Steve Desch
@deschscoveries.bsky.social
Professor of astrophysics / planetary science / meteoritics at Arizona State University.
Pinned
Steve Desch
@deschscoveries.bsky.social
· Nov 24
Hi! I’m a Professor of astrophysics at ASU. I use meteorite data to model how stars and planets form. I lead a NASA-funded team to predict the diversity of exoplanet compositions. I work with realice.eco to explore ways to thicken arctic ice. I fight bad science. Let’s karaoke!
Reposted by Steve Desch
Brandy you're a fine girl
What a good wife you would be
But my life my love and my lady
Is the See
What a good wife you would be
But my life my love and my lady
Is the See
November 23, 2025 at 3:41 AM
Brandy you're a fine girl
What a good wife you would be
But my life my love and my lady
Is the See
What a good wife you would be
But my life my love and my lady
Is the See
Reposted by Steve Desch
this is what honor actually means
Massive shoutout out to whoever handles the Royal Canadian Air Force’s social media account. They responded to every single comment on their already very solid Trans Day of Remembrance post and they responded like this…
November 22, 2025 at 2:22 PM
this is what honor actually means
I helped Professor Dave lay out exactly how Avi Loeb has manufactured doubt and pushed a false narrative about 3I/ATLAS, which is still an interstellar comet. Please enjoy the video and please repost this to share the word.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=lf9o...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=lf9o...
Avi Loeb is a Fraud Part 2: 3I/ATLAS Shrugged
YouTube video by Professor Dave Explains
www.youtube.com
November 20, 2025 at 11:13 PM
I helped Professor Dave lay out exactly how Avi Loeb has manufactured doubt and pushed a false narrative about 3I/ATLAS, which is still an interstellar comet. Please enjoy the video and please repost this to share the word.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=lf9o...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=lf9o...
I’ve defended USRA/LPSC against boycotts just because it’s in Texas. It’s important to maintain community and continue science. But I cannot abide this *eagerness* to comply. What good is science funding if scientists aren’t free to even talk about how to do science and how to get the best talent?
"LPSC did not provide specifics on the criteria that will be used to evaluate abstracts.. but the conference appears worried enough ... to strike straightforward information about bathrooms. From 2022-24, LPSC listed the locations of gender-neutral bathrooms on its website, but not in 2025 or ’26."
New from me for @science.org: A major planetary science conference will require submitted abstracts to comply with Trump's anti-DEI executive orders.
This conference, LPSC, is a big deal. It's been running since 1970 and is one of the biggest planetary science conferences out there. 🧪🔭
This conference, LPSC, is a big deal. It's been running since 1970 and is one of the biggest planetary science conferences out there. 🧪🔭
November 20, 2025 at 9:02 PM
I’ve defended USRA/LPSC against boycotts just because it’s in Texas. It’s important to maintain community and continue science. But I cannot abide this *eagerness* to comply. What good is science funding if scientists aren’t free to even talk about how to do science and how to get the best talent?
Reposted by Steve Desch
I really hate it when scientists keep saying that “we need to rebuild trust in science,” because it implies that scientists are to blame for the mistrust rather than the millions of dollars of dark money that have funded political attacks on science in order to advance a far right agenda.
November 19, 2025 at 9:48 PM
I really hate it when scientists keep saying that “we need to rebuild trust in science,” because it implies that scientists are to blame for the mistrust rather than the millions of dollars of dark money that have funded political attacks on science in order to advance a far right agenda.
Thank you! I’m trying to keep it classy.
Yours was the most polite mic drop I’ve ever seen in astronomy.🎤
November 19, 2025 at 2:17 AM
Thank you! I’m trying to keep it classy.
Thanks to Chris Young at Interesting Engineering for the chance to contextualize 3I/ATLAS. I would have preferred two thumbnails of the comet itself, but... enjoy.
interestingengineering.com/space/3i-atl...
interestingengineering.com/space/3i-atl...
3I/ATLAS: A city-sized alien spacecraft or simply the ‘coolest comet’ ever seen?
Harvard professor Avi Loeb claims 3I/ATLAS could be an alien spacecraft. Arizona State University professor Steven Desch is sure it isn't.
interestingengineering.com
November 18, 2025 at 8:49 PM
Thanks to Chris Young at Interesting Engineering for the chance to contextualize 3I/ATLAS. I would have preferred two thumbnails of the comet itself, but... enjoy.
interestingengineering.com/space/3i-atl...
interestingengineering.com/space/3i-atl...
