Eamonn Kerins
@eamonnkerins.bsky.social
Jodrell Bank astrophysicist and exoplanet scientist. Swimmer, cyclist, runner. Sometimes all three consecutively. Occasional BBC TV space pundit. Prone to career-threatening scicomm and fundraising activities. Own views. https://linktr.ee/eamonn_kerins
Been bad mouthing #AI engines recently. So, for balance, i got #GPT4 to do some useful #exoplanet stuff today. From a csv i downloaded from the #NASA #ExoplanetArchive it made a clickable version of the plot below that takes you to the info page on that planet. Damn useful! 🧪🔭🪐
August 14, 2025 at 8:42 PM
Been bad mouthing #AI engines recently. So, for balance, i got #GPT4 to do some useful #exoplanet stuff today. From a csv i downloaded from the #NASA #ExoplanetArchive it made a clickable version of the plot below that takes you to the info page on that planet. Damn useful! 🧪🔭🪐
I guess some are better than others - Claude Opus 4.1 is not so easily fooled, it seems. Not on this test anyway.
August 13, 2025 at 2:33 PM
I guess some are better than others - Claude Opus 4.1 is not so easily fooled, it seems. Not on this test anyway.
So, #GPT5 is supposed to have "PhD level" intelligence, according to the hype. Every time a new #AI chatbot is released, I test it with a fictitious situation in which I attempt to con a friend out of £5. A ten year old could easily spot the con. GPT5, like its predecessors, cannot.
August 13, 2025 at 1:39 PM
And here's what it looked like - magical!
August 10, 2025 at 5:53 PM
And here's what it looked like - magical!
I mentioned on #BBCBreakfast yesterday that I would see in the #SturgeonMoon with a moonlight dip. Being in water is a wonderful vantage point to observe the sky.
#nightswimming #fullmoon
#nightswimming #fullmoon
August 10, 2025 at 5:51 PM
I mentioned on #BBCBreakfast yesterday that I would see in the #SturgeonMoon with a moonlight dip. Being in water is a wonderful vantage point to observe the sky.
#nightswimming #fullmoon
#nightswimming #fullmoon
If you're in the UK and hoping to catch the #PerseidMeteorShower over the next few days, here's some pointers from my chat on #BBCBreakfast this morning with Charlie and Naga.
August 9, 2025 at 4:33 PM
If you're in the UK and hoping to catch the #PerseidMeteorShower over the next few days, here's some pointers from my chat on #BBCBreakfast this morning with Charlie and Naga.
My daughter did this sketch a few years ago. Seems an appropriate evening to give it an airing.
#OasisLive25
#OasisLive25
July 4, 2025 at 9:40 PM
My daughter did this sketch a few years ago. Seems an appropriate evening to give it an airing.
#OasisLive25
#OasisLive25
Beautiful swim at Combs Reservoir near Buxton this morning. But the large sandy looking shore line area certainly testifies to the effects of the recent dry weather spell.
June 15, 2025 at 12:29 PM
Beautiful swim at Combs Reservoir near Buxton this morning. But the large sandy looking shore line area certainly testifies to the effects of the recent dry weather spell.
Another orbit complete, and a lovely card from my daughter, showing some family moments over the last 23 orbits.
I'm not tearing up, honest, I just sweat a lot...
I'm not tearing up, honest, I just sweat a lot...
June 15, 2025 at 11:04 AM
Another orbit complete, and a lovely card from my daughter, showing some family moments over the last 23 orbits.
I'm not tearing up, honest, I just sweat a lot...
I'm not tearing up, honest, I just sweat a lot...
How's your day at work been?
#UniversallyManchester #UniversityOfManchester
#Aliens
#TheyAreAmongUs
#TheThingsIDoForMyJob
#UniversallyManchester #UniversityOfManchester
#Aliens
#TheyAreAmongUs
#TheThingsIDoForMyJob
June 14, 2025 at 11:20 AM
How's your day at work been?
#UniversallyManchester #UniversityOfManchester
#Aliens
#TheyAreAmongUs
#TheThingsIDoForMyJob
#UniversallyManchester #UniversityOfManchester
#Aliens
#TheyAreAmongUs
#TheThingsIDoForMyJob
Never saw myself doing something like this, so it's weird seeing these pictures. Yesterday I took part in the Ironman Bolton 70.3 triathlon. A 1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike ride, then a 13.1 mile half-marathon run. Finished in 7hrs 34min, 56 min before the cutoff. A mere 3 hrs 30min behind the winner.
June 9, 2025 at 8:06 PM
Never saw myself doing something like this, so it's weird seeing these pictures. Yesterday I took part in the Ironman Bolton 70.3 triathlon. A 1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike ride, then a 13.1 mile half-marathon run. Finished in 7hrs 34min, 56 min before the cutoff. A mere 3 hrs 30min behind the winner.
Just sorting through old books i don't need anymore. But this one is definitely staying!
May 14, 2025 at 5:37 PM
Just sorting through old books i don't need anymore. But this one is definitely staying!
Our home is now battery powered for 16 hours a day thanks to this unit. It charges from the grid for 8 hours per day during the cheapest tariff times. On current usage and electricity costs the ROI is under 5 years - battery is guaranteed for 12. As a bonus, it's also a UPS if we suffer power cuts.
