Liz MacDonald
@spaceyliz.bsky.social
Founder of Aurorasaurus.org
Heliophysicist at NASA
*views my own*
Heliophysicist at NASA
*views my own*
Reposted by Liz MacDonald
#ICYMI
CERN took part in the Fête de la science from 3 to 13 October. During ten days, CERN offered a variety of activities throughout the Pays de Gex as part of a collaborative science trail organised by Addictlab.
CERN took part in the Fête de la science from 3 to 13 October. During ten days, CERN offered a variety of activities throughout the Pays de Gex as part of a collaborative science trail organised by Addictlab.
November 17, 2025 at 2:26 PM
#ICYMI
CERN took part in the Fête de la science from 3 to 13 October. During ten days, CERN offered a variety of activities throughout the Pays de Gex as part of a collaborative science trail organised by Addictlab.
CERN took part in the Fête de la science from 3 to 13 October. During ten days, CERN offered a variety of activities throughout the Pays de Gex as part of a collaborative science trail organised by Addictlab.
Here's a great, new citizen science paper featuring students from my alma mater UW, that also illustrates how long it takes to go from data to impactful science. Also, great participatory science education during Covid. @uwenvironment.bsky.social
environment.uw.edu/news/2025/06...
environment.uw.edu/news/2025/06...
Making ‘lemonade from COVID lemons’: How UW students contributed to global wildlife observations from their backyards
Students in a University of Washington wildlife research techniques class that went fully remote during the COVID-19 lockdown had an unexpected opportunity arise with the data they collected.
environment.uw.edu
July 21, 2025 at 4:12 PM
Here's a great, new citizen science paper featuring students from my alma mater UW, that also illustrates how long it takes to go from data to impactful science. Also, great participatory science education during Covid. @uwenvironment.bsky.social
environment.uw.edu/news/2025/06...
environment.uw.edu/news/2025/06...
Reposted by Liz MacDonald
Pretty big coronal mass ejection from the Sun hit us last night. The results are beautiful.
This morning we drove to Bozeman Pride for @zoandbehold.bsky.social to speak, then went down to Yellowstone and saw incredible sights.
Then, on the drive back to Missoula at 1AM, the heavens erupted.
Naked eye visible aurora. The northern lights told us Happy Pride :)
Then, on the drive back to Missoula at 1AM, the heavens erupted.
Naked eye visible aurora. The northern lights told us Happy Pride :)
June 1, 2025 at 1:01 PM
Pretty big coronal mass ejection from the Sun hit us last night. The results are beautiful.
Reposted by Liz MacDonald
Just a reminder that the OVATION model is not a real picture of the aurora or even a model of where you can see the aurora—it’s a statistical prediction of where electrons are raining into the atmosphere which may produce visible aurora.
May 29, 2025 at 10:38 PM
Just a reminder that the OVATION model is not a real picture of the aurora or even a model of where you can see the aurora—it’s a statistical prediction of where electrons are raining into the atmosphere which may produce visible aurora.
Reposted by Liz MacDonald
Thank you Brian Jackson and Rachel Huchmala from @boisestate.bsky.social for spearheading an impactful outreach and education program in Idaho using @unistellar.bsky.social telescopes and our @setiinstitute.bsky.social citizen science program to inspire the young generation. #astronomy #outreach
May 29, 2025 at 5:15 PM
Thank you Brian Jackson and Rachel Huchmala from @boisestate.bsky.social for spearheading an impactful outreach and education program in Idaho using @unistellar.bsky.social telescopes and our @setiinstitute.bsky.social citizen science program to inspire the young generation. #astronomy #outreach
Reposted by Liz MacDonald
I had an NSF astronomy and astrophysics postdoc. It’s very possible #WithoutNSF I wouldn’t be a planetary scientist today.
May 4, 2025 at 3:47 PM
I had an NSF astronomy and astrophysics postdoc. It’s very possible #WithoutNSF I wouldn’t be a planetary scientist today.
💯🫶 @merriam-webster.com is recognizing
☀️Heliophysics is low-key 🔥, no cap
#slangandtrending
www.merriam-webster.com/slang/heliop...