No, or maybe they get a token quote of objection. Modern media aren’t there to inform. Truth hardly matters. They are there to collect your clicks and eyeballs. For that Loeb is catnip. I blame the media the most, as in this satirical rant.
medium.com/@steve.desch...
medium.com/@steve.desch...
November 17, 2025 at 5:44 PM
No, or maybe they get a token quote of objection. Modern media aren’t there to inform. Truth hardly matters. They are there to collect your clicks and eyeballs. For that Loeb is catnip. I blame the media the most, as in this satirical rant.
medium.com/@steve.desch...
medium.com/@steve.desch...
Reposted by Steve Desch
quote o the week
“He’s the Terminator, if the Terminator’s job was misconstruing ice and rocks in space to be aliens.”
— Steve Desch @deschscoveries.bsky.social
“He’s the Terminator, if the Terminator’s job was misconstruing ice and rocks in space to be aliens.”
— Steve Desch @deschscoveries.bsky.social
November 17, 2025 at 5:01 PM
quote o the week
“He’s the Terminator, if the Terminator’s job was misconstruing ice and rocks in space to be aliens.”
— Steve Desch @deschscoveries.bsky.social
“He’s the Terminator, if the Terminator’s job was misconstruing ice and rocks in space to be aliens.”
— Steve Desch @deschscoveries.bsky.social
Reposted by Steve Desch
A reminder that the Face on Mars
isn't
isn't
November 15, 2025 at 2:41 AM
A reminder that the Face on Mars
isn't
isn't
I calculate the odds of that anagram occurring to be < 0.005%! Coincidence? We do not know.
A reminder that "Alien observations" is an anagram of "Avi Loeb's insane rot"
Avi Loeb's calculations about 3I/ATLAS are 100% wrong because he has never understood that dust in the tail(s) responds to solar radiation pressure. Solar wind shapes the ion tail. But the radiation pressure is about 1000 times larger than the solar wind ram pressure, for particles that feel it.
November 14, 2025 at 6:54 PM
I calculate the odds of that anagram occurring to be < 0.005%! Coincidence? We do not know.
Congratulations! Your students know more about comets than Avi Loeb!
This! Here's a slide pulled from my class lecture notes this semester. Comets have two clear tails - one from dust and one from ions. They point in different directions because one feels the solar wind while the other feels radiation pressure.
November 14, 2025 at 4:36 PM
Congratulations! Your students know more about comets than Avi Loeb!
Reposted by Steve Desch
Un petit thread qui explique posément, rationnellement, pourquoi les allégations de l' "astrophysicien" Avi Loeb sur la nature "artificielle et extraterrestre" de la comète interstellaire 3I/ATLAS sont rien moins que fausses.
à dérouler ci-dessous 👇
à dérouler ci-dessous 👇
Avi Loeb's calculations about 3I/ATLAS are 100% wrong because he has never understood that dust in the tail(s) responds to solar radiation pressure. Solar wind shapes the ion tail. But the radiation pressure is about 1000 times larger than the solar wind ram pressure, for particles that feel it.
November 14, 2025 at 11:46 AM
Un petit thread qui explique posément, rationnellement, pourquoi les allégations de l' "astrophysicien" Avi Loeb sur la nature "artificielle et extraterrestre" de la comète interstellaire 3I/ATLAS sont rien moins que fausses.
à dérouler ci-dessous 👇
à dérouler ci-dessous 👇
Reposted by Steve Desch
A thread worth reading slowly.
It explains, clearly and straight to the point, why Loeb’s claims about #3I/ATLAS don’t hold up—not a matter of opinion, but of comet physics anyone can check.
The tail isn’t escaping gas, it’s dust pushed by solar radiation.
🔭 🧪 #science #comet ⚛️
1/2
It explains, clearly and straight to the point, why Loeb’s claims about #3I/ATLAS don’t hold up—not a matter of opinion, but of comet physics anyone can check.
The tail isn’t escaping gas, it’s dust pushed by solar radiation.
