Keith Smith
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drkeithsmith.bsky.social
Keith Smith
@drkeithsmith.bsky.social
3.3K followers 41 following 450 posts
PhD, occasional astronomer, talking head, science geek, cynic. Senior Editor at @Science.org, responsible for research papers in astronomy and planetary science. Views own, duh. Bio: https://www.science.org/content/author/keith-t-smith
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drkeithsmith.bsky.social
🧪🔭⚛️☄️
science.org Science Magazine @science.org · 7d
Physics and astronomy researchers in the United Kingdom have reacted with alarm to news that key government funding for particle physics, nuclear physics, and astronomy will be slashed by 30%. https://scim.ag/46cn06Q
U.K. physics community braces for deep funding cuts
Research council to slash funding for particle physics, nuclear physics, and astronomy by 30%, prompting alarm across the research community
www.science.org
February 2, 2026 at 11:30 PM
drkeithsmith.bsky.social
🧪🔭⚛️🛰️
science.org Science Magazine @science.org · 7d
Shields and biological countermeasures could help protect astronauts during prolonged missions beyond Earth's magnetic bubble.

Learn more: https://scim.ag/46p5BrA
Illustrated graphic showing the Artemis II mission path, which will loop around the moon and then return to Earth. This path takes the Orion capsule outside Earth's magnetosphere, where it will be subject to solar particle events (shown as orange arrows, coming from the direction of the Sun) and galactic cosmic rays (shown as red arrows, coming from multiple directions). Most astronauts fly in low-Earth orbit, where Earth's magnetic field blunts much of the radiation, leaving microgravity as the main health stressor.
February 2, 2026 at 8:55 PM
drkeithsmith.bsky.social
A tidally-locked rocky #exoplanet orbiting close to its host star could have tidal waves of lava sweeping around the planet. Simulations show this effect would complicate the search for an atmosphere. 🔭☄️

News report by @elisecutts.bsky.social from the @rockyworlds.bsky.social meeting #RockyWorlds4
elisecutts.bsky.social Elise Cutts @elisecutts.bsky.social · 12d
*taps mic* ahem

May I interrupt the nonstop tidal wave of doom with a tidal wave of LAVA?

They're as high as a skyscraper, ooze at the speed of a human sprinter, and are really, really hot.

By me for @science.org, reported from the #RockyWorlds4 conference: 🔭🧪
Tidal waves of lava may slosh around alien worlds
Waves of molten rock could be confounding observations of atmospheres on distant planets
www.science.org
February 2, 2026 at 2:29 PM
Reposted by Keith Smith
chrislintott.bsky.social
I've updated my post on the funding crisis heading for British astronomy: docs.google.com/document/d/1.... UKRI made clear that astro and particle physics are being subject to unique cuts due to rising costs elsewhere. This looks like a deliberate decision not to fund fundamental physics. 🔭 🧪
Funding piece
Modern astronomy is full of marvels. In recent years we have rejoiced in the success of the James Webb Space Telescope, and been puzzled by the surprisingly vibrant early Universe it is showing us. We...
docs.google.com
February 2, 2026 at 10:32 AM
drkeithsmith.bsky.social
A *candidate* #exoplanet with potentially Earth-like size and orbit. This was observed in only a single Kepler transit, so the radius is well constrained but the orbit is not, and the mass is even less clear. News report by @elisecutts.bsky.social . 🔭☄️
science.org Science Magazine @science.org · 11d
Astronomers are planning ambitious telescopes to search for signs of life on distant planets.

