The sky over Oakland is doing some wild things right now.

How many viscachas is too many? Answer: more than we can fit here—because this still isn’t enough! 🐾 These fluffy mountain summit residents have been hopping, sunbathing, and keeping an eye on us while NSF–DOE Rubin Observatory captures the cosmos! 🔭🧪

From @noirlabastro.bsky.social: In this time-lapse video, Gemini North creates artificial guide stars above Earth. By tracking how those stars shimmer, the telescope’s adaptive optics system adjusts its mirrors to cancel them out in real time. #astronomy 🎥: NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/T. Matsopoulos

Photos from the Very Large Array Fire Brigade training last month 👷🧯🚒 Fire safety is extra important in dry areas like where the VLA sits in New Mexico! Arid climates are great for radio astronomy but also mean wildfires can spread quickly, especially with fast-moving winds. 📸: NSF/AUI/NSF NRAO

With the Sun getting low in the horizon there are lots of nice pictures like this from winterover Michel, the ice crystals in the air creating a #sundog, the backlight showing the #sastrugi and the flag line to @uw_wipac ICL building leading to the right. @NSF @doescience

Orion captured between the enclosure of our New Technology Telescope (NTT).  The NTT wasn’t named by accident. In fact, it broke new ground for telescope engineering and design.  More: https://www.eso.org/public/teles-instr/lasilla/ntt/ 🔭 #flashback  📷 ESO/B. Tafreshi (twanight.org)

SPT observing last week (picture by SPT winterover Michel!) Less than 2-weeks away from #sunset at the #southpole, with the Sun about 5 degrees above the horizon. The sky is dry & clear enough in summer that we continue to take science observations ! @NSF @doescience

Today is International Women’s Day. 
Honoring women everywhere. hayu masi. #InternationalWomensDay

We're happy to announce a newly signed agreement for the construction of the Africa Millimeter Telescope (AMT). This will open great possibilities for astronomy on the African continent and make black hole images even sharper! #astronomy #blackholes #EHT #AMT #africa

Monday's hazy moonrise over the Borrego Badlands as seen by this barely-hanging-on dune evening primrose (Photo: Sicco Rood).

We've got a visitor 🐸

When your neighbor comes for a photo op✨ This image shows NSF–DOE Rubin Observatory & Andromeda, our nearest large galactic neighbor — and one of the most distant naked-eye objects at 2.5M light years away. That's "cosmic neighbor" in a nutshell: close by, yet wildly far! 🔭🧪

Been listening to this on repeat because, well, you know... (better with subtitles on) www.youtube.com/watch?v=U96I...

A glittering sky slips past Gemini South, ½ of the International Gemini Observatory at @noirlabastro.bsky.social. Light collection doesn’t stop at sunrise: Gemini South is surrounded by 668 solar panels, collecting power to operate the telescope. #astronomy 📷 Gemini/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/P. Horálek

Even though @NSF #southpole station "officially" closed for winter, last week 2 final twin otter flights stopovered at Pole before heading North! They mainly serve other bases on station, wrapping up work a couple weeks after the last LC130s. Pic by Anjali. #Antarctica

New month, new activities at OCEH! ❄️➡️🌱 As the winter frost begins to lift, our March calendar is shifting toward two of the most pressing conversations in the environmental humanities today. We’re opening our doors to unpack the "green shift" in both our museums and our laws.

I thought the future would be cooler. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

The February OCEH Newsletter is out! Following a period of growth and the arrival of several new projects in 2025, we are thrilled to announce that 2026 marks the official start of our new research community. The "next phase" of the Center is no longer a plan - it is happening.

One of the annual #southpole traditions at the start of winter is watching John Carpenter's #thething in the gym. A fitting start to over 8 months of isolation for the 40 winterovers after becoming officially stranded at a remote Antarctic base! #Antarctica

From @noirlabastro.bsky.social: When the rising Sun decides to get a little… weird. This serendipitous shot of the rising Sun from Maunakea combines several natural light effects, rendering our closest star almost unrecognizable. #astronomy Gemini Observatory/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/M. Rodriguez

All about dat An Life.

"Where do you see yourself in five years?"

Could a volcanic eruption in Indonesia be the reason we have Frankenstein? 🧟‍♂️ In the world of Environmental Humanities, we look at how the Earth’s forces shape our culture. This is the story of the "Year Without a Summer" and the birth of a monster.

Two days, two major optical components installed! 🎉 The camera objective and the large collimator.

Work smarter, not hotter? As windy weather sticks around, it’s a reminder to stay safe when working outdoors. Get a fire prevention tip each month — subscribe to our newsletter! Link in bio. #hottip

Save the water dragons! Because they rock!

