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Prof. Abel Méndez

@profabelmendez.bsky.social
1.7K followers 553 following 431 posts

Planetary Astrobiologist and Director of the @PlanetaryHabLab. astrodon.social/@profabelmendez #exoplanets #astrobiology #habitability

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Prof. Abel Méndez @profabelmendez.bsky.social · 4h
In the search for life in the universe there have been plenty of close calls. www.cfpublic.org/2026-09-30/f...
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National Radio Astronomy Observatory - NSF NRAO @thenrao.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
What’s new with the Next Generation Very Large Array (ngVLA)? 📡 We’ve recently reached some milestones for “first fringes” – meaning successful correlation, combining signals from 2+ separate antennas. 📸 Credit: Scott Broadwell More ⤵️ #ngVLA #Astronomy #RadioAstronomy
Astrophotography image of the ngVLA prototype antenna beneath a darkening blue sky, with stars just becoming visible.
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CosmicRami 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ @rami.spaceaustralia.com · 01/10/2026
👀👀👀 New image from SKA-Low! This is of a Long-Period Transient (a phenomenon we don't fully understand as yet) and was imaged using 14 stations (3,584 antennas) located in Western Australia Top plot is not dispersed (affected by 'stuff' between stars). That profile 🤩 📸 SKAO 🔭📡 #RadioAstronomy
two tile images stacked vertically. Top image shows pink curves sweeping from top left to bottom right. Bottom image shows vertical curves. This is the pulse of the long period transient which is non-dispersed (top) and dispersed (bottom).
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Prof. Abel Méndez @profabelmendez.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Help us solve the Wow! Signal. OpenAI’s Codex can now solve a time-consuming computational problem that no other AI platform we tested could handle before. We now need more computing power. You can support our research with gift credits or donations. #AreciboWow phl.upr.edu/support
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Prof. Abel Méndez @profabelmendez.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
I looked at the data, and it looks like terrestrial interference: Astronomers Searched 33 Planetary Systems For Alien Signals. One Caught Their Attention. www.sciencealert.com/astronomers-... iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3...
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Sami Lamby 🩷💜💙 @samilamby.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
I had the pleasure of writing an article for @ca.theconversation.com about some of the cool science Roman will do -- including studying the rotation of tiny stars (aka ultracool dwarfs)! Check it out here: theconversation.com/how-nasas-na... 🔭 #exoplanets #stellarastro
theconversation.com
How NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope will open a window into the Milky Way
From supernovae in distant galaxies to the packed centre of the Milky Way, the new Roman telescope will help us see and understand the ever-changing cosmos.
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Prof. Abel Méndez @profabelmendez.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Stellar Pulsations Suggest Habitable-Zone Planet Around a Massive Star aasnova.org/2026/09/25/s...
aasnova.org
Stellar Pulsations Suggest Habitable-Zone Planet Around a Massive Star - AAS Nova
Researchers use stellar pulsations to detect substellar companions around A-type stars — including what could be a first-of-its-kind exoplanet.
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Prof. Abel Méndez @profabelmendez.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Help us solve the Wow! Signal. OpenAI’s Codex can now solve a time-consuming computational problem that no other AI platform we tested could handle before. We now need more computing power. You can support our research with gift credits or donations. #AreciboWow phl.upr.edu/support
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Carl Zimmer @carlzimmer.com · 27/09/2026
Four days ago, a scientist was surprised by the news that Anthropic discovered new virus genes for making DNA. He says he’s been studying them for years—and feeding his data to Anthropic’s AI as part of his own research. Coincidence? Here’s my story. nyti.ms/3VSWayc
nyti.ms
Did Anthropic’s A.I. Really Make a Scientific Discovery on Its Own? (Gift Article)
An expert at the University of Copenhagen said his team had been sharing its research with the company’s A.I. model, Claude, and that its new finding matched their work.
