Abby Lee

The Star Formation History of WLM from Asymptotic Giant Branch Stars and The Discovery of a Possible Accreted System in its Outer Disk We measure the star formation history (SFH) of Local Group dwarf galaxy WLM using wide-area ($\sim4$ half-light radii) ground-based NIR imaging of bright ($M_{J}<-4.9$ mag) AGB stars. From our NIR CMD...

New paper! We measured the SFH of WLM using AGB stars, finding it to be in excellent agreement with SFHs measured from the oMSTO.

This test shows that AGB stars can produce SFHs comparable in accuracy to those currently available in the LG, now in galaxies at d>50 Mpc.
arxiv.org/abs/2603.00243

🌓🌎🌞 <-- lunar eclipse

🌎🌓🌞 <-- solar eclipse

🌎🌞🌗 <-- apocalypse

Congrats Catherine!!!

#paperday! RR Lyrae stars are a common, dependable Population II distance indicator, and provide an independent tracer of early star formation. We test the feasability of RR Lyrae research with archival JWST data using nearby dwarf galaxy WLM! 🔭

On the arXiv now: arxiv.org/abs/2602.21205

Read this thread to understand what it's (still) like for people in MN right now. And go to standwithminnesota.com to help

NASA Discovers Distant Planet With Conditions That Could Sustain Rocks

NASA Discovers Distant Planet With Conditions That Could Sustain Rocks https://theonion.com/nasa-discovers-distant-planet-with-conditions-that-could-sustain-rocks/

Prof. Wendy Freedman recognized with 2026 Franklin Institute Award in Physics Pioneering cosmologist honored for landmark measurements of the Hubble Constant

Delighted to have played a small role in this decision as a member of the Physics Cluster of the Committee of Sciences and Arts at Franklin: news.uchicago.edu/story/prof-w... 🔭👩‍🔬

Top researchers consider leaving U.S. amid funding cuts: 'The science world is ending' A poll from the journal Nature found that 75% of researchers in the U.S. are considering leaving the country. That includes a man who’s been dubbed the "Mozart of Math." Stephanie Sy examines what’s b...

‘The science world is ending’

#AcademicSky

www.pbs.org/newshour/sho...

Apply to Write for Astrobites 2025! Love astronomy, astrophysics, and science communication? Come join the Astrobites team! Applications due November 26th.

Are you a grad student interested in writing for Astrobites, or do you know one? We're recruiting! Apply by November 26 :)

astrobites.org/2025/10/31/a...

Meme showing six logical operators illustrated with jack-o'-lantern images. trick OR treat trick AND treat trick XOR treat trick NOR treat trick NAND treat trick XNOR treat

If you're interesting in observations of stellar populations/nearby galaxies, Dan Weisz's group is hiring two postdocs! Come work with me and live in paradise in California 🌞

aas.org/jobregister/...

Costco knows How It’s Done

Big Changes to the NSF’s Graduate Fellowship Mean Big Problems In this bite, the authors discuss recent changes to the NSF's Graduate Research Fellowship, their impact, and what you can do to help.

In this bite, the Astrobites authors discuss recent changes to the NSF’s Graduate Research Fellowship, their impact, and what you can do to help. 🔭✨☄️
astrobites.org/2025/10/04/n...

Announcement of Opportunity Find in-depth information about the NASA Hubble Fellowship Program (NHFP) and its requirements.

Hey #exoplaneteers (and other early career folks) - applications for the 2026 NASA Hubble Fellowship Program are open!

www.stsci.edu/stsci-resear...

The bechdel test for astronomy should be whether a department has a higher number of professors that are women vs professors that are named Dan

omg😂😂😂😭

Alex Ji, speaking at Galactic Frontiers II, using the cat “chonk chart” to classify dwarf galaxies, where his favorite ultrafaints are “fine bois”.

