Michelle Collins
@runningastronomer.bsky.social
✨Astronomer searching for and studying the faintest galaxies in the Universe ✨co-host of the @starxiv.bsky.social podcast ✨ Enthusiastic-but-mediocre runner 🏃🏻♀️ vegan 🌱 She/her
More from the Seestar as we experienced another cold and crisp night here 😍 I captured the bubble nebula, which is formed from the stellar wind of a young massive star. And NGC 925, a magellanic-esque spiral galaxy. You can see the bright knots of star formation in its arms 🔭
January 6, 2026 at 9:22 AM
More from the Seestar as we experienced another cold and crisp night here 😍 I captured the bubble nebula, which is formed from the stellar wind of a young massive star. And NGC 925, a magellanic-esque spiral galaxy. You can see the bright knots of star formation in its arms 🔭
Reposted by Michelle Collins
In Belfast in mid-February? Do grab a free ticket to hear my colleague Mario Jurić and I explain how 2026 is going to be an amazing year for exploring the Solar System with the brand new Vera C. Rubin Observatory 19 Feb 7pm nisciencefestival.com/event/beyond... #NISF26 🔭🧪
Beyond the Horizon: | NI Science Festival
nisciencefestival.com
January 5, 2026 at 9:03 PM
In Belfast in mid-February? Do grab a free ticket to hear my colleague Mario Jurić and I explain how 2026 is going to be an amazing year for exploring the Solar System with the brand new Vera C. Rubin Observatory 19 Feb 7pm nisciencefestival.com/event/beyond... #NISF26 🔭🧪
I'm still not very mobile, but that did not stop me from hobbling into the garden with my telescope. Shakira the Seestar continues to delight me. Behold! The ghost of Cassiopeia 👻😍🔭
January 5, 2026 at 2:44 PM
I'm still not very mobile, but that did not stop me from hobbling into the garden with my telescope. Shakira the Seestar continues to delight me. Behold! The ghost of Cassiopeia 👻😍🔭
Our module evaluation scores came out today (where students feedback on our teaching performance). I managed to score 50% satisfaction for a module I don't teach on. I'm not sure what that tells me, but it does not give confidence in the interpretation of these scores for my appraisal 😂🎓🧪
January 5, 2026 at 10:18 AM
Our module evaluation scores came out today (where students feedback on our teaching performance). I managed to score 50% satisfaction for a module I don't teach on. I'm not sure what that tells me, but it does not give confidence in the interpretation of these scores for my appraisal 😂🎓🧪
Reposted by Michelle Collins
The end of 2025 didn't go exactly to plan! So I wrote my first blog post in a while, all about where I am with my running (spoiler: nowhere 😉) 🏃♀️ photo taken almost immediately before everything went a bit wrong.
www.therunningastronomer.com/2026/01/the-...
www.therunningastronomer.com/2026/01/the-...
January 2, 2026 at 2:31 PM
The end of 2025 didn't go exactly to plan! So I wrote my first blog post in a while, all about where I am with my running (spoiler: nowhere 😉) 🏃♀️ photo taken almost immediately before everything went a bit wrong.
www.therunningastronomer.com/2026/01/the-...
www.therunningastronomer.com/2026/01/the-...
The end of 2025 didn't go exactly to plan! So I wrote my first blog post in a while, all about where I am with my running (spoiler: nowhere 😉) 🏃♀️ photo taken almost immediately before everything went a bit wrong.
www.therunningastronomer.com/2026/01/the-...
www.therunningastronomer.com/2026/01/the-...
January 2, 2026 at 2:31 PM
The end of 2025 didn't go exactly to plan! So I wrote my first blog post in a while, all about where I am with my running (spoiler: nowhere 😉) 🏃♀️ photo taken almost immediately before everything went a bit wrong.
www.therunningastronomer.com/2026/01/the-...
www.therunningastronomer.com/2026/01/the-...
