldn't normally go to public talks. However, as an astronomer who doesn't drink and has exactly zero interest in doing outreach at bars, are there other creative outlets you've seen for non-standard outreach? 🔭
PSA: If you've recently served on NASA or NSF panels (especially dual anonymous panels), please comply with the panel guidelines and DO NOT state the panel you served on in your CV! You can say you have served on NASA/NSF panel(s) and which year(s), but please don't be more specific than that. 🔭🧪
Excited that a group is doing homogeneous characterization of a large sample of stars for radial velocity targets. A uniform stellar catalog is the first crucial step in exoplanet demographics! arxiv.org/abs/2608.17734
A Catalog of Homogeneously Derived Stellar Parameters for Spectroscopic Survey Stars
Uniformly derived stellar parameters are vital for exoplanet demographic studies because they directly influence the inferred planetary masses, radii, and bulk densities. This study presents a new hom...
arxiv.org
Apparently work never stops, even when on vacation. It took 3 of us 3 partial days to remove this side of the old roof and re-shingle. Luckily, this time we had a nail gun. ~10 years ago we replaced the other side and there were only 2 of us and we had to hammer every single nail.
Peahen timeline cleanse featuring 4 baby peachicks! 🦚
Just two weeks before school starts, I learn that the public school has a uniform* policy. I guess I'll have to join the PTA now to try to get that changed. 🫠 *not a uniform, but kids can only wear plain school color shirts and tan or blue pants/shorts 4 days a week.
Ugh. I only learn 2 weeks before school starts that the public elementary school has a uniform policy. 🫠
My 4-year-old is gonna love this.
European Space Agency@esa.int · 4w agoFor World Space Week 2026, we're teaming up with Pokémon to unite space exploration and a universe of imagination. More to come soon. ⚡https://www.esa.int/About_Us/Branding_and_Partnerships/ESA_and_Pokemon_team_up_to_celebrate_World_Space_Week #WorldSpaceWeek2026 #PokemonxESA
In public, I generally want to minimize human interaction (e.g., self checkouts should be everywhere and allow more than 10 items). But if I actually need to use a phone the way they were intended, I absolutely expect a human to answer and not some bullshit AI assistant.
Did anyone of the Windows 9x generation have Microsoft Encarta and play MindMaze? Most of my 90s computer memories were of edutainment games like MindMaze, Spelling Jungle, Museum Madness, and Challenge of the Ancient Empires.
S. Kramer@libraryephemera.bsky.social · last mo.Were you a child who read The World Book Encyclopedia for fun?
In public, I generally want to minimize human interaction (e.g., self checkouts should be everywhere and allow more than 10 items). But if I actually need to use a phone the way they were intended, I absolutely expect a human to answer and not some bullshit AI assistant.
It took all my self control to not burst out laughing the other day when somebody in the doctor's office waiting room kept asking someone on the phone if "fart-ciga" was the drug they needed to ask the doctor about.
The Onion@theonion.com · last mo.“Consult your doctor before taking Skyrizi, and if your doctor advises against it, physically attack them immediately,” says a voiceover in the 60-second TV spot
Netflix has always been terrible at suggesting things to watch. Now we know why. Time to drop Netflix.
Michelle Kunimoto pointing out the importance of *automated* vetting of #exoplanet candidates. Manual inspection introduces uncharacherizable biases! #Sagan2026
All Roman transiting #exoplanet demographics will require a uniform stellar catalog. Check out Ashley Elliott's #Sagan2026 poster about the Roman GBTDS All-Star Catalog!
#Sagan2026, we have more responses to the *interactive* poster, don't forget to add your own thoughts!
Kevin Hardegree-Ullman@kevinkhu.bsky.social · last mo.If you're at #Sagan2026, come check out my *interactive* #exoplanet poster! The Near-Infrared Transit Explorer (NITE) is a survey mission concept designed to find Earth-sized planets in the habitable zones of M dwarfs!
#Sagan2026 is off to a great start!! We have many amazing posters everyone should check out! And if you are curious about designing your own poster the video recording of my PROTO session “Communication Tips & Tricks for Posters and Pops” is live on YouTube! youtu.be/1V4c64xlr7M?...
PROTO: Tips and Tricks for Effective Communication with Scientific Posters
YouTube video by Sagan Summer Workshop
youtu.be
If you're at #Sagan2026, come check out my *interactive* #exoplanet poster! The Near-Infrared Transit Explorer (NITE) is a survey mission concept designed to find Earth-sized planets in the habitable zones of M dwarfs!
Sounds like we need a mission dedicated to finding more habitable zone rocky planets around nearby M dwarfs! At least one has an atmosphere, there's bound to be more (and hopefully some closer to Earth size/mass)!
Dr. Jessie Christiansen@aussiastronomer.bsky.social · last mo.This was the only result at #Exoplanets6 that I saw get a spontaneous round of applause from the audience: THE FIRST ROCKY PLANET IN A HABITABLE ZONE* WITH EVIDENCE** OF AN ATMOSPHERE!!! *Of an M dwarf, which are the only such planets currently accessible **If it's real, its' a weird one!
⭐Another new paper! ⭐🔭 Proud Advisor Moment 🤗 Skylar, my PhD student, just had their first PhD paper accepted for publication! They did a fantastic job 😀 We update the orbit of the sub-Neptune pi Men c and find evidence of another planet 👀 Paper here for free: arxiv.org/abs/2607.12088
TESS Photometry and Radial Velocity Analysis of the sub-Neptune Exoplanet π Mensae c and the Wider π Mensae Planetary System
Exoplanet characterization relies on precise measurements of planetary orbital and physical parameters. This is particularly important for planetary dynamics and atmospheric evolution, as orbital para...
arxiv.org
We had three very nice (partial) nights on IRTF earlier this week, so of course our last night of this semester is not very good. It also kinda looks like a big twirly storm is brewing south of Hawaii. 🔭😶🌫️🌀
Having an inquisitive 4 year old with an expanding vocabulary is great. Dictionary dad mode unlocked.
I am very excited to see this Spitzer Y dwarf variability paper out! We are studying weather on the coldest brown dwarfs that are close cousins of Jupiter! #exometeorology #astronomy #exoplanets 🔭 arxiv.org/abs/2606.26411
A Spitzer Space Telescope Exploration Science Program to Search for Y Dwarf Variability
We present the results of a Spitzer Space Telescope Exploration Science Program to search for and characterize variability in Y dwarfs. We observed 14 Y dwarfs over a 24 hr period at [3.6] and [4.5] a...
arxiv.org
I got new glasses a month ago and they have been bothering me with extra reflections and glare. Today I realized the edge of the lenses are polished rather than frosted. I've never had that issue before with my glasses. Would not recommend. #Optics
