Ben Burningham

Liam Gallagher criticises Edinburgh council for saying Oasis fans mainly rowdy middle-aged men Singer says attitude of officials ‘stinks’ after documents show concern about crowds and intoxication

I remember 2004 at Glastonbury when they played and I’d say Edinburgh council is maybe being too polite

www.theguardian.com/music/2025/j...

The Challenges of Detecting Gases in Exoplanet Atmospheres by Luis Welbanks et al. Abstract: Claims of detections of gases in exoplanet atmospheres often rely on comparisons between models including and excluding specific chemical species. However, the space of molecular combinations available for model construction is vast and highly degenerate. Only a limited subset of these combinations is typically explored for any given detection. As a result, apparent detections of trace gases risk being artifacts of incomplete modeling rather than robust identification of atmospheric constituents, especially in the low signal-to-noise regime. We illustrate these challenges using the sub-Neptune K2-18~b, where recent claims of a potential biosignature detection vanish when the considered model space is expanded. We show that numerous alternative models without potential biosignature gases provide equivalent or better fits to the observations. We demonstrate that the significance of a claimed detection relies on the choice of models being compared, and that model preference does not necessarily imply the presence of any specific gas. https://arxiv.org/abs/2504.21788

The K2-18b saga deepens with a great new paper out today by @luiswel.bsky.social (arxiv.org/abs/2504.21788).

Turns out hydrocarbons can explain K2-18b's new JWST MIRI spectrum *without* the need to invoke DMS or DMDS as biosignatures.

Read on to find out more! 🧵

#Exoplanet 🔭🪐

About that new paper on K2-18b, which headlines with "Scientists hail ‘strongest evidence’ so far for life beyond our solar system," evidently prodded by a Cambridge U. press release. arxiv.org/pdf/2504.12267 . It's not actually any kind of evidence for life, and here I'll give my take on the paper.

I wrote a research note about the recent publication of the MIRI/LRS spectrum of K2-18b. The authors had claimed the detection of potential signs of life. I find the data to be consistent with a flat line 🔭🧪

Wow… brutal JWST Cycle 4 results out. So many brilliant proposals couldn’t be awarded time… but amongst the carnage of rejections in my inbox, I see some successes. Congratulations and commiserations to colleagues today #astronomy

@exoclimes.bsky.social hey have accepted participants been notified ? If so; will you be sending out rejections so unsuccessful applicants can plan their summers ?

Public Open Evenings University of Hertfordshire

More info and tickets here: www.herts.ac.uk/bayfordbury/...

Thanks for having me on. Way better to get outside to see it! Embrace the cold night air and wonder :-)

This is bittersweet.. phenomenal mission. Truly game changing. Amazing achievement. But sad it’s going dark. All good things….

🔭

Quick bbc 3CR interview w/ @milesblumsom.bsky.social to start day thanks to my partner for leaving for work late so the 6 yo didn’t interrupt. Now the school run.
our fantastic new physics, astronomy and maths outreach and public engagement manager is also starting today… it’s a good day already!

Come and check it out next Friday!

Tickets selling fast:

www.eshop.herts.ac.uk/search?cid=459

#hertfordshire 🔭 #astronomy #herts #BedsBucksHerts

And that’s just the naked eye planets!! I totally forgot about Neptune and Uranus that are also on show through a telescope !

6!

NASA Joins Telescope, Instruments to Roman Spacecraft - NASA Technicians have successfully integrated NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope’s payload – the telescope, instrument carrier, and two instruments – to the

Technicians have successfully integrated NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope’s payload—the telescope, instrument carrier, and two instruments—to the spacecraft that will deliver the observatory to its place in space and enable it to function while there. 🔭 🧪

Tickets for the next @bayfordburyobs.bsky.social open night selling fast!

We’ve got 4 planets on show in the early evening this month, so don’t miss your chance to see them through our telescopes!

🔭 #hertfordshire #astronomy

A series of images showing our new algorithm to detect planets compared to a standard KLIP algorithm. The images show that our new method enables a boost in SNR.

Excited to share our interdisciplinary work on developing new methods to subtract off the glare of the star to reveal fainter exoplanets. We show in simulation that we can build a full optical model of JWST/NIRCam and generate images of the star to subtract off and reveal faint planets (1/3)

Search our events/products and add to your shopping cart

Tickets now on sale for 1st @bayfordburyobs.bsky.social open evening of 2025!

17th Jan will be JWST night. Public lectures from Webb Fellow Dr Emma Curtis-Lake, Dr Mike Kuhn, and kids space telescope quiz + more.

Get them here: www.eshop.herts.ac.uk/search?cid=459

#astronomy 🔭 #hertfordshire

Many problems in mathematics and physics can be simplified by assuming that any solid body is approximately a sphere, but this approach is likely to lead to a rounding error.

We’re looking forward to supporting this!

He's making a list
He's checking it twice
Of the fuzziness things that clutter the skies
Charles Messier is coming to town

6 yr old so asked me how many people it would take to hold up Jupiter if it came close enough to Earth, and was hard instead of gas.

Short time later find myself trying explain Roche limit to him.

He appears to have left the room

I’ve assure you officer , I’ve only had a couple of light ales

Kneecap: UK government acted illegally in withholding funding from Irish rap trio The Department for Business and Trade said Kemi Badenoch’s decision to rescind funding had been ‘unlawful and procedurally unfair’

Yet again the culture warriors showing their selective free speech. Nice to see the new gov agrees previous outfit were out of order.

Also, if you haven’t listened to Kneecap - do. They’re fantastic

www.theguardian.com/music/2024/n...

Worrying times for many

I feel like this has been a middle age gripe for a while!

A sleepy sheltie

He’s not always keeping me up. Sleepy #sheltie

Rachel Reeves may wait until June to announce Whitehall budget details Exclusive: insiders say drawn-out and complex negotiations will require a delay to spending review announcement

Hang on , the phase 1 review was part of the budget. they’re not waiting for the phase 2 review are they? That’s not out till May/June: www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

It will also make it tricky for people to know what they are eligible to apply for in the upcoming round.. due early March

Very nice - I think it’s Jupiter tho

Plot of D/H ratio in various objects.

D/H and PH3 in the coldest brown dwarf. 🔭🧪

arxiv.org/abs/2411.14541

Apologies @bemiles.bsky.social i even spelled your name wrong when i started typing in the handle to tag you.