iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

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Daniel Swain @weatherwest.bsky.social · 21h

Global model ensembles are in strong agreement that a prolonged &anomalous nearly West-wide autumn heatwave will develop this week & persist for 10+ days. While some daytime records may be set, this event will be more notable for its persistence & breadth. [Thread]

Map showing predicted temperature anomalies in early October from the ECMWF ensemble across the western U.S. Nearly the entire region is painted red and pink, indicating widespread very warm anomalies.

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Earth @earthin24.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

🌏 2026 🗓 29th - 30th September 🕛 12:00Z 🛰 Himawari8

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Manisha Sinha @profmsinha.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Academic here, yeah I know it’s September still!

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Kevin M. Kruse @kevinmkruse.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

When they get back in power, Democrats need to go all-in on higher education. We need a campaign of reinvestment in public universities across the country that makes the Morrill Land-Grant Act look like nothing by comparison *and* a GI Bill of Rights-style program of tuition grants.

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Riding With Robots @ridingrobots.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

So many sunflowers

A field of so many wild sunflowers under mountains at sunset

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Scott Kardel aka Palomar Skies @palomarskies.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

Thank you, @leilabelkora.bsky.social, for the kind words. It was great to see you again last night, meet you husband, and big thanks for the wonderful gingerbread!

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Paul Byrne @theplanetaryguy.com · 23/09/2026

I said I'd do a thread about my new Space Science Reviews paper, so here it is! This is part of a collection of papers arising from a meeting at the International Space Science Institute in Bern in 2024: a workshop to better understand rocky extrasolar planets. A 🧵:

Interior structure models of Earth, Venus, Mercury, Mars, the Moon, and Io, all shown to scale and key elements labelled.

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European Space History @eurospacehistory.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

#OTD 23 September 1846, Neptune was observed by German astronomer Johann G. Galle, confirming French mathematician Urbain Le Verrier's prediction of the planet's existence. Neptune had been observed many times in the past but not recognised. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discove... @science.esa.int

A picture of Neptune taken by NASA's Voyager 2 in August 1989. The colour image was composed of three frames, orange, green and blue, calibrated to best represent Neptune's true blue-grey colour and appearance.

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Scott Kardel aka Palomar Skies @palomarskies.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

I got my flu shot today. Alas, I have to wait a couple of days for my COVID booster. 💉

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Scott Kardel aka Palomar Skies @palomarskies.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

One of the greatest musical themes in all of television.

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Astrobites @astrobites.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

From Nicki Bond: Have you ever found astronomy terminology confusing? In today’s bite we explore some of the most outrageous and nonsensical naming conventions in astronomy. ⚛️ 🔭 ☄️ 🧪 astrobites.org/2026/09/18/astronomy-is-confusing/

astrobites.org

Astronomy is confusing!

Have you ever found astronomy terminology confusing? If so, you are not alone. In today’s bite we explore some of the most outrageous and nonsensical naming conventions in astronomy, both those we hav...

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Scott Kardel aka Palomar Skies @palomarskies.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

I love reading astronaut autobiographies. This is a good one. 🚀👩‍🚀📚📖

A hand holding the book Slaying Snakes in the Cockpit by Susan Kilrain.

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Dr. Jonathan Foley @globalecoguy.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

God bless the Daily Show. Do you really want tech bros who don’t understand basic chemistry to try to solve climate change?

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Scott Kardel aka Palomar Skies @palomarskies.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

It was mostly foggy for my morning walk but I did still get a nice sunrise.

A cloudy sky with pastel colors of orange.

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Scott Kardel aka Palomar Skies @palomarskies.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

Tonight is International Observe the Moon Night, so here is my observation of the Moon, as required by international law. 😉 🔭

A telescopic image of the Moon. It is in the waxing gibbous phase with 62% of the nearside illuminated. Many impact craters and smooth dark plains are visible.

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Riding With Robots @ridingrobots.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

From the National Air and Space Museum Today in 1977, Voyager 1 took this image of the Earth and Moon in a single frame, captured from 7.25 million miles away. It was the first of its kind taken by a spacecraft.

