Those poor asteroids, they didn't deserve that

With 3I/ATLAS moving away from the inner solar system, I'd rather frame it as 'Earth making its closest approach to 3I' instead of the other way around. Our planet is doing most of the work to close the gap to 1 8 au

Very excited to see what this #BetterKnowAnAsteroid mission can do, and if anyone is wondering what's on my Christmas list, that unofficial patch just rocketed to a spot near the top

Looking to spread some yuletide cheer with my new song “Big Nick Christmas”

Really interesting analysis here on how claims get amplified by our current media environment (and a rebuttal of sorts to those who argue that Avi Loeb's alien spacecraft hype is good because any science engagement is good engagement): www.cip.uw.edu/2025/12/03/3...

While not a medical doctor, Dr Pepper does hold a PhD in neoclassical literary theory and thus deserves our respect

NASA's OSIRIS-APEX just flew past Earth, making a course adjustment to asteroid Apophis in 2029. Apophis will come very close to us that year & could hit in the future. OSIRIS-APEX will tell us a lot about Apophis...assuming the mission survives budget cuts. 🔭🧪 news.arizona.edu/news/osiris-...

Now that's what I call seasonal #BetterKnowAnAsteroid content

Sounds like a reason to update all of the planetarium's NEA data files #BetterKnowAnAsteroid

Oh boy, let's see how worked up the conspiracy-laden subreddits are getting now that one of their biggest complaints has an expiration date...

Could someone let the potential head of NASA know that the answer to his question, “What is ‘built’ at JPL?”, is Spaceships. They build spaceships that explore other planets. Seems like a good thing for NASA (and makes the country look extra rich and smart, if that moves the needle for you).

Trump just continually shooting our country in the face. This unwarranted (and likely illegal) destruction of Goddard is madness. It jeopardizes the next several decades of space exploration.

To any (mutual) space journos, I'm happy to answer a few questions about the 3I/Atlas images from Perseverance in the hope we can debunk some of the misinformation that is going around currently.

If only there was a way to go pick up this rock sample so it could be studied more comprehensively on Earth...

Guys, I was wrong. Avi Loeb is an artistic genius. medium.com/@steve.desch...

It's very weird to me that they wrote this whole press release and didn't once use a word like "moon" or "satellite" news.st-andrews.ac.uk/archive/gian...

I have a complaint about Avi Loeb's latest work and I want to speak to management. medium.com/@steve.desch...

Two things: 1. Large language models like ChatGPT are statistically likely word generators; they don't have "expertise" in anything. 2. I have seen a team of PhD level experts fail to assemble a dresser from IKEA.

So far, only 50% of claimed planets in the Alpha Cen system have turned out to be real. Wait for more data.

I believe one of the new mRNA vaccines was expected to treat colon cancer, and another had the potential to keep pancreatic cancer from recurring. That’s what they’re taking away.

[I type “I’m sorry” on a typewriter] “Holy shit my typewriter apologized!”

NPR photo editor choosing an unflattering photo of Democrat Chuck Schumer to illustrate their story about "the Senate" (actually only Republicans) zeroing out their own budget is such a perfect encapsulation of how we got here.

I've long said the design should be on a knit beanie too, but these are pretty cool

Pffft, only a Sagittarius would need 6 whole days to figure out the command to turn off the stars

NEW: This is the inside story of how astronomers tracked down 2024 YR4, the most dangerous asteroid ever found, in the hope of working out whether it would strike Earth in a few short years. It’s Don’t Look Up, but everyone lives. Me @technologyreview.com www.technologyreview.com/2025/07/08/1...

BREAKING: Scientists are staging a “science fair” in the lobby of a Congressional building to tell elected officials about the critical knowledge the US will lose because their research grants have been canceled.

NSF–DOE Vera C. Rubin Observatory Launches Orbitviewer App New 3D, interactive visualization of planets and minor planets in our Solar System lets you explore Rubin discoveries in real time. 🧪🔭 @vrubinobs.bsky.social ☑️ noirlab.edu/public/annou... ☑️ orbitviewer.app

A lot of things could've made me give up on celebrating this supposed holiday, but I didn't think watching a car passenger throw an empty plastic cup out of their window onto the street while I biked behind then would be the thing

Well, 249 years was a pretty good run I guess

It's a stupidly low bar to clear... and I'll be shocked if they do

FACT THREAD on New Interstellar Object #A11pl3Z This story unfolded pretty fast yesterday for a few reasons. The object was discovered on July 1st UTC by the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System, or ATLAS team. A #NASA funded survey at the University of Hawaii. atlas.fallingstar.com 🔭🧪

Happened to catch last night's chatter about #A11pl3Z, seemingly the third interstellar object found visiting the solar system, and added its trajectory into our planetarium software—I also uploaded it to a cloud server so that other users had immediate access. #BetterKnowAnAsteroid

UPDATE on our new interstellar friend #A11pl3Z: Citizen scientist Sam Deen has found earlier observations of from June 25-28, from the ATLAS telescope! Now with 6 days' worth of data, the eccentricity of A11pl3Z's trajectory is narrowed down to e=10.4 ± 1.1! ... that's undoubtedly interstellar. 🔭☄️

On days like this I find it so hard to reconcile our human actions with the almost impossible odds that we exist at all. I wish we treasured and valued each other. I wish we realized there’s more than enough for everyone. That we belong to each other, we need each other. That we are all we have.

Oh wow. If this pans out it'll be only the third confirmed interstellar object ever seen passing through the solar system. May take a few days to confirm. bsky.app/profile/astr... h/t @asrivkin.bsky.social

So, has everyone else already watched the new #asteroid documentary from NASA? And are we all ready for the Lucy flyby of Donaldjohanson on Sunday? #BetterKnowAnAsteroid With apologies to Dr. Reddy, who's doing great work at my alma mater...

I could think of a more fitting type of project for #AsteroidDay... 🙃 But comets are ok too I guess

NASA is being told to cancel 19 *active* missions to save $6B, which looks to be less than the ICE *hiring/retention* budget going forward. I need people to let that sentence sink into their bones for a minute.

The value of fully embracing your niche interests: Yesterday, the @vrubinobs.bsky.social released their 1st images, and bragged about the scope's capabilities, including the quick discovery of over 2,100 asteroids. They didn't rush to release the orbital info of these worlds... but I found them.

Someone please talk me out of this impulse buy so I can view the @vrubinobs.bsky.social images.

It's not quite 5 million new asteroids - it's going to be 3.7 million new asteroid discoveries - updated stats for what we expect from Rubin Observatory Solar System discoveries for asteroids, near-Earth asteroids, Kuiper belt objects, and Centaurs sorcha.space #RubinFirstLook

Sure, the images are great, but my takeaway from the @vrubinobs.bsky.social #RubinFirstLook is the 2,104 asteroid discoveries in just 10 hours of observations. Almost instantly, Rubin Observatory has become the 17th most prolific asteroid discoverer ever (out of over 2,000). #BetterKnowAnAsteroid

Introducing...your sneak peek at the cosmos captured by NSF–DOE Vera C. Rubin Observatory! Can you guess these regions of sky? This is just a small peek...join us at 11am US EDT for your full First Look at how Rubin will #CaptureTheCosmos! 🔭🧪 #RubinFirstLook ls.st/rubin-first-look-livestream

Remembering this great tweet on the Summer Solstice

dad (looking out the window at the apocalypse): really comin down out there

Hoping one of the stretch goals is a design that accurately blames Jupiter for the extinction of the dinosaurs