🔭 🧪 #science #comet ⚛️
1/2
Avi Loeb's calculations about 3I/ATLAS are 100% wrong because he has never understood that dust in the tail(s) responds to solar radiation pressure. Solar wind shapes the ion tail. But the radiation pressure is about 1000 times larger than the solar wind ram pressure, for particles that feel it.
November 14, 2025 at 9:15 AM
This is what real interstellar comet science missions look like.
#CometInterceptor will be the first mission to visit a comet coming directly from the outer reaches of the Sun's realm, carrying material untouched since the dawn of the Solar System.
Part of #CosmicVision, Comet Interceptor is an ESA-led mission in collaboration with JAXA.
1/ #CM25 🔭
Part of #CosmicVision, Comet Interceptor is an ESA-led mission in collaboration with JAXA.
1/ #CM25 🔭
November 14, 2025 at 5:32 AM
This is what real interstellar comet science missions look like.
Reposted by Steve Desch
"The fallacies behind the cult of Loeb"
New entry in my blog. Other articles have covered the scientific aspects; this one reflects on the social phenomenon. I argue it’s driven by a series of fallacies
tinieblasyestrellas.blogspot.com/2025/11/the-...
New entry in my blog. Other articles have covered the scientific aspects; this one reflects on the social phenomenon. I argue it’s driven by a series of fallacies
tinieblasyestrellas.blogspot.com/2025/11/the-...
The fallacies behind the cult of Loeb
How media hype and misunderstanding fuel pseudoscientific fascination Introduction The word “cult” is used here in the sense given by...
tinieblasyestrellas.blogspot.com
November 13, 2025 at 11:09 AM
"The fallacies behind the cult of Loeb"
New entry in my blog. Other articles have covered the scientific aspects; this one reflects on the social phenomenon. I argue it’s driven by a series of fallacies
tinieblasyestrellas.blogspot.com/2025/11/the-...
New entry in my blog. Other articles have covered the scientific aspects; this one reflects on the social phenomenon. I argue it’s driven by a series of fallacies
tinieblasyestrellas.blogspot.com/2025/11/the-...
Avi Loeb's calculations about 3I/ATLAS are 100% wrong because he has never understood that dust in the tail(s) responds to solar radiation pressure. Solar wind shapes the ion tail. But the radiation pressure is about 1000 times larger than the solar wind ram pressure, for particles that feel it.
November 13, 2025 at 9:36 PM
Avi Loeb's calculations about 3I/ATLAS are 100% wrong because he has never understood that dust in the tail(s) responds to solar radiation pressure. Solar wind shapes the ion tail. But the radiation pressure is about 1000 times larger than the solar wind ram pressure, for particles that feel it.
This is supposed to be a mix of real news and satire, but I can’t figure out which is which.
I do know 3I/ATLAS continued doing only comety things for a 114th consecutive day.
oddnews.com/article/this...
I do know 3I/ATLAS continued doing only comety things for a 114th consecutive day.
oddnews.com/article/this...
“This Comet Thing Is Aliens,” Says Resident Harvard Fraud Avi Loeb
Like he does every week, without evidence.
oddnews.com
November 12, 2025 at 12:34 AM
This is supposed to be a mix of real news and satire, but I can’t figure out which is which.
I do know 3I/ATLAS continued doing only comety things for a 114th consecutive day.
oddnews.com/article/this...
I do know 3I/ATLAS continued doing only comety things for a 114th consecutive day.
oddnews.com/article/this...
Repost with an iconic fictional band.
November 11, 2025 at 10:09 PM
Repost with an iconic fictional band.
Reposted by Steve Desch
🧵
Here is the Nebra sky disk, considered by some the oldest known illustration of the night sky.
The artifact was discovered near Nebra alongside several Bronze Age weapons and is linked to the Unetice culture, which thrived in parts of Europe...
➡️ apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap18031...
🔭 🧪 #histsci
1/4
Here is the Nebra sky disk, considered by some the oldest known illustration of the night sky.
The artifact was discovered near Nebra alongside several Bronze Age weapons and is linked to the Unetice culture, which thrived in parts of Europe...
➡️ apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap18031...
🔭 🧪 #histsci
1/4
November 11, 2025 at 8:44 PM
🧵
Here is the Nebra sky disk, considered by some the oldest known illustration of the night sky.
The artifact was discovered near Nebra alongside several Bronze Age weapons and is linked to the Unetice culture, which thrived in parts of Europe...