☀️Heliophysics is low-key 🔥, no cap
#slangandtrending
www.merriam-webster.com/slang/heliop...
heliophysics
Heliophysics refers to the physical processes (such as nuclear fusion) and phenomena (such as solar flares) of the sun and its influence on the solar system, as well as the scientific study of these p...
www.merriam-webster.com
April 30, 2025 at 6:51 PM
💯🫶 @merriam-webster.com is recognizing
☀️Heliophysics is low-key 🔥, no cap
#slangandtrending
www.merriam-webster.com/slang/heliop...
☀️Heliophysics is low-key 🔥, no cap
#slangandtrending
www.merriam-webster.com/slang/heliop...
Reposted by Liz MacDonald
Have you seen fragmented aurora-like emissions (FAEs)? These small aurora “tick-tacks” are a newly-discovered phenomenon that has important implications in the aurora science community! If you think you’ve seen these in your photos, keep reading to find out how you can help.
#heliophysics
#heliophysics
April 30, 2025 at 1:31 PM
Have you seen fragmented aurora-like emissions (FAEs)? These small aurora “tick-tacks” are a newly-discovered phenomenon that has important implications in the aurora science community! If you think you’ve seen these in your photos, keep reading to find out how you can help.
#heliophysics
#heliophysics
I've been learning about the mysteries of bird migration. This is a really cool tool that tracks birds in real-time from their weather radar signatures. I hope the birds don't get confused by the geomagnetic activity going on. I'm going to keep an eye on the data tonight as activity progresses.
180 million migrants moving north across North America early Saturday morning. Very few have ID bands or official documents.
birdcast.info/migration-to...
birdcast.info/migration-to...
April 16, 2025 at 10:10 PM
I've been learning about the mysteries of bird migration. This is a really cool tool that tracks birds in real-time from their weather radar signatures. I hope the birds don't get confused by the geomagnetic activity going on. I'm going to keep an eye on the data tonight as activity progresses.
Reposted by Liz MacDonald
Southern Europe, get out! A substorm has just pushed auroral visibility to lower latitudes. This camera in Austria is at the same geomagnetic latitude as places in North America like San Francisco or Oklahoma City!
theauroraguy.com/pages/webcams
theauroraguy.com/pages/webcams
April 16, 2025 at 9:11 PM
Southern Europe, get out! A substorm has just pushed auroral visibility to lower latitudes. This camera in Austria is at the same geomagnetic latitude as places in North America like San Francisco or Oklahoma City!
theauroraguy.com/pages/webcams
theauroraguy.com/pages/webcams
Really nice aurora seen into the southern UK and further south, right now! (screenshot from Aurorasaurus, time shown is in Pacific time) Sign up for a free Aurorasaurus.org alert - our view line adapts to when people can beat the model prediction! Please report to help others & contribute to science
April 16, 2025 at 9:42 PM
Really nice aurora seen into the southern UK and further south, right now! (screenshot from Aurorasaurus, time shown is in Pacific time) Sign up for a free Aurorasaurus.org alert - our view line adapts to when people can beat the model prediction! Please report to help others & contribute to science
Reposted by Liz MacDonald
Aurora are visible in UK skies right now! 🔭
April 16, 2025 at 8:59 PM
Aurora are visible in UK skies right now! 🔭
Reposted by Liz MacDonald
Aurora Borealis now visible on AuroraCam over Billingborough, UK. 🔭🧪
April 16, 2025 at 9:03 PM
Aurora Borealis now visible on AuroraCam over Billingborough, UK. 🔭🧪
Reposted by Liz MacDonald
In the wake of the #solarstorm impact on Tue Apr 15, today on Wed Apr 16 since 11 UTC there is a steady southward pointing magnetic field in the wake of a previous storm arriving. Now, a moderate geomagnetic storm is developing (Dst - 74 nT at 14 UTC). It may continue for a few hours on this level.👇
April 16, 2025 at 3:11 PM
In the wake of the #solarstorm impact on Tue Apr 15, today on Wed Apr 16 since 11 UTC there is a steady southward pointing magnetic field in the wake of a previous storm arriving. Now, a moderate geomagnetic storm is developing (Dst - 74 nT at 14 UTC). It may continue for a few hours on this level.👇
Reposted by Liz MacDonald
Cool paper #1 of the day: Johan Knapen et al. wrote a great article with tips about how to write competitive proposals & applications ☄️
I like the ideas on figures they have (originally from Kuchner 2011) - have three: a 'beautiful' figure, a figure showing the state of the art, and a before/after
I like the ideas on figures they have (originally from Kuchner 2011) - have three: a 'beautiful' figure, a figure showing the state of the art, and a before/after
How to write competitive proposals and job applications
Writing proposals and job applications is arguably one of the most important tasks in the career of a scientist. The proposed ideas must be scientifically compelling, but how a proposal is planned, wr...