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Prof. Abel Méndez @profabelmendez.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
You’re looking at the radio sky as seen by the Big Ear telescope in August 15, 1977. The bright structure near 18 hours in right ascension is the plane of our Galaxy. Keep going between 19 and 20 hours; the short red line to the left is the Wow! Signal. #AreciboWow #RadioAstronomy
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National Radio Astronomy Observatory - NSF NRAO @thenrao.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
🚨 ALMA Ambassadors (Cycle 14, 2027) application deadline approaching! 🚨 Applications are due October 2, 2026. The #ALMA Ambassadors program provides training and funding to early career researchers interested in sharing their ALMA/interferometry expertise at their own institutions. #RadioAstronomy
bit.ly
ALMA Ambassadors Program - Cycle 14
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Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie @mpi-astro.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Ever wanted to watch a planet being born? 🔭 Led by MPIA director Myriam Benisty, astronomers have imaged every piece of the puzzle for the first time: the protoplanetary disk, the growing planet #WISPIT 2b, and the gas swirling around it. 🪐 #exoplanet 🔗Read more: www.mpia.de/news/science...
mpia.de
Astronomers produce the first complete picture of (gas) planet formation in action
We present new deep, very high angular resolution observations of the sub-mm continuum (19x13 mas) and 12CO (67x52 mas) emission from the disk surrounding the planet host WISPIT2. Our analysis reveals...
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SETI Institute @setiinstitute.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
What will exoplanet science look like in 25 years? 🔭 Dr. Collin Cherubim thinks we'll have data from Earth-like planets that lets us seriously debate whether we're seeing signs of life. #ICYMI, watch this week’s SETI Live: [LINK] 🧪 #Exoplanets 🔭
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Kevin Hardegree-Ullman @kevinkhu.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
So happy for my friend Allison who got to name this asteroid and meet the asteroid's namesake! 🔭🪗 Now if #exoplanets could catch up with asteroids on the naming front...
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SETI Institute @setiinstitute.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
🌎 A rocky world in another star’s habitable zone has an atmosphere — a first for astronomy. 🔴 TODAY at 2:30 pm PDT, @allplanets.bsky.social talks with lead author Dr. Collin Cherubim on SETI Live. Watch live + bring your questions! 🔗 youtube.com/live/ZnSd-ia... 🧪 #Exoplanets 🔭 #SETI
SETI Live record button logo. Text: A World With Air with Franck Marchis and Collin Cherubim, Thursday, 24 September 2026, 2:30 pm PDT / 5:30 pm EDT. Background: Artist's impression of a rocky world with a faint haze around it. In the distance is a red dwarf star and another planet making a transit across the star. Inset photos: Franck Marchis and Collin Cherubim.
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National Radio Astronomy Observatory - NSF NRAO @thenrao.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
“We are experiencing a second golden age of radio astronomy, enabled by technology-driven advances associated with the fourth industrial revolution.” NSF NRAO’s director Anthony Beasley contributed to this International Telecommunication Union (ITU) article ⤵️ #RadioAstronomy #Astronomy
itu.int
The new golden age of radio astronomy - ITU
According to P.A. Woudt and A.J. Beasley, we are experiencing a second golden age of radio astronomy, enabled by technology-driven advances.
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Prof. Abel Méndez @profabelmendez.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
If AI can do math, what’s the point of mathematicians? www.scientificamerican.com/article/math...
scientificamerican.com
If AI can do math, what’s the point of mathematicians?
What happens when machines surpass the most brilliant human minds? Mathematicians are finding out
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Gijs D Mulders @gijsmulders.com · 23/09/2026
A great thread on rocky (exo) planets with awesome graphics for the #exoplanets feed
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janiceleeastro @janiceleeastro.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
💙 the cover of the HWO-J workshop proceedings✨ iral2.ess.sci.osaka-u.ac.jp/~sumi/HWO_Ja... 🔭🧪☄️ #exoplanet #galactic #extragalactic
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Prof. Abel Méndez @profabelmendez.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Inside the Eirenesphere: The Interplay of Porosity, Heat Flux and Mineralogy in Exoplanetary Aquable and Habitable Layers arxiv.org/abs/2609.25280
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ClimateBook @climatebook.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
#exoplanets New lava planet paper from a collaboration I am involved in. This paper makes predictions of what kind of atmospheres we should see in our lava planet survey (P.I. Lisa Dang). Paper led by Mariana Sastre arxiv.org/abs/2609.20155 . Advised by Oxford PCDgroup alum Tim Lichtenberg.
arxiv.org
Thermal Evolution of Lava Planets Across System Ages: Predictions for Hell of a Survey
Ultra-short-period (USP) rocky exoplanets can have dayside temperatures high enough to maintain permanent magma oceans, sitting at the intersection of interior geophysics and atmospheric chemistry. Co...
