Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Reposted by Megan Watzke

Emily Hunt @emily.space · 1d

Oooh the Nobel Prize is out today, so it's time for my yearly round of ignoring that news and reading about many of the women who were snubbed of the prize in the past and who the Nobel Prize committee refuses to apologise for. 🧪🔭

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Megan Watzke @mwatzke.bsky.social · 3d

I may need to watch this daily.

Ruth Malone, RN, PhD @remalone.bsky.social · 3d

Wow. Take courage from this message

KOJAMF🤘🖤🤘 @kojamf.bsky.social · 3d

Dr. Jane Goodall filmed an interview with Netflix in March 2025 that she understood would only be released after her death.

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Megan Watzke @mwatzke.bsky.social · 5d

I moved to Lake Forest Park a year ago and had no idea she lived here!

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Reposted by Megan Watzke

Jay 🦋 @jay.bsky.team · 7d

“It actually doesn’t take much to be considered a difficult woman. That’s why there are so many of us.”
― Jane Goodall

💙 RIP to a real one. My childhood hero

Jane Goodall with monarch butterfly scarf

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Reposted by Megan Watzke

Phil Plait @philplait.bsky.social · 13d

Did you know there's a limit to how fast a black hole can feed? And that some break that limit? Here's one that does it by a *lot*.

badastronomy.beehiiv.com/p/a-black-ho...

[Paid subscribers only today]

🧪🔭

A black hole is eating way above its weight, and ancient tektites in Australia

Something is helping this black hole gobble down material at incredible rates

badastronomy.beehiiv.com

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Megan Watzke @mwatzke.bsky.social · 13d

I feel badly for the squid but this is fascinating.

Our oceans are so mysterious and cool (as long as we humans don't ruin them.)

Rebecca R Helm @rebeccarhelm.bsky.social · 14d

I get that the news cycle is packed right now, but I just heard from a colleague at the Smithsonian that this is fully a GIANT SQUID BEING EATEN BY A SPERM WHALE and it’s possibly the first ever confirmed video according to a friend at NOAA

10 YEAR OLD ME IS LOSING HER MIND (a thread 🧵)

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Megan Watzke @mwatzke.bsky.social · 16d

New blog post by Luca Ighina about a black hole doing its thing in the very early Universe. Tied to latest press release from Chandra. chandra.si.edu/blog/node/934

Chandra Reveals an Extremely Fast Accreting Black Hole in the Early Universe | Chandra Blog | Fresh Chandra News

chandra.si.edu

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Reposted by Megan Watzke

Phil Plait @philplait.bsky.social · 26d

So we asked the universe where the dark matter is, and it said, "Here. Right here."

www.scientificamerican.com/article/nasa...

🔭🧪

Want to See Dark Matter? Start with the Bullet Cluster

A swarm of galaxies called the Bullet Cluster is the biggest, best natural laboratory for studying dark matter that astronomers have ever seen

www.scientificamerican.com

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Megan Watzke @mwatzke.bsky.social · 28d

Congrats to my colleague, co-author and friend @kimberlykowal.bsky.social for winning the 2025 Klumpke-Roberts Award from the @astrosociety.org for those "who have made outstanding contributions to the public understanding and appreciation of astronomy."
chandra.si.edu/press/25_rel...

Chandra Press Room :: 2025 Klumpke-Roberts Award is given to Dr. Kimberly Arcand :: 10 September 2025

chandra.si.edu

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Megan Watzke @mwatzke.bsky.social · Sep 3

@barnesandnoble.com is running a pre-order sale for our book over the next few days and there's a promo code for 25% off.

It's meant to both gross/scare kids out while giving them some science in the process -- maybe like an astronomy book for Wednesday Addams. ;) @kimberlykowal.bsky.social

A graphic with the cover of "Why Space Will Freak You Out" plus a promo code (PREORDER25). This sale runs from September 3-5.

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Megan Watzke @mwatzke.bsky.social · Aug 29

The main panel of this graphic is Chandra data that has been selected to show the location of different elements in the remains of the explosion: silicon (red), sulfur (yellow), calcium (green) and iron (purple). The blue color reveals the highest-energy X-ray emission detected by Chandra in Cas A, with the blue outer ring highlighting the expanding blast wave from the original explosion hundreds of years ago.

The inset to the upper left zooms in a smaller region of Cas A. This reveals data collected by Chandra that picks up relative amounts of silicon and neon.

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Megan Watzke @mwatzke.bsky.social · Aug 29

About 26 years ago, the Chandra X-ray Observatory released its "First Light" images. The supernova remnant Cassiopeia A was the highlight. All of these years later, Chandra is still delivering discoveries about this exploded star.
chandra.si.edu/press/25_rel...

Chandra Press Room :: NASA's Chandra Reveals Star's Inner Conflict Before Explosion :: 28 August 2025

chandra.si.edu

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Reposted by Megan Watzke

Ethan Siegel @startswithabang.bsky.social · Aug 25

How a dead star carved the “Hand of God” in space

So, you've seen the new-and-improved "Hand of God" nebula in space: MSH 15-52.