Not sure what to do this betwixtmas? Why not catch up on the @starxiv.bsky.social podcast? It's been a great year for astronomy papers! 😍🧪☄️🔭
Episode 27: Making a Milky Way, searching for dwarfs, and elusive black holes
In this episode, Michelle and Payel explore various astrophysical topics, including the Solar birth cluster, young stars, the formation of intermediate mass black holes, and the universe's decelerated expansion. They…
In this episode, Michelle and Payel explore various astrophysical topics, including the Solar birth cluster, young stars, the formation of intermediate mass black holes, and the universe's decelerated expansion. They…
Episode 27: Making a Milky Way, searching for dwarfs, and elusive black holes
In this episode, Michelle and Payel explore various astrophysical topics, including the Solar birth cluster, young stars, the formation of intermediate mass black holes, and the universe's decelerated expansion. They also discuss strong lens detection by Euclid and solar flare predictions.
starxiv.com
December 28, 2025 at 12:08 PM
Not sure what to do this betwixtmas? Why not catch up on the @starxiv.bsky.social podcast? It's been a great year for astronomy papers! 😍🧪☄️🔭
New episode is live! I'll be listening to this one as I continue to recover from sciatica. Gotta keep the mind active 😊🔭☄️🧪
Episode 27: Making a Milky Way, searching for dwarfs, and elusive black holes
In this episode, Michelle and Payel explore various astrophysical topics, including the Solar birth cluster, young stars, the formation of intermediate mass black holes, and the universe's decelerated expansion. They…
In this episode, Michelle and Payel explore various astrophysical topics, including the Solar birth cluster, young stars, the formation of intermediate mass black holes, and the universe's decelerated expansion. They…
Episode 27: Making a Milky Way, searching for dwarfs, and elusive black holes
In this episode, Michelle and Payel explore various astrophysical topics, including the Solar birth cluster, young stars, the formation of intermediate mass black holes, and the universe's decelerated expansion. They also discuss strong lens detection by Euclid and solar flare predictions.
starxiv.com
December 22, 2025 at 4:19 PM
New episode is live! I'll be listening to this one as I continue to recover from sciatica. Gotta keep the mind active 😊🔭☄️🧪
Just watching the fabulous @markanorris.bsky.social on the BBC talking about 3I ATLAS! Doing a great job 🎉☄️🔭
December 19, 2025 at 8:57 AM
Just watching the fabulous @markanorris.bsky.social on the BBC talking about 3I ATLAS! Doing a great job 🎉☄️🔭
Reposted by Michelle Collins
I'm hiring a postdoc -- come and do awesome cosmology with great people in one of the nicest cities in the world (not that I'm biased or anything) 🔭 🧪
cosmology.blogs.auckland.ac.nz/2025/12/12/p...
cosmology.blogs.auckland.ac.nz/2025/12/12/p...
Post-doc @ Auckland
Looking for a cosmology post-doc at the University of Auckland
cosmology.blogs.auckland.ac.nz
December 12, 2025 at 10:12 AM
I'm hiring a postdoc -- come and do awesome cosmology with great people in one of the nicest cities in the world (not that I'm biased or anything) 🔭 🧪
cosmology.blogs.auckland.ac.nz/2025/12/12/p...
cosmology.blogs.auckland.ac.nz/2025/12/12/p...
Reposted by Michelle Collins
🔭 New research shows that AI models like SAM can measure galaxy sizes with ~1% accuracy.
This could be key for ARRAKIHS, helping detect faint halos, tidal streams, and other low–surface-brightness features that trace galactic evolution and dark matter.
📲 bit.ly/4pZR113
@cefca-oaj.bsky.social
This could be key for ARRAKIHS, helping detect faint halos, tidal streams, and other low–surface-brightness features that trace galactic evolution and dark matter.
📲 bit.ly/4pZR113
@cefca-oaj.bsky.social
A New AI Tool to Map the Outskirts of Galaxies - ARRAKIHS Mission
Determining the size of a galaxy requires identifying the point at which its light distribution shows a clear decline, a feature often referred to as its truncation. This boundary offers valuable info...
www.arrakihs-mission.eu
December 12, 2025 at 9:22 AM
🔭 New research shows that AI models like SAM can measure galaxy sizes with ~1% accuracy.
This could be key for ARRAKIHS, helping detect faint halos, tidal streams, and other low–surface-brightness features that trace galactic evolution and dark matter.