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Prof. Abel Méndez @profabelmendez.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
Those Ancient Giant Fungi Weren’t Fungi After All www.youtube.com/watch?v=7gFg...
youtube.com
Those Ancient Giant Fungi Weren’t Fungi After All
Get 20% off DeleteMe by going to https://joindeleteme.com/SCISHOW and use code SCISHOW to protect your privacy! 400 million years ago, Prototaxites might have towered high above all other…
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Linn Boldt-Christmas @nplinnspace.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
🔭 Really enjoyed stumbling over this paper, and in particular the sass of its title: Saturns Are Not Large Neptunes! Not every day we get a new flavour of #exoplanets — will definitely be using ”Saturnian” from now on 😊 cool work by @niamhk12.bsky.social and others! ✨🪐 arxiv.org/abs/2609.170...
Screenshot of the paper in the link of this post. The section that has been screenshotted is the first part of Section 5 - Conclusions. It reads as follows: 

5 CONCLUSIONS
In this paper we have presented an empirical mass-radius relation
fitted to a sub-sample of the PlanetS catalogue, where inflated giant
planetshave been excluded. Our main results are as follows:
•Weupdatethewell-knownirradiationthresholdforgiantplanet
inflation presented in Demory & Seager (2011), defining 𝑆thr =
99 S⊕, the irradiation below which 90% of giant planets have a
radius excess Δlog 𝑅 < 2𝜎.
•We fitted our mass-radius relation to nine versions of the
inflation-cleaned sample and find that in all cases, a breakpoint was
placedbetweenNeptuneandSaturn,whileineightoutofninethere
wasalsoabreakpoint betweenSaturn and Jupiter.
•Ourbest-fitmass-radiusrelationhasthreebreakpointsandfour
distinctsegments,oneofwhichcorrespondstoaregimeofSaturnian
planets. This newly defined regime is between 54.3 ±2.7 M⊕ <
𝑀 < 257.8 ±10.8 M⊕ and has a slope of 0.270 ±0.007, with a
corresponding radiusrange of 8.0 ±0.5 R⊕< 𝑅 < 12.2 ±0.5 R⊕.
•The lower slope of the Saturnian regime compared to the Nep-
tunian regime (0.668 ±0.007) is consistent with the increased im-
portance of electron degeneracy in hydrogen-rich interiors, and the
corresponding onsetof gravitationalself-compression.
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Remco de Kok @planetremco.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
First radio emission detection for an exoplanet? Interpreted as aurora (and hence a magnetic field for the planet). Ortiz Ceballos+ arxiv.org/abs/2609.16720 🧪🔭 #exoplanets
arxiv.org
Discovery of radio emission from the exoplanet $β$ Pictoris b
Planetary magnetic fields shape atmospheric escape, mediate interactions with stellar winds, and encode information about planetary interiors, yet they have not been directly measured for planets beyo...
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ClimateBook @climatebook.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
#exoplanets An exoplanet terminology question: How do people feel about the term "synodic day"? I'm cleaning up the terminology in my planetary climate book for the second edition, eliminating Solar-System specific terminology
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SpaceAustralia.com @spaceaustralia.com · 18/09/2026
Are millisecond Pulsars, nature's cosmic clocks, as stable as we once thought? A new study by @rami.spaceaustralia.com has reported the discovery of two consecutive profile change events on PSR J0437-4715. www.spaceaustralia.com/feature/disc... 📸 NASA SVS #SpaceAustralia #RadioAstronomy 🔭🧪📡
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CosmicRami 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ @rami.spaceaustralia.com · 18/09/2026
Really nice write up from @drcarpineti.bsky.social for @iflscience.com on our new PSR J0437-4715 double profile change paper results! 👏👏👏 #RadioAstronomy 📡
iflscience.com
Weird Frequency Changes In Brightest Known Pulsar Challenge Regularity Of The Cosmos's Most Accurate Clocks
This is the first time that two "blips" have been spotted consecutively in a pulsar.
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PBS News @pbsnews.org · 18/09/2026
Using fossilized teeth, scientists have finally taken the T. rex's temperature — and it wasn't too different from our own. to.pbs.org/4yIy33q
pbs.org
T. rex had a body temperature similar to our own, study finds
Using fossilized teeth, scientists have finally taken the T. rex's temperature — and it wasn't too different from our own.