➡️ apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap18031...
🔭 🧪 #histsci
1/4
Here is the Nebra sky disk, considered by some the oldest known illustration of the night sky.
The artifact was discovered near Nebra alongside several Bronze Age weapons and is linked to the Unetice culture, which thrived in parts of Europe...
➡️ apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap18031...
🔭 🧪 #histsci
1/4
Reposted by Steve Desch
3I/ATLAS Update: would you believe it? It’s *still* a comet. 🔭
(www.virtualtelescope.eu/2025/11/11/i...)
(www.virtualtelescope.eu/2025/11/11/i...)
November 11, 2025 at 10:09 AM
3I/ATLAS Update: would you believe it? It’s *still* a comet. 🔭
(www.virtualtelescope.eu/2025/11/11/i...)
(www.virtualtelescope.eu/2025/11/11/i...)
Reposted by Steve Desch
November 11, 2025 at 5:30 AM
Reposted by Steve Desch
Oops. Ooooooooooooops.
I do hope that nobody has been given or denied a job/promotion based on their SpringerNature citation counts in the past 15 years.
arxiv.org/pdf/2511.01675
h/t @nathlarigaldie.bsky.social
I do hope that nobody has been given or denied a job/promotion based on their SpringerNature citation counts in the past 15 years.
arxiv.org/pdf/2511.01675
h/t @nathlarigaldie.bsky.social
November 7, 2025 at 2:02 PM
Oops. Ooooooooooooops.
I do hope that nobody has been given or denied a job/promotion based on their SpringerNature citation counts in the past 15 years.
arxiv.org/pdf/2511.01675
h/t @nathlarigaldie.bsky.social
I do hope that nobody has been given or denied a job/promotion based on their SpringerNature citation counts in the past 15 years.
arxiv.org/pdf/2511.01675
h/t @nathlarigaldie.bsky.social
Interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS was born with different and more ancient chemistry, has been more irradiated, and is speeding toward the Sun faster compared to Solar System comets. It's got a unique personality. But since literally Day 1 it was recognized as a comet and has only ever done comety things.
I've summarized the truth about Loeb's 10 "anomalies" about 3I/ATLAS in one post.
Thanks to @deschscoveries.bsky.social @michael-w-busch.bsky.social @cometary.org and @marshall-eubanks.bsky.social for contributing their expertise!
Thanks to @deschscoveries.bsky.social @michael-w-busch.bsky.social @cometary.org and @marshall-eubanks.bsky.social for contributing their expertise!
Loeb’s 3I/ATLAS “Anomalies” Explained
Avi Loeb continues to claim that 3I/ATLAS has many anomalous behaviors that lead to the conclusion that it “might” be an alien spacecraft. He carefully hedges the probability that it is a spacecraft ...
sites.psu.edu
November 10, 2025 at 6:29 PM
Interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS was born with different and more ancient chemistry, has been more irradiated, and is speeding toward the Sun faster compared to Solar System comets. It's got a unique personality. But since literally Day 1 it was recognized as a comet and has only ever done comety things.
Reposted by Steve Desch
I've summarized the truth about Loeb's 10 "anomalies" about 3I/ATLAS in one post.
Thanks to @deschscoveries.bsky.social @michael-w-busch.bsky.social @cometary.org and @marshall-eubanks.bsky.social for contributing their expertise!
Thanks to @deschscoveries.bsky.social @michael-w-busch.bsky.social @cometary.org and @marshall-eubanks.bsky.social for contributing their expertise!
Loeb’s 3I/ATLAS “Anomalies” Explained
Avi Loeb continues to claim that 3I/ATLAS has many anomalous behaviors that lead to the conclusion that it “might” be an alien spacecraft. He carefully hedges the probability that it is a spacecraft ...
sites.psu.edu
November 10, 2025 at 12:22 AM
I've summarized the truth about Loeb's 10 "anomalies" about 3I/ATLAS in one post.
Thanks to @deschscoveries.bsky.social @michael-w-busch.bsky.social @cometary.org and @marshall-eubanks.bsky.social for contributing their expertise!
Thanks to @deschscoveries.bsky.social @michael-w-busch.bsky.social @cometary.org and @marshall-eubanks.bsky.social for contributing their expertise!