The crescent Earth and Moon captured from space, in one frame.

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Riding With Robots @ridingrobots.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

From NASA: On Sept. 19, people all over the world will observe the Moon together, and you're invited! Join a local or virtual International Observe the Moon Night event, register as an individual observer, or gather your own Moon observing crew. go.nasa.gov/ObserveTheMoon youtu.be/H-ZGfW1EAXk?...

youtu.be

International Observe the Moon Night 2026 Trailer

YouTube video by NASA Goddard

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Scott Kardel aka Palomar Skies @palomarskies.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

I was explaining the timing of Moon phases to my students and some of them wanted to get a pic of the whiteboard, so I decided to do a selfie with it during class. 🔭

A selfie showing the author and a whiteboard where the timings of the phases of the Moon are listed.

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p.s @p-s-v.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

LRO spots new Moon crater Has been named McGetchin after lunar scientist Tom McGetchin(1936-1979) rock.geosociety.org/net/document... The 222-m-diameter crater formed between April & May 2024 at 1.3536°N, 67.1765°E lroc.im-ldi.com/images/1501 science.nasa.gov/solar-system... x.com/conspiracysl...

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Dr. Adeene Denton @spacewhalerider.com · 17/09/2026

Everything kinda sucks right now, but I was going through old writing and found my defense of public lands. It reminded me why so many of us do what we do. It's so important to be able to find joy in the natural world, and that starts with being able to access it: www.grandcanyon.org/about/blog/g...

grandcanyon.org

Dr. Adeene Denton: Importance of Public Lands

Interested in learning about the importance of public lands and how they play a role in art and science? If so, click to hear from GCC Astronomer Dr.…

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AAS Press Office @press.aas.org · 16/09/2026

University of California, Riverside: Venus Ate Its Moon: Study Explains Why Earth’s "Twin" Lacks Rocky Satellite news.ucr.edu/articles/202...

news.ucr.edu

Venus ate its moon

If it ever had a moon, new research shows Venus would have consumed it.

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Scott Kardel aka Palomar Skies @palomarskies.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

We had a nice crescent Venus & Moon last night so I got my astronomy lab students out to take a look. Here’s a shot I took of the Moon by holding my phone to the eyepiece. 🔭

A somewhat blurry photo of the Moon in the waxing crescent phase showing impact craters and smooth, dark plains.

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Scott Kardel aka Palomar Skies @palomarskies.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

Weirdly, according to my Tolkien wall calendar next week we have both the Autumn Equinox AND the Autumnal Equinox.

A close photo of part of a calendar. On the 22nd it says “Hobbit Day, Autumn Equinox.” On the 23rd it says “Morgoth’s Ring first published, 1993; Autumnal Equinox.”

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NPR @npr.org · 15/09/2026

NASA employees say they've lost vital equipment and staff needed to make sophisticated spacecraft amid the agency's abrupt relocations over the past several months. n.pr/3SK34oz

n.pr

NASA rushed engineers out of their labs. They say it risks future space missions

NASA employees say they've lost vital equipment and staff needed to make sophisticated spacecraft amid the agency's abrupt relocations over the past several months.

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Scott Kardel aka Palomar Skies @palomarskies.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

Okay, I broke down and finally bought this even though I already have the Space Shuttle set that has a smaller version of HST. I usually build LEGO with my wife, so now that she’s gone I don’t know yet when I will be emotionally ready to put it together.

A photo of the box for the LEGO Hubble Space Telescope set.

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Scott Kardel aka Palomar Skies @palomarskies.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

Some of the constellations I will likely be talking about in the Palomar College Planetarium tonight. 🔭

An image of stars projected in a planetarium. The figures of Sagittarius, Scorpius, Aquila, Cygnus, Lyra and Hercules are visible.

An image of stars projected in a planetarium. The figures of Ursa Major, Ursa Minor, Hercules, Draco, Lyra, Cygnus, Cassiopeia and Andromeda are visible.