arxiv.org
April 3, 2025 at 7:56 AM
Cool paper #1 of the day: Johan Knapen et al. wrote a great article with tips about how to write competitive proposals & applications ☄️
I like the ideas on figures they have (originally from Kuchner 2011) - have three: a 'beautiful' figure, a figure showing the state of the art, and a before/after
I like the ideas on figures they have (originally from Kuchner 2011) - have three: a 'beautiful' figure, a figure showing the state of the art, and a before/after
Reposted by Liz MacDonald
It's the leading edge of spring migration here in North Carolina, and that means I'm sometimes lucky enough to see a splash of yellow among the juncos and chickadees.
These migratory birds use the Earth's
magnetic field to navigate; it turns out they leverage quantum mechanics to do so.
1/6 ⚛️🧪
These migratory birds use the Earth's
magnetic field to navigate; it turns out they leverage quantum mechanics to do so.
1/6 ⚛️🧪
March 19, 2025 at 10:49 AM
It's the leading edge of spring migration here in North Carolina, and that means I'm sometimes lucky enough to see a splash of yellow among the juncos and chickadees.
These migratory birds use the Earth's
magnetic field to navigate; it turns out they leverage quantum mechanics to do so.
1/6 ⚛️🧪
These migratory birds use the Earth's
magnetic field to navigate; it turns out they leverage quantum mechanics to do so.
1/6 ⚛️🧪
Reposted by Liz MacDonald
Exciting news! We’re thrilled to announce that tapir Yuna gave birth to a rare and endangered Malayan tapir calf Sunday night. The newborn, covered in distinctive white spots and stripes resembling a fuzzy walking watermelon, is only the second tapir born in our 120-year history.
February 4, 2025 at 7:00 PM
Exciting news! We’re thrilled to announce that tapir Yuna gave birth to a rare and endangered Malayan tapir calf Sunday night. The newborn, covered in distinctive white spots and stripes resembling a fuzzy walking watermelon, is only the second tapir born in our 120-year history.
Reposted by Liz MacDonald
I wrote this on one of the darkest days of my life. It gave me an anchor to hold onto.
January 24, 2025 at 2:57 PM
I wrote this on one of the darkest days of my life. It gave me an anchor to hold onto.
Reposted by Liz MacDonald
THREE sounding rockets are launching out of Poker Flat this month! Assuming the launch windows are still open, I'll be heading to Venetie, a little village north of the Arctic Circle, next weekend to assist with ground ops.
www.gi.alaska.edu/news/three-r...
#heliophysics
www.gi.alaska.edu/news/three-r...
#heliophysics
www.gi.alaska.edu
January 18, 2025 at 4:02 AM
THREE sounding rockets are launching out of Poker Flat this month! Assuming the launch windows are still open, I'll be heading to Venetie, a little village north of the Arctic Circle, next weekend to assist with ground ops.
www.gi.alaska.edu/news/three-r...
#heliophysics
www.gi.alaska.edu/news/three-r...
#heliophysics
Reposted by Liz MacDonald
Check out this seminar I gave at NASA Goddard last month. I have just uploaded the recording of the talk today. It's worth watching! The title of the talk is: "Cutting-Edge Projects in Aurora Participatory Science"
www.youtube.com/watch?v=CB6n...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=CB6n...
Cutting-Edge Projects in Aurora Participatory Science - NASA HSD Seminar, December 2024
YouTube video by Vincent Ledvina - The Aurora Guy
www.youtube.com
January 11, 2025 at 5:48 AM
Check out this seminar I gave at NASA Goddard last month. I have just uploaded the recording of the talk today. It's worth watching! The title of the talk is: "Cutting-Edge Projects in Aurora Participatory Science"
www.youtube.com/watch?v=CB6n...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=CB6n...