A newly discovered world might just be the perfect target. Learn more: https://scim.ag/3Z75OMi
Earth-size planet spotted with yearlong orbit
January 30, 2026 at 2:26 PM
Reposted by Keith Smith
drkeithsmith.bsky.social
Last July, Dougherty told the National Astronomy Meeting that tensioning funds for grants vs facilities is 'not tenable', and that salami slicing of the grant line cannot continue. But here we are, that's exactly what's happening.
(3/3) 🧪🔭
January 29, 2026 at 1:41 PM
Reposted by Keith Smith
drkeithsmith.bsky.social
b) That won't be applied uniformly, so some will be cancelled completely while others have smaller cuts. Existing grant holders will have to fight to maintain any funding.

c) The money clawed back will instead go to 'government priorities' and 'innovative companies', whatever that means.
(2/3) 🧪🔭
January 29, 2026 at 1:40 PM
Reposted by Keith Smith
drkeithsmith.bsky.social
This reads as deliberate obfuscation, not clear communication with the affected community.

I *think* what it's saying is:
a) Existing facilities and already-approved grants will be cut by an average of 30%. This is in addition to a 15% cut in new grants last year.
(1/3) 🧪🔭
January 29, 2026 at 1:40 PM
Reposted by Keith Smith
stephenserjeant.bsky.social
In UK astro news, the Executive Chair of our funding council #STFC, Prof Michele Dougherty, has written to the community. TL;DR: skint. Bad times ahead for UK astro, particle physics, facilities etc 🧪🔭
extract (too long for complete alt text): This shift to a strategic, outcome-focused approach is the most significant change since UKRI’s creation and is in line with what was envisaged when UKRI was first created. This involves focusing investment across three priority buckets: Curiosity-driven research (investigator led and determined by scientists alone); Government and societal priorities; and supporting innovative companies; while also enabling and strengthening UK R&D – including talent, infrastructure, institutes and facilities. To meet these ambitions, a period of transition is underway across UKRI. In response to STFC’s indicative allocation, UKRI will need to ensure that investments across the portfolio are aligned to a sustainable level over the Spending Review period. For STFC this means striking the right balance between long-term discovery science, our major national facilities, and applied research and innovation. To achieve this, we will need to focus our efforts on a more concentrated set of priorities, funded at a level that can be maintained over time. As part of this, STFC is reviewing its entire portfolio, including facilities and laboratories, to understand how best to deliver a sustainable programme for the future. Within the PPAN programme – now operating fully within STFC’s curiosity-driven research portfolio – we will need to model further adjustments, building on last year’s 15% reduction in new grants, to bring the programme into long-term balance. This prioritisation process will inevitably require some difficult choices. A more sustainable level for STFC's PPAN budget is likely to be around 70% of what this budget grew to in 24/25 off the back of steep inflation and rises in cost of operations in the last Spending Review. extract (too long for complete alt text): Next Steps: Preparing for Portfolio Adjustments To manage the challenges ahead, we will need to make difficult choices between scientifically excellent projects, this will include ceasing or reducing investments in many of the projects that STFC currently supports in order to continue funding others at a sustainable level. To support a comprehensive appraisal of options, we will be asking individual projects within our PPAN portfolio to identify how their project would respond to flat cash and reductions of 20%, 40% and 60%, and also identify the funding point at which the project becomes non-viable. This will enable Science Board to advise on redistribution and optimise returns. A separate proforma will be sent to Projects PIs shortly for completion by Tuesday 10 March 2026. Where major changes to scope or schedule are proposed, we understand full plans may not be possible. Please work closely with colleagues in STFC National Labs departments where relevant to ensure joined-up planning and the most accurate possible estimates. As always, your STFC Programmes Directorate team will try to help with any detailed questions that may emerge. I recognise this news comes after tough decisions on Infrastructure Fund projects before Christmas, which adds to concern. These decisions were the outcome of a structured UKRI-wide prioritisation process, which was heavily over-subscribed, informed by independent committee assessment and supported by DSIT. We would deeply appreciate your support and input as we navigate this difficult process to ensure that public R&D investment is sustainable, delivers long-term value, and continues to underpin the UK’s world-leading research and innovation system. I hope that you can work with us to emerge from these challenges with a positive and future-proofed vision for STFC and the PPAN disciplines.
January 28, 2026 at 4:19 PM
drkeithsmith.bsky.social
Some good news for once: the plan to build a large light-polluting and dust-producing industrial facility just 5km from some of the world's biggest telescopes, has been dropped. The project caused an outcry among astronomers and criticism from Chilean politicians. 🔭🧪
www.science.org/content/arti...
Controversial Chilean energy project scrapped, relieving astronomers
Light pollution from green hydrogen plant would have threatened world’s largest telescopes
www.science.org
January 29, 2026 at 1:13 PM
Reposted by Keith Smith
royalastrosoc.bsky.social
The Royal Astronomical Society is gravely concerned at the drastic cuts to support for UK astronomy outlined by the Science and Technology Facilities Council.