Definitely using the novel Ji (@alexji.bsky.social) mass-based dwarf galaxy classification scheme moving forward 🔭

A grid of images of the 25 brightest stars on the night sky is shown. The grid is 5 x 5. Some stars look bluer or more orange than others Please see the explanation for more detailed information.

🔭 25 Brightest Stars in the Night Sky

Image Credit & Copyright: Tragoolchitr Jittasaiyapan

apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap25061...

NSF and NASA Budget Requests Pose an Unprecedented Threat to Astronomy The president's budget requests for NASA and the NSF were released last week. This post summarizes the major cuts and the impacts they would have, and provides resources to help fight back against thi...

The proposed NSF and NASA budgets would absolutely decimate astronomy. I wrote about for @astrobites.bsky.social you can check it out here: astrobites.org/2025/06/02/b...

Interview with Dr. Janice Lee As a part of AAPI month, we interviewed Dr. Janice Lee, an astronomer who uses space telescopes to learn about star formation!

From Abby Lee @abigaillee.bsky.social : As a part of AAPI month, we interviewed Dr. Janice Lee, an astronomer who uses space telescopes to learn about star formation! 🔭✨☄️
astrobites.org/2025/05/28/i...

"I've had to go through so much... just in order to become a child again and begin anew." - Hesse

Life is a journey. Thank you to the (newly minted!) Dr
@abigaillee.bsky.social for reflecting on it with me. 🔭🧪

astrobites.org/2025/05/28/i...

Interview with Dr. Janice Lee As a part of AAPI month, we interviewed Dr. Janice Lee, an astronomer who uses space telescopes to learn about star formation!

So excited to share an interview with Dr. Janice Lee (
@janiceleeastro.bsky.social) I wrote with
@astrobites.bsky.social to celebrate AAPI month! Read about her journey and amazing work with the Habitable Worlds Observatory and PHANGS here:

astrobites.org/2025/05/28/i...

Is the universe really infinite? Astrophysicists explain. How we understand the wider cosmos from our tiny observable bubble of space.

Need a break from daily worries? How about taking a moment to ponder the incomprehensible nature of "infinity" from the perspective of an ape-descended lifeform on a tiny rock in space!

See? Don't you feel better already?

www.popsci.com/science/is-t...

Astronomy PhD candidate receives prestigious NASA Hubble Fellowship Caprice Phillips, a doctoral candidate in the Department of Astronomy at Ohio State, has always aimed for the stars through her research and outreach. Now, she will have the opportunity to continue th...

So proud of Caprice, a brilliant scientist & a tremendous leader! She is the 2nd Black woman to earn their PhD in the OSU astronomy department; the first was Dr. Kiersten Boley last year. I am excited to see all the great science they will do in their careers! artsandsciences.osu.edu/news/astrono...

Wendy Freedman: The 100 Most Influential People of 2025 Find out why Wendy Freedman is on this year’s list

Congratulations to my advisor Wendy Freedman for making the Time 100! Wow, right up next to Adam Scott, Simone Biles, and Ed Sheeran!

time.com/collections/...

Action items: 1) Call reps to explain how NASA funding impacts you; 2) Urge reps to sign the bipartisan Congressional letter advocating for $9B in NASA SMD FY26 funding; 3) ask rep to support NASA SMD budget through a constituent appropriations request; 4) set up meeting with staff of your rep. 🔭🚀🧪

NASA Needs Your Help! NASA is facing severe budget cuts that would cancel missions ready to be launched, put tens of thousands out of a job, and set science back decades. We need your help to ask congress to prevent these ...

astrobites.org/2025/04/15/h...

NASA Needs Your Help! NASA is facing severe budget cuts that would cancel missions ready to be launched, put tens of thousands out of a job, and set science back decades. We need your help to ask congress to prevent these ...

Did you know NASA science is facing a 50% budget cut??? Please read this @astrobites.bsky.social post to learn more about it and what you can do astrobites.org/2025/04/15/h...

Check out this post I wrote with some other astrobiters for action items on how to contact your congresspeople to support NASA funding!