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Prof. Abel Méndez @profabelmendez.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
Long ago, we detected an unexpected signal from this region. Whatever produced it was something we had never encountered before. #AreciboWow phl.upr.edu/wow
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Prof. Abel Méndez @profabelmendez.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
#AreciboWow team member Kevin N. Ortiz-Ceballos is the lead scientist of the team that achieved the first direct detection of auroral radio emission from an exoplanet. #RadioAstronomy #Exoplanets
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Prof. Abel Méndez @profabelmendez.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
My next read: Cloudy with a Chance of Starships by Seven Rasmussen @toomanyspectra.bsky.social. Looking forward to diving into this one. #astrobiology
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BOWIE+ Seminar Series @bowieseminar.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
On October 8th, we begin our autumn Early Career Highlight series with two talks on 3D climate modelling by Ruizhi Zhan and Edouard Barrier. Sign up to our mailing list (details in our bio) to receive the Zoom link. #exoplanets #astronomy
A poster advertising two talks.   On the left, pictures of the speakers.  Ruizhi Zhan in a white coat in front of hills, and Edouard Barrier in a blue shirt and backpack in front of a tree.   On the right, the titles of their talks.  A bottom grey stripe identifies the BOWIE+ Seminar series with the seminar logo in the bottom right.
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Bibiana Prinoth @bibianaprinoth.ch · 15/09/2026
In case you have missed it, we are hosting a super cool workshop on #exoplanets studies in Garching, Vitacura and Nice (YES, 3 places at the same time!!!) in November. Bridging Horizons: Harnessing ESO's current facilities for the dawn of exoplanet population studies Dates: **2-6 November 2026**
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Marcus Lower @astromelow.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
Sadly the original radio magnetar XTE J1810-197 doesn’t seem to be back. Hopefully someday soon though! #RadioAstronomy www.astronomerstelegram.org?read=18040
astronomerstelegram.org
The Astronomer's Telegram: We're Sorry!
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Prof. Abel Méndez @profabelmendez.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
Long ago, we detected an unexpected signal from this region. Whatever produced it was something we had never encountered before. #AreciboWow phl.upr.edu/wow
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ESO @eso.org · 14/09/2026
A starry night, but in another galaxy ✨ Fly over the Magellanic Clouds, two galaxies orbiting the #MilkyWay, and discover a new stellar landscape — completely different from the one we see in our sky here on Earth. 🔭 🧪
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Markus Pössel @mpoessel.de · 10/09/2026
When we do outreach or education, astronomers frequently claim that public and student interest in astronomy is greater than in other sciences, making it an ideal entry way for science. My article analyzing Wikipedia page views which (somewhat) supports this claim is out in the CAP Journal. 🔭⚛️🧪🎢
capjournal.org
English-speaking Wikipedia users’ interest in astronomy
Wikipedia users’ interest in astronomy is examined using data available for pageviews over the period 2016–2025. Interest, as measured by the level of engagement, is gauged by examining the top 30 ast...
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Chris Lintott @chrislintott.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
New guidelines on the use of LLMs from @publishing.aas.org for referees here : journals.aas.org/referee-llm-... Headlines: Referees are responsible for peer review, and must do their own job, but LLMs can be used where declared where their use is declared and explained. 🔭🧪
journals.aas.org
Guidelines for Use of AI and LLMs in Manuscript Refereeing - AAS Journals
We provide guidelines for the use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools, including large language models, in refereeing manuscripts submitted to the AAS journals.
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Forming Worlds Lab @formingworlds.space · 08/09/2026
Accepted earlier this year in A&A, work led by Mara Attia (@marattia.bsky.social) tackles a core problem in exoplanet interiors: "PALEOS: Multiphase equations of state and mass-radius relations for exoplanet interiors" 🌍 Read: arxiv.org/abs/2605.03741 #Exoplanets
Portrait of Mara Attia with an overlaid white card displaying the title 'PALEOS: Multiphase equations of state and mass-radius relations for exoplanet interiors' and author names.Screenshot of the paper abstract detailing how internal temperature shifts the mass-radius relationship of rocky exoplanets.
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Kevin Hardegree-Ullman @kevinkhu.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
In #exoplanet transit land, we often seek planets further out in their orbit. In direct imaging land, it's all about pushing closer in. This new study from @caltechipac.bsky.social VGSRF @jayke.io finds a new close-in candidate in the classic HR 8799 system!
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Jonathan Jarry @jonathanjarry.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
So, I have to talk about this AI adaptation of an excellent Star Wars novel and how it’s being embraced by fans who hate Disney Star Wars. 🧵 youtu.be/QsXvvmWy-Ew?...
youtu.be
Star Wars: Heir to the Empire - Chapter I
YouTube video by Star Wars Chronicles
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Prof. Abel Méndez @profabelmendez.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
We are deeply saddened to share the news of the passing of radio astronomer Chris Salter, a longtime and valued member of the Arecibo Observatory community. Chris taught me how to operate the Arecibo Observatory, and I will always be grateful for everything I learned from him.