Read our statement 👉 ras.ac.uk/news-and-pre...
Proposed budget cuts a catastrophe for UK astronomy
The Royal Astronomical Society (RAS) is gravely concerned at the drastic cuts to support for UK astronomy outlined by the Science and Technology Facilities Council (...
ras.ac.uk
January 28, 2026 at 9:07 PM
Reposted by Keith Smith
maddyseale.bsky.social
Come and work with us! Science is recruiting an editor in the area of next-generation medicine in the USA or UK. bit.ly/4bWOJfn
🧪
bit.ly
January 28, 2026 at 10:48 AM
drkeithsmith.bsky.social
Also this week: tracking spacecraft re-entry using seismometers on the ground. This method provides additional constraints on the debris trajectory, even during daytime. 🛰️🔭 #seismology
science.org Science Magazine @science.org · 18d
Researchers in Science present a novel way to track errant space debris as it falls to Earth in near-real-time.

Their method uses publicly available data from ground-based seismic sensors to detect the shockwaves, or sonic booms, of reentering debris. Learn more: https://scim.ag/4jTaKxz
An artists’ impression of the re-entering debris breaking up over California and generating a sonic boom which propagates down to the ground and is recorded by seismometers.
January 23, 2026 at 2:13 PM
Reposted by Keith Smith
danclery.bsky.social
Spacecraft captures a solar flare as it builds into an explosive outburst | Science | AAAS 🔭🧪 @science.org www.science.org/content/arti...
Spacecraft captures a solar flare as it builds into an explosive outburst
Europe’s Solar Orbiter is helping researchers understand what causes the Sun to blast out radiation and particles
www.science.org
January 21, 2026 at 11:10 AM
drkeithsmith.bsky.social
Editor's choice: Neights et al. have observed a gamma-ray burst that lasted 7 hours. They argue it arose from a black hole merging with a helium star. ☄️🔭 #highenergyastro #stellarastro
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
In Other Journals
Editors’ selections from the current scientific literature
www.science.org
January 19, 2026 at 12:36 PM
drkeithsmith.bsky.social
A major loss. Don York is best known for leading SDSS, which brought optical astronomy into the era of big data.

I met him through his work on the diffuse interstellar bands. Every time we interacted, he was kind, encouraging, and happy to chat with a then-young PhD student (me). 🔭☄️
January 16, 2026 at 12:51 PM
drkeithsmith.bsky.social
Li et al. monitored a repeating fast radio burst (FRB). They identify a transient excursion of its rotation measure (RM), which increases by orders of magnitude for 2 weeks. Possible causes include a coronal mass ejection from a binary companion star. ☄️ #radioastro
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
January 15, 2026 at 8:03 PM
Reposted by Keith Smith
cam.ac.uk
Undergraduates: Curious about a career in astronomy? 🔭

Take your first step with @cambridgeastro.bsky.social’s Summer Internship Programme and gain 8 weeks of research experience.

Applications from underrepresented groups in astronomy are encouraged.