📲 bit.ly/4pZR113
@cefca-oaj.bsky.social
This could be key for ARRAKIHS, helping detect faint halos, tidal streams, and other low–surface-brightness features that trace galactic evolution and dark matter.
📲 bit.ly/4pZR113
@cefca-oaj.bsky.social
Reposted by Michelle Collins
🔭 Now it's official, the nebula was never in Andromeda!
Our paper has been published and we show that the large 🧪 oxygen nebula is in the Milky Way.
This arc was discovered by amateurs photographing Andromeda with an [O III] filter, and now we have new things to say... ⚛️
Our paper has been published and we show that the large 🧪 oxygen nebula is in the Milky Way.
This arc was discovered by amateurs photographing Andromeda with an [O III] filter, and now we have new things to say... ⚛️
December 11, 2025 at 10:03 PM
🔭 Now it's official, the nebula was never in Andromeda!
Our paper has been published and we show that the large 🧪 oxygen nebula is in the Milky Way.
This arc was discovered by amateurs photographing Andromeda with an [O III] filter, and now we have new things to say... ⚛️
Our paper has been published and we show that the large 🧪 oxygen nebula is in the Milky Way.
This arc was discovered by amateurs photographing Andromeda with an [O III] filter, and now we have new things to say... ⚛️
Reposted by Michelle Collins
Nicole’s second paper probes how low-mass galaxies grow from their centres to their halos, finds universal metallicity gradients but no clean link to mass, plus U-shaped age profiles and halo metallicities set by when satellites fell in, not how many. Find out more here: arxiv.org/abs/2511.20806 🔭☄️
December 8, 2025 at 10:44 AM
Nicole’s second paper probes how low-mass galaxies grow from their centres to their halos, finds universal metallicity gradients but no clean link to mass, plus U-shaped age profiles and halo metallicities set by when satellites fell in, not how many. Find out more here: arxiv.org/abs/2511.20806 🔭☄️
Reposted by Michelle Collins
Payel's second paper looked at the correlation between starspots and flares in stars beyond our solar system. Even though they're correlated for our Sun, they don't seem to be stars further afield. Listen in to find out more. You can find the paper here arxiv.org/abs/2512.01051
December 8, 2025 at 5:20 PM
Payel's second paper looked at the correlation between starspots and flares in stars beyond our solar system. Even though they're correlated for our Sun, they don't seem to be stars further afield. Listen in to find out more. You can find the paper here arxiv.org/abs/2512.01051
Reposted by Michelle Collins
keep calm and carry on 🔭 (thanks @aaccomazzi.bsky.social )
I'm happy to report that "Scenario 2" won't be necessary, as NASA has just communicated to us that SciX funding will continue in 2026 (albeit at a reduced level). Therefore, we will not be forcing astronomers to leave ADS, but rather develop a plan that allows a longer transition.
December 9, 2025 at 7:17 PM
keep calm and carry on 🔭 (thanks @aaccomazzi.bsky.social )
Reposted by Michelle Collins
Nicole’s third paper digs into the UFD Boötes I with JWST + HST, uncovering a steep metallicity distribution and a surprisingly normal binary fraction, showing that even in a tiny, ancient, dark-matter-dominated relic, stars formed and paired much like elsewhere. arxiv.org/abs/2512.01547 🔭☄️
December 8, 2025 at 3:06 PM
Nicole’s third paper digs into the UFD Boötes I with JWST + HST, uncovering a steep metallicity distribution and a surprisingly normal binary fraction, showing that even in a tiny, ancient, dark-matter-dominated relic, stars formed and paired much like elsewhere. arxiv.org/abs/2512.01547 🔭☄️
Movie you’ve watched more than six times with a gif. Hard mode: no Stars (Wars nor Trek), LOTR, or Marvel, Disney Animated or Pixar.
December 8, 2025 at 7:40 AM
Movie you’ve watched more than six times with a gif. Hard mode: no Stars (Wars nor Trek), LOTR, or Marvel, Disney Animated or Pixar.
