A few years ago, an audience member pointed out that I always seem a little too happy when discussing death and destruction from the sky. …

As we gear up for our yearly fundraiser, I feel confident in saying that just about everyone on our team is wishing we could somehow cram more hours into every day. …

Heading into the holiday weekend, social media exploded with news that a massive discovery was going to be announced on Thursday June 29 by the NANOgrav collaboration. …

As a little kid, I remember a TV show hosted by Lenard Nimoy called “In search of”. I was fascinated by all the hints at evidence for things beyond our normal experience; hints that seemed even more true because of their proximity to clearly academic facts. I don’t know if…

There is a lot of stuff going on out in space. One of my favorite recent news items is the story of a 200,000 ly long filament of baby stars and the black hole that likely triggered their formation. According to a new paper in the Astrophysical Journal Letters, in…

At 8:33am Central Time April 20, Starship 24 lifted off atop Super Heavy Booster 7. During launch, keen eyes and well-pointed cameras were able to determine not all of the Booster’s engines were firing, and periodic changes in the rocket’s flame seemed to indicate a few things ceased to function…

NB: This essay is going to be a bit rambly as I explore issues of workforce, economics, and how it all plays out in academics. If this essay isn’t something you’re enjoying, please explore other articles / essays. Sometimes it is easier to see structural issues as they affect a…

In science, you sometimes find yourself making bold discoveries based on plotting the data just-so. When I was an undergrad, I plotted the rate of RR Lyrae period evolution against metallicity and found a correlation that helped me understand how stars can evolve. …

On Sunday a delightful box appeared on my doorstep: the Beadle and Grimm’s X Secret Lair. Once upon a time, when I was a baby astrophysics major, we used to sit around a table outside the conference room and work on homework sets together, and when we were done we’d…