An hour of weather coverage in San Francisco 🌈 @sfchronicle.com bit.ly/4aJCHEd

Never ever gonna give up on hellbenders

Apparently "Let me look at cool stuff" isn't an acceptable proposal, but that's okay because this photo of Gemini South is fantastic.

Check out who we saw on our way home! 🦊 #FoxOfTheDay

2 Telescopes, 14 science programs, 6 instruments (imaging and spectroscopy, in optical and infrared), 3 priority bands, varying weather conditions, and 14 happy PIs with new data. All in one night! That is how powerful and efficient the Gemini queue-based observations are. #astronomy

Trump‘s Greenland idiocy even made it onto a float on our local Karneval procession. Well done Gimmersdorf!

Open sesame!

"Last flight" of the official #southpole Austral summer has taken off and winter has begun! SPT is now in charge of the capable hands of Wwinterovers Anjali and Michel for the next 8.5 months! Pic by Anjali . @NSF @doescience #Antarctica #WinterOlympicGames

What happens after a launch? 🧹🫧 Before starting to clean the launch pad, the first step is to confirm that there is no longer a risk of toxic gas in the air. After, cleaning vehicles rinse the mast, launch table, and forecourt, allowing the technicians to safely access the launch zone.

In this image captured at Paranal, one of the Auxiliary Telescopes of our VLT is still asleep, with its spherical dome closed.  But overhead, the night is wide awake and the #milkyway is putting on a stunning show! Read more: https://www.eso.org/public/images/potw2607a/ 🔭 🧪 📷 A. Trigo/ESO

Hello HARPS3! Are you ready for some optics? OK then ... let the optical installation begin!⭐

Our "Introduction to Amateur Astronomy" series continues tomorrow, Feb. 14th, at 1:00 pm EST. Part 3 is entitled "Binocular Basics." Binoculars make an ideal first "telescope," but which ones are best for astronomy? You’ll be amazed at what you can see! Register at www.kasonline.org/amastro.html.

Please join us May 5th for the Yurok MMIP Awareness Day & Walk. This event will be held at the Adorni Center in Eureka from 12:30-4:30pm. This will be a powerful day of remembrance for missing and murdered Indigenous people with prayer, walk, speakers and dinner. To' Kee Skuy' Soo Ney-Wo-Chek'.

Is a forest an economic resource, a place of mystery, or a site of worship? 🍃 For folklorist Dr. Colin Gioia Connors, the answer is hidden in the "social life" of ancient place-names. We’re hosting him at OCEH this year as he digs into the roots of the Scandinavian landscape.

Our VLT is softly illuminated by the Sun as it sets in the evening sky. On an adjacent peak towards the right of the frame, the 4.1-metre VISTA stands apart, cutting a more solitary figure. Read more: https://www.eso.org/public/images/potw1535a/ 🔭 #flashback 📷 G.Hüdepohl (atacamaphoto.com )/ESO

1/2 For National Poop Day, you probably didn't know that a radio telescope could absolutely wreck a can. Specifically, the 300 ft Telescope at Green Bank Observatory.

Public services are good services (this sounds really awesome)

One year ago today, the #ngVLA prototype antenna dish was LIFTED onto its pedestal. 🏗️📡 Raise your hand if you watched that livestream last year! mtex antenna technology | Liebherr 📸 Credit: NSF/AUI/NSF NRAO/Desert Drones LLC. Learn more: ngvla.nrao.edu #Astronomy #RadioAstronomy #NRAO

Throwback post: Laser time at @GeminiObs South! #Astronomy

Damn, this remake of the Galaxy Rangers intro really sucks.

February at OCEH is looking busy! ❄️✨ From the politics of plants to community-led writing in times of crisis, we have a full month of events coming up at OCEH. A quick thread of what’s happening... 👇

Exclusive view into the heart of the ELT! 👀 This image captures the interior of our ELT, under construction in Chile's Atacama Desert. The main structure shown here will host the ELT’s five mirrors. Read more: https://www.eso.org/public/images/potw2605a/ 🔭 🧪 📷 ESO/J. C. Muñoz-Mateos

Happy #FireFriday! Our Mimbres Fire Crew returned from successfully burning 50 acres of piles with the @forestservice.bsky.social Cibola National Forest. In total, the Hop Patterson Prescribed Fire will treat over 700 acres of broadcast and pile burns. Well done, Mimbres crew! 🤝

The night sky from Cerro Pachón just never gets old 🤩 In this long exposure shot, NSF–DOE Rubin Observatory is caught in action as the dome (and telescope inside) move to a new observing location on the sky. 🔭🧪 📷: NSF–DOE Rubin Observatory/NOIRLab/SLAC/AURA/W. O'Mullane