Now come learn why this "kicked" pulsar produces a wind nebula unlike any other in appearance.
bigthink.com/starts-with-...
#space #astro #physics #pulsar #nebula

How a dead star carved the "Hand of God" in space

In our own Milky Way, a recently deceased star creates a ghostly, hand-like shape in X-rays some 150 light-years wide. Here's how it's made.

bigthink.com

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Megan Watzke @mwatzke.bsky.social · Aug 20

There’s a giant hand in space. Ok, not a real hand but instead one made out of energetic particles that glow in X-ray and radio light.

chandra.si.edu/photo/2025/m...

I mean, that mixes up your timeline, does it not?

A composite image of MSH 15-52 made from X-rays from Chandra and radio emission from ATCA. To some people, this nebula resembles the shape of a human hand.

Megan Watzke @mwatzke.bsky.social · Aug 8

Stupid on top of stupid

The New York Times @nytimes.com · Aug 8

From @theathletic.com: A memecoin — Green Dildo Coin — and it's community are responsible for some of the disruptions at WNBA games.
The group's coin was created the day before the first incident, and as of Thursday, its worth had nearly tripled in one week.

WNBA sex toy incidents may be linked to cryptocurrency group’s money scheme

The group's coin was created the day before the first incident, and as of Thursday, its worth had nearly tripled in one week.

nyti.ms

Reposted by Megan Watzke

Chanda Prescod-Weinstein 🌌 @chanda.blacksky.app · Jul 28

📣📣 BOOK NEWS 📣📣

I'm excited to share the cover and release date of Book #2, #EdgeOfSpaceTime, which is now available for PREORDER!!

You can order from ANY bookstore, including your local indie!

More details on preordering here:
www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/746817...

What's the book about? 🧵

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Reposted by Megan Watzke

Gillian Branstetter @gbbranstetter.bsky.social · Jul 24

Specifically the Smithsonian was only willing to share the painting in the form of "a video of people reacting to the painting and discussing transgender issues"

Ms. Sherald said that Mr. Bunch on Monday had proposed replacing the painting with a video of people reacting to the painting and discussing transgender issues, an idea she rejected because she said it would have included anti-trans views. “When I understood a video would replace the painting, I decided to cancel,” she said. “The video would have opened up for debate the value of trans visibility and I was opposed to that being a part of the ‘American Sublime’ narrative.”

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Megan Watzke @mwatzke.bsky.social · Jul 24

science.nasa.gov/missions/hub...

NASA's Hubble, Chandra Spot Rare Type of Black Hole Eating a Star - NASA Science

NASA’s Hubble and Chandra teamed up to identify a new possible example of a rare class of black holes, called an intermediate-mass black hole.

science.nasa.gov

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Reposted by Megan Watzke

European Space History @eurospacehistory.bsky.social · Jul 24

#ThisWeek in 1999, launch of Space Shuttle Columbia STS-93 on 23 July carrying NASA's Chandra X-ray observatory. Eileen Collins became the first female shuttle Commander on this flight. Also on board was @cnes.fr astronaut Michel Tognini and our friend Cady Coleman! 👉 www.nasa.gov/mission/sts-...

STS-93 crew in orange spacesuits, from left Eileen Collins, Steven Hawley, Jeffrey Ashby, Michel Tognini, Catherine (Cady) Coleman

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Megan Watzke @mwatzke.bsky.social · Jul 22

Meanwhile ...

"Climate change is making severe fire weather more common around the world, raising the chances of worsened forest fire seasons, a study in the journal Nature Communications found."

www.nytimes.com/2025/07/21/c...

Climate Change Is Making Fire Weather Worse for World’s Forests

www.nytimes.com

Megan Watzke @mwatzke.bsky.social · Jul 18

An animated gif of the Atari game Kaboom!, circa 1981.

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Megan Watzke @mwatzke.bsky.social · Jul 17

I was legitimately confused about this headline as someone who follows astronomy news. Turns out, there's a company called "Astronomer". Who knew? ;) www.yahoo.com/entertainmen...

Coldplay’s Kiss Cam Exposes Astronomer’s CEO Andy Byron Alleged Affair With HR Chief Kristin Cabot

What was meant to be a lighthearted moment during Coldplay’s Wednesday night concert turned into a full blown public relations disaster for a high flying tech CEO and the footage… The post Coldplay’s ...

www.yahoo.com

Megan Watzke @mwatzke.bsky.social · Jul 16

Baby exoplanet is being hoovered up by super aggressive host star. Will go from Jupiter size planet to a barren smaller world in short order (astronomically speaking) thanks to the onslaught of X-rays. Latest news from Chandra: chandra.cfa.harvard.edu/press/25_rel...

An artist's illustration of the star (called TOI 1227) that is pummeling a nearby exoplanet (called TOI 1227b) with X-rays. This assault is causing the planet to shrink rapidly -- in astronomical terms.

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Megan Watzke @mwatzke.bsky.social · Jul 15

Scientists have discovered an oddly-shaped galaxy that may contain the first newborn supermassive black hole ever spotted. This could have implications for when the biggest black holes can form. Results from JWST + Chandra + VLA.

A composite image of the "Infinity Galaxy" with X-rays from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory (purple) and infrared data from JWST (red, green and blue).

Megan Watzke @mwatzke.bsky.social · Jul 14

That’s not to say Nature and Science papers are automatically better candidates for publicity, but I’d say it’s a factor.

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