Apply by 27 February 👇
https://bit.ly/4qYR0LD
Three individuals observing a telescope at the Institute of Astronomy in Cambridge. A text overlay reads: 'Are you looking for an astronomy internship at Cambridge?'
January 14, 2026 at 1:01 PM
drkeithsmith.bsky.social
What should a major scientific project do if one of its grants is cancelled or an unexpected budget over-run occurs? @cyberlyra.bsky.social draws on the history of NASA space missions to examine which approaches work, and which make things worse. 🧪⚛️🔭🛰️
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Weathering budget cuts: Lessons from NASA
The current uncertainty and cuts to science funding affect universities, research facilities, and laboratories across the United States, but this situation is not unprecedented. Under pressure to fund...
www.science.org
January 9, 2026 at 3:48 PM
drkeithsmith.bsky.social
Kader, @justtheletteru.bsky.social et al. use multi-wavelength observations to show a precessing jet in an active galaxy is driving a gas outflow. This galactic feedback is removing enough material to affect the star formation rate.
☄️ #extragalactic #AAS247
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
January 8, 2026 at 5:33 PM
drkeithsmith.bsky.social
Mars Sample Return - a planned mission to retrieve the rocks collected by the Perseverance rover and bring them to Earth for lab analysis - has been effectively cancelled by US Congress.

The budget does provide some funding for technology development of a future replacement mission. #planetsci 🔭🧪
voosen.me Paul Voosen @voosen.me · Jan 7
My latest: The compromise spending bill is mostly full of good news for NASA science. But there is one off note: Mars Sample Return, as it's been currently devised, has no way forward.
NASA’s Mars Sample Return mission is dead
Congress backs Trump administration’s efforts to kill project that would ferry martian rocks to Earth
www.science.org
January 7, 2026 at 3:51 PM
drkeithsmith.bsky.social
A news report from @danclery.bsky.social discusses a space telescope concept. It could provide resolved images of a rocky #exoplanet, using the Sun as a gravitational lens. The engineering challenges are daunting, as is the required mission duration, but it's a neat idea. 🔭 #instrumentation
science.org Science Magazine @science.org · Dec 26
The Sundiver mission will show how thin solar sails could accelerate spacecraft to the Sun’s focus, beyond the Solar System. https://scim.ag/4pUlnmf
Sun’s gravitational lens could reveal alien planets’ surfaces
Bold concept calls for sending telescopes 10 times farther than Pluto
scim.ag
January 5, 2026 at 5:26 PM
Reposted by Keith Smith
science.org
A new type of telescope designed to accelerate a new sort of astronomy was completed this year on a mountaintop in Chile. The Vera C. Rubin Observatory will relentlessly sweep across the heavens.

Learn more about Science's 2025 #BOTY and the runners-up: https://scim.ag/3MGESjx
2025 Runners-up An all-seeing eye on the sky
January 2, 2026 at 11:50 PM
drkeithsmith.bsky.social
How can astronomers weigh an isolated planetary-mass object that isn't orbiting a star? Dong et al. observe a free-floating planet microlensing event from ground- and space-based telescopes. The time delay indicates it was caused by a Saturn-mass object. ☄️ #exoplanets
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
A free-floating-planet microlensing event caused by a Saturn-mass object
A population of free-floating planets is known from gravitational microlensing surveys. None have a directly measured mass, owing to a degeneracy with the distance, but the population statistics indic...
www.science.org
January 2, 2026 at 12:45 PM
Reposted by Keith Smith
rasjournals.bsky.social
🔭🕰️⌛ ** Reminder ** ⌛🕰️🔭

The closing date for applications to be the next Editor-in-Chief of MNRAS is Friday week: 9th January 2026. Interested? Visit ras.ac.uk/mnras-eic for more information. @royalastrosoc.bsky.social
Call for applications: Editor-in-Chief, MNRAS
The Royal Astronomical Society (RAS) is seeking to appoint a new Editor-in-Chief (EiC) of Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society (MNRAS) to provide outst...
ras.ac.uk
December 31, 2025 at 8:35 AM