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Scott Kardel aka Palomar Skies @palomarskies.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

I saw this reported at spaceweather.com: “Pilots, Flight Attendants Have Greater Risk of Radiation-Related Cancer Death Than Other Professions” hms.harvard.edu/news/pilots-...

hms.harvard.edu

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SkyCalPro | Kev @skycalpro.com · 11/09/2026

Volcano of Fire Erupts Under the Stars While waiting near midnight to see a possible eruption of Volcn de Fuego (Volcano of Fire) in Guatemala last month, a ready camera captured this extraordinary image. Image Credit: Diego Rizzo #Astronomy

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Dr. Jonathan Foley @globalecoguy.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

Climate scientist here. 👋 We are NOT fucked. BUT we are behind where we should be. The good news is that we have the solutions we need to stop climate change. We just need to get busy deploying them! And here’s the proof. Almost 120 solutions, with more coming. drawdown.org/explorer

drawdown.org

Drawdown Explorer™

We know what we need to do: stop climate change as quickly as possible. Now, with the Drawdown Explorer, we know how to do it.

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Scott Kardel aka Palomar Skies @palomarskies.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

Nice, splashy lava action was happening at Kilauea in Hawai'i just now and as I started to make this post it stopped. The goddess Pele is messing with me. 🌋

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Scott Kardel aka Palomar Skies @palomarskies.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

Here’s how the Moon looked in my sky before sunrise on my walk today.

A thin waning crescent moon in a twilight sky over dark trees.

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MinimumWageMan @minimumwageman.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

Definitely.

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Scott Kardel aka Palomar Skies @palomarskies.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

It's Star Trek Day. My wife Alydia loved Star Trek (I do too). Here she is back in 2015 sitting in the captain's seat of the bridge set for the Star Trek Continues fan series. 🖖

A happy woman sitting in the captain's chair on the bridge of the starship Enterprise.

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Scott Kardel aka Palomar Skies @palomarskies.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

Photos from my morning walk. I caught the waning crescent Moon with Jupiter and a beautiful sunrise.

A crescent moon in a cloudy sky at twilight. The bright “star” under the Moon is Jupiter.

Dark trees and orange clouds at sunrise.

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Scott Kardel aka Palomar Skies @palomarskies.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

Things are starting to get interesting at Kīlauea volcano in Hawai’i. Watch it here: www.youtube.com/live/gXKuUyK...

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China Space Watch @chinaspace.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Another more detailed look at the beautiful footage recently released from the China Manned Space Program. A blue marble suspended in the infinite dark. 🌏 From 400km up the world doesn't look so bad or divided. 🌌

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Dr. Erik Klemetti Gonzalez @eruptions.site · 07/09/2026

It has been a while, but I have a summary of all the activity at Anak Krakatau over the last few days. Long and short: big explosive eruption, but not out of character for the volcano (or Indonesian volcanoes for that matter). It is a hot air travel mess, though: eruptions.site/2026/09/07/s...

eruptions.site

September 2026 Eruption at Anak Krakatau

Location: Anak Krakatau, Indonesia Situation: Anak Krakatau, literally “child of Krakatau” has had some large explosive eruptions over the past week including ash plumes that reached ~5…

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Daniel Swain @weatherwest.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

The ECMWF seasonal ensemble has just updated for September, and it continues to suggest that a soon record-strength El Niño will exert a very strong tilt in the odds toward wet conditions across the U.S. southern tier, including all of California, the Lower Colorado, and SE U.S.

Plot showing data from ECMWF SEAS5 seasonal model September update. It depicts the most likely "tercile" of precipitation during Jan-Mar 2027, and California is painted as "upper tercile" with 70-100% confidence.

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Scott Kardel aka Palomar Skies @palomarskies.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

My late wife used to make amazingly good chocolate chip cookies. This evening I decided to see if I could make them. If there is an afterlife, I can tell you that she must have been both crying and laughing at me as what I made in no way resembled what she used to make. 🍪

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