Welcome @joanna-sakowska.bsky.social to bluesky! Great to have another (former) Surrey astro here 😊🤩🔭
December 1, 2025 at 5:16 PM
Welcome @joanna-sakowska.bsky.social to bluesky! Great to have another (former) Surrey astro here 😊🤩🔭
What do extragalactic exoplanets look like? The VOYAGERS survey is aiming to find out by studying stars accreted into the milky way! 🤩🔭☄️🧪
Michelle's first paper focused on finding extragalactic exoplanets! Te VOYAGERS survey looks for planets around stars brought into the Galaxy by the GES merger. Would they be different? Tune in to find out! 🔭 ☄️https://arxiv.org/abs/2511.07632
November 27, 2025 at 8:29 AM
What do extragalactic exoplanets look like? The VOYAGERS survey is aiming to find out by studying stars accreted into the milky way! 🤩🔭☄️🧪
Last night Shakira the Seestar and I went deep on Andromeda 😍🔭
November 26, 2025 at 10:50 AM
Last night Shakira the Seestar and I went deep on Andromeda 😍🔭
Episode 25 is live! We went all out this episode with all three of us (me, @payeldas.bsky.social and @nbuckley0810.bsky.social) participating. Check it out! 🔭☄️🧪
Episode 25: Extragalactic exoplanets, simulating individual stars, and galaxy mergers as cosmic ray factories
In this episode, Michelle and Payel explore various astrophysical topics, including the Solar birth cluster, young stars, the formation of intermediate mass black holes, and the universe's…
In this episode, Michelle and Payel explore various astrophysical topics, including the Solar birth cluster, young stars, the formation of intermediate mass black holes, and the universe's…
Episode 25: Extragalactic exoplanets, simulating individual stars, and galaxy mergers as cosmic ray factories
In this episode, Michelle and Payel explore various astrophysical topics, including the Solar birth cluster, young stars, the formation of intermediate mass black holes, and the universe's decelerated expansion. They also discuss strong lens detection by Euclid and solar flare predictions.
starxiv.com
November 24, 2025 at 3:52 PM
Episode 25 is live! We went all out this episode with all three of us (me, @payeldas.bsky.social and @nbuckley0810.bsky.social) participating. Check it out! 🔭☄️🧪
Last night I managed to get a few frames of seestar data before bed. Check out the heart nebula and M33 😍🔭
November 24, 2025 at 1:21 PM
Last night I managed to get a few frames of seestar data before bed. Check out the heart nebula and M33 😍🔭
Reposted by Michelle Collins
We have a PhD opportunity at the University of Reading focused on analysing Jupiter and Saturn auroral observations!
Title: Investigating Earth-like responses to the Solar Wind in Gas Giant Upper Atmospheres
Supervisor: me!
Full description/application portal:
www.findaphd.com/phds/project...
Title: Investigating Earth-like responses to the Solar Wind in Gas Giant Upper Atmospheres
Supervisor: me!
Full description/application portal:
www.findaphd.com/phds/project...
Crocus DLA
crocus-dla.ac.uk
November 20, 2025 at 2:11 PM
We have a PhD opportunity at the University of Reading focused on analysing Jupiter and Saturn auroral observations!
Title: Investigating Earth-like responses to the Solar Wind in Gas Giant Upper Atmospheres
Supervisor: me!
Full description/application portal:
www.findaphd.com/phds/project...
Title: Investigating Earth-like responses to the Solar Wind in Gas Giant Upper Atmospheres
Supervisor: me!
Full description/application portal:
www.findaphd.com/phds/project...
Last night was clear and crisp, so I got out Shakira the Seestar and imaged NGC 891 (the silver sliver galaxy), the pacman nebula and the double cluster C14 😍🔭
November 21, 2025 at 8:10 AM
Last night was clear and crisp, so I got out Shakira the Seestar and imaged NGC 891 (the silver sliver galaxy), the pacman nebula and the double cluster C14 😍🔭
You know it's snowing in Guildford when your WhatsApp lights up with a million "SNOW!!!!" messages 😍❄️🌨️
November 19, 2025 at 9:33 AM
You know it's snowing in Guildford when your WhatsApp lights up with a million "SNOW!!!!" messages 😍❄️🌨️