'A senior member of one of STFC’s advisory bodies told RPN that the..exercise represents “a major crisis for the UK"...all of the outcomes modelled are “shocking”....the government would be “committing an act of national self-harm by imposing these cuts”.' 🙏 @francesjones.bsky.social

Stars of physics are in Westminster right now to call on the Government to halt funding cuts to astronomy and particle physics research. Professor Brian Cox called them "inexplicable", urging the Government to instead "trust, inspire and continue to invest in the next generation of scientists".

The last time the two Astronomer Royals were at loggerheads was back in the 1990s. The Royal Greenwich & Royal Edinburgh Observatories were pitted against each other in a battle where only one would survive. 🔭 Read all about it in Ian Robson's Observatory Wars: 📖: www.obsmag.org/issues/publi...

Hahahahahahahahaha. Just for once, a thing for which it is worth giving the Faily Heil a few clicks.

Top #Equinox fact: Today is the day that the Sun rises due East and sets due West. At the December solstice the sun rises in the South East. At the June solstice it rises in the North East. As the days pass between the two, the sunrise position slowly changes passing due East each equinox.🤩 🔭🧪

Astronomers: Get more robust data! A new version of the Hubble Spectroscopic Legacy Archive is now live: https://bit.ly/4pKxQs3

From “AI can’t do your job. It can help you do your job, but that does not mean it is going to save anyone money.” to “AI is the asbestos in the walls of our technological society, stuffed there with wild abandon by a finance sector and tech monopolists run amok.” a refreshing take by Cory Doctorow

One of those fascinating wee corners of history via Substack Weekender . Why the FSA great depression photo archives contain these photos with a missing black circle. substack.com/redirect/196...

🔊Calling #Edinburgh! One of the world's largest telescopes twinned with the world's biggest camera is about to embark on a 10yr mission to survey the Universe! Join us in Dynamic Earth's Planetarium as we unveil the 1st Rubin images🥳🔭🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 🗓️: 23rd Jun@15:30-17:00 £5🎟️ dynamicearth.org.uk/event/rubin-...

The amazingly talented photographer @tomduffinphotos.bsky.social and I turned my #StrawberryMoon skeet-thread into a piece for the 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 #Edinburgh Reporter. Check out Tom's many superb photos and don't forget, #DoLookUp tonight! 🔭 🗞️: theedinburghreporter.co.uk/2025/06/look...

What if we containerised the teams rather than the software? New portacabin arrives on site.

Work goals for today

🥳 This is proper EXCITING people!! Mark June 23rd in your diary for the world wide release of the first images from the wonderful and amazing Vera Rubin Observatory. 🔭🧪 Join the celebration at a Rubin Watch party near you! 👉: rubinobservatory.org/news/rubin-f...

Thanks coffee, I couldn't have summed up my work mood any better.

A long read and a rewarding one. How the Business Idiot culture has messed up everything about work and life in pursuit of sound bites and vibes.

Fresh breakfast muffins made by my lovely wife - loves x What a lovely way to start the weekend.

This run of nice weather really is lovely. Hope it lasts through the weekend. Whatever you are doing today as George says "it is going to take patience and time to do it right" 😀

It’s the time of year when you might find a baby bird and want to help. Most often (and slightly counterintuitively) it’s best to do nothing. Here’s a useful guide.

Sure is a mighty fine place to be ...

Achievement of the day. I've been limited to one dad joke per team meeting. If I'd known I wouldn't have wasted it on a crack about quantum computing working and not working at the same time.

Ask not for whom the bell tolls

Morning. Good skies on the way to the office. Almost makes up for the climb.

Has anyone done the "not so much super Hornet as sub Hornet" dad joke yet? www.businessinsider.com/us-navy-airc...

#Astro-bluesky I am talking to 11-13 year olds next week about astronomy-related careers. If you have a cool picture of you doing your job (especially from women) be it in science, engineering, IT, business support, project management etc. I would love to have a picture to show what we do. 🔭🧪

Happy Astronomy Day to those that observe.