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Tara Murphy @taramurphy.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
Two #RadioAstronomy positions
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National Radio Astronomy Observatory - NSF NRAO @thenrao.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
The NSF National Radio Astronomy Observatory invites applications for the 2027 Jansky Fellowship Program. ➡️ for early career scientists ➡️ independent research with NSF NRAO facilities Application Deadline: October 28, 2026 🔗 bit.ly/4xwReNu #RadioAstronomy #Astronomy
Promotional graphic for the 2027 Jansky Fellowship Program. Background: Very Large Array radio telescopes under a deep blue sky. Text: Application deadline October 28.
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CosmicRami 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ @rami.spaceaustralia.com · 03/09/2026
<extremely furious nodding to every word in this excellent astrobite> #RadioAstronomy FTW! (I might have a slight bias here)
static.klipy.com
Heck Yeah
Alt: GIF of a cat nodding furiously
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Matthew @matthewchat.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
@noisyastronomer.com 😁https://astrobites.org/2026/09/01/why-radio-astronomy-is-the-best-astronomy/
astrobites.org
Opinion: Radio is the superior band in the electromagnetic spectrum
Radio astronomy is obviously better than any other domain, and read here to see why!
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Mike Boylan-Kolchin @mbkplus.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
I count 5 papers already on the arXiv (submitted yesterday; all but #5 in the screenshot below) based on one (1) event in the LZ detector that has a possible dark matter interpretation, which was also announced ... yesterday. If these trends continue...
6 papers from yesterday's HEP-Ph arxiv listing:

[1] arXiv:2609.01592 [pdf, html, other] Fermionic Dark Matter Absorption and the High-Energy Event in LUX-ZEPLIN Yuanchao Lou, hih-Ting Lu Comments: 11 pages, 3 figures, 2 tables. Comments are welcome Subjects: High Energy Physics - Phenomenology (hep-ph); High Energy Physics - Experiment (hep-ex) [2] arxiv:2609.01590 [pdf, html, other] TeV Higgsino Dark Matter from LZ Nuclear Recoil to Fermi-LAT Gamma Rays Lei Wu, Yang Zhang, Bin Zhu Comments: two columns, 5+9 pages, 4 figures Subjects: High Energy Physics - Phenomenology (hep-ph) [3] arXiv:2609.01583 [pdf, html, other] Higgsino Dark Matter Interpretation of the LUX-ZEPLIN 248 keV Nuclear-Recoil Event Katherine Freese, Dionysios P. Theodosopoulos Comments: 4 pages, 1 figure Subjects: High Energy Physics - Phenomenology (hep-ph); Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics (astro-ph.CO); High Energy Physics - Theory (hep-th) [4] arXiv:2609.01504 [pdf, html, other] Higgsino Above the Sea of Fog Jiji Fan, Matthew Reece Comments: 33 pages, 10 figures, human work Subjects: High Energy Physics - Phenomenology (hep-ph) [5] arXiv:2609.01480 [pdf, html, other] Gravitational Waves from Reheating beyond Instantaneous Thermalization Kyohei Mukaida, Tenta Tsuji Comments: 40 pages, 2 figures Subjects: High Energy Physics - Phenomenology (hep-ph); Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics (astro-ph.CO); High Energy Physics - Theory (hep-th) [6] arXiv:2609.01475 [pdf, html, other] Inelastic Dark Matter Signature at High Recoil Energy in LUX-ZEPLIN and CRESST Liangliang Su, Jin Min Yang, Wen-Na Yang Comments: 7 pages, 4 figures Subjects: High Energy Physics - Phenomenology (hep-ph)
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Prof. Abel Méndez @profabelmendez.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
An artist’s rendering of “cosmic sandbar” planet TOI-561b orbiting its star, with its atmosphere illuminated. (Why some planets have theory-defying atmospheres) sustainability.stanford.edu/news/why-som...
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Prof. Abel Méndez @profabelmendez.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
Venus’s Mysterious Clouds May Hide an Exceptionally Strong Light Absorber www.ibs.re.kr/cop/bbs/BBSM...
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Prof. Abel Méndez @profabelmendez.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
Forbidden planet: was Pluto’s 2006 demotion a big mistake? www.theguardian.com/science/2026...
theguardian.com
Forbidden planet: was Pluto’s 2006 demotion a big mistake?
Since it was stripped of planetary status, Pluto’s defenders have been fighting the decision – and they’re only getting more passionate
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