Evidently, Friday starts here. Have a good weekend folks.

The 'after burnout' series of articles by @kvlly.com are just lovely and thoughtful and human - well worth a read: "Progress doesn’t always feel like winning. Sometimes it feels like not quitting. And that counts, too." modernleader.is/p/tiny-signs...

Kicking off the AtLAST2 kickoff! @atlastdesign.bsky.social

My latest @newscientist.com cartoon

Good morning Sardinia. Here at the lovely Lazzeretto di Cagliari for the ATLAST2 Telescope kick off meeting.

This is a fascinating thread about how important COBOL continues to be in banking. I know no banking or COBOL, but to a fair extent you can s/COBOL/Fortran/ s/banking/physics/ and the concept remains true. (1/2)

After the wind and the rain East Lothian looking lovely in the sunshine this morning.

Dear God - No and WTF in equal measure!

📻 BBC Radio Scotland: "and that was Prof Catherine Heymans with good advice about colanders" 😂 The Scottish weather Gods aren't playing ball, but it's looking fine for England. If you don't have eclipse glasses, raid the kitchen cupboard! Partial Solar Eclipse: 29th March! 🔭🧪 📷D. Samuels

How to watch Saturday's partial solar eclipse. 🔭 🧪 www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

One of those showers where you appreciate the sun coming out again. Even if part of you feels pranked by being drenched all the way through your commute, only for it to stop once you reach the office.

🥳 It's paper day for the completed #ESO Kilo-Degree Survey. We end our journey with a consistent picture of #cosmology 😲 I've been co-leading KiDS for 12yrs & I'm so proud of what the team's achieved. If you're at the #Euclid meet, go to Angus Wright's talk @10am today!🔭 ℹ️: arxiv.org/pdf/2503.19441

There were some lovely reflections on site in the sunshine yesterday.

Morning blue sky peeps. This is a good omen for the day - right?

“Rest and self-care are so important. Take time to replenish your spirit. You cannot support others from an empty vessel.” Eleanor Brownn Spring is the perfect time to pause, reset, and focus on what you need. 🧡 #spring #kindness #positivity Picture by Positively Present

Hey you know, just a gentle reminder. These are tough times. They’re tough for everyone in different ways, in different spectrums, because SO many important things are under attack. Let’s try to be kind to one another, ok? It doesn’t cost much. We’re stronger when we show each other grace.

AtLAST 📡✨will generate vast amounts of invaluable data. We will ensure scientists 👩🏽‍💻🧑‍💻🌎 can access such high-quality data quickly, analyse them with ease, and seamlessly combine them with other telescopes' data - paving the way for groundbreaking discoveries! 🔭🧪 www.atlast.uio.no/news-and-eve...

The UK is getting back into a run of evening sightings of the ISS, and (whisper it) maybe clear skies. Tonight's good pass is 20:01 in Swindon, but you can look up your times at spotthestation.nasa.gov. Look West at the right time, look out for a really bright, moving dot, and give the Crew a wave.

Fascinating story. Loved Kenneth Clark really not mincing his words when asked his opinion about halfway through.

She was inspired by the needlepoints she learned to do as a kid. She’s now 71 years old.

High quality lunar eclipse photo. Nothing to see here folks but clouds.

The IEEE republished a lightly edited version of my recent essay, "In Praise of 'Normal' Engineers". 🙌 spectrum.ieee.org/10x-engineer The greatest engineering orgs in the world are not the most pedigreed or top heavy, but the ones where normal engineers can move the business forward, day by day.

To my UK friends: the weather Gods are not co-operating😡 N Scotland & SE England look promising. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿Central Belt has patchy cloud 😞 I am still setting my alarm though! * 5:09 Shadow starts to cross the moon * 6:26 Totality starts The further west you are the longer you have before the moon sets 🤞🔭

www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-nI... Edinburgh in Colour 1930s @secretedinburgh.bsky.social @edinreporter.bsky.social

A truly excellent piece of alt-text, btw.