March 14, 2025 at 11:12 PM
Our home is now battery powered for 16 hours a day thanks to this unit. It charges from the grid for 8 hours per day during the cheapest tariff times. On current usage and electricity costs the ROI is under 5 years - battery is guaranteed for 12. As a bonus, it's also a UPS if we suffer power cuts.
Great chat this morning on the #BBCBreakfast sofa with Nina Warhurst and Roger Johnson on the #UKSpaceIndustry and the importance of funding #Physics and #SpaceSciences.
Physics sector is an engine of our #economy, not a drain on it. Without it we'd have less money for schools, hospitals, etc. 🧪🔭
Physics sector is an engine of our #economy, not a drain on it. Without it we'd have less money for schools, hospitals, etc. 🧪🔭
March 9, 2025 at 12:21 PM
Great chat this morning on the #BBCBreakfast sofa with Nina Warhurst and Roger Johnson on the #UKSpaceIndustry and the importance of funding #Physics and #SpaceSciences.
Physics sector is an engine of our #economy, not a drain on it. Without it we'd have less money for schools, hospitals, etc. 🧪🔭
Physics sector is an engine of our #economy, not a drain on it. Without it we'd have less money for schools, hospitals, etc. 🧪🔭
Fun day visiting my daughter in #Liverpool. She took me #climbing, something i haven't done in over 25 years. Great fun, but my fingers are not happy. 🧗🏻♂️👍
March 8, 2025 at 7:10 PM
Fun day visiting my daughter in #Liverpool. She took me #climbing, something i haven't done in over 25 years. Great fun, but my fingers are not happy. 🧗🏻♂️👍
Beautiful swim this morning in Lake #Coniston with my wife Kate. Water was about 6C and crystal clear. First time swimming in Coniston - it won't be my last. #OpenWaterSwimming 🏊🏻♂️
March 2, 2025 at 6:34 PM
Beautiful swim this morning in Lake #Coniston with my wife Kate. Water was about 6C and crystal clear. First time swimming in Coniston - it won't be my last. #OpenWaterSwimming 🏊🏻♂️
So, about that #motorist. The incident happened last week in rush hour #cycling along the busy A6 dual carriageway descending into #Stockport from #Manchester. A driver drive alongside me for several hundred meters. Then, they moved slightly ahead and turned hard left directly across my path.
February 26, 2025 at 12:00 PM
So, about that #motorist. The incident happened last week in rush hour #cycling along the busy A6 dual carriageway descending into #Stockport from #Manchester. A driver drive alongside me for several hundred meters. Then, they moved slightly ahead and turned hard left directly across my path.
Was hit by a motorised last week whilst #cycling, so I'm having to come into work by car whilst my leg injuries heal #irony. My car doesn't travel far nor go fast, but it's very cheap to buy and run, and perfect for city driving. But I'm getting a distinct #SizeMatters vibe from the other cars. 😆
February 26, 2025 at 11:03 AM
Was hit by a motorised last week whilst #cycling, so I'm having to come into work by car whilst my leg injuries heal #irony. My car doesn't travel far nor go fast, but it's very cheap to buy and run, and perfect for city driving. But I'm getting a distinct #SizeMatters vibe from the other cars. 😆
Regarding how we might move such an object - the NASA DART mission did exactly this in 2022 by slamming into #Dimorphos, a rather larger asteroid than #2024YR4. Here's a (truncated) clip of me talking to #BBCbreakfast about it, hours before the impact. 🔭🧪
February 19, 2025 at 2:19 PM
Regarding how we might move such an object - the NASA DART mission did exactly this in 2022 by slamming into #Dimorphos, a rather larger asteroid than #2024YR4. Here's a (truncated) clip of me talking to #BBCbreakfast about it, hours before the impact. 🔭🧪
Attempting to train for the IM Bolton 70.3 triathlon in June. But work and a broken bike have prevented any training for over a month. Today was my first run since then, and it was shattering - cardio is through the floor. I've finally managed to mend the bike, so will need to pick things up. 🏊🏻♂️🚴🏻♂️🏃🏻♂️
February 16, 2025 at 2:03 PM
Attempting to train for the IM Bolton 70.3 triathlon in June. But work and a broken bike have prevented any training for over a month. Today was my first run since then, and it was shattering - cardio is through the floor. I've finally managed to mend the bike, so will need to pick things up. 🏊🏻♂️🚴🏻♂️🏃🏻♂️
A lovely night swim last night at Combs Reservoir near Buxton, UK. The water was a breeding 3C so only a fairly short dip. It was the Snow Moon but it was a little too low to see, and it was cloudy anyway. Thankful to dry off around a fire pit, drink hot chocolate, munch flap jacks with friends.
February 13, 2025 at 8:25 AM
A lovely night swim last night at Combs Reservoir near Buxton, UK. The water was a breeding 3C so only a fairly short dip. It was the Snow Moon but it was a little too low to see, and it was cloudy anyway. Thankful to dry off around a fire pit, drink hot chocolate, munch flap jacks with friends.
This tree at my hotel in Cape Town definitely had a Game of Thrones vibe.
February 9, 2025 at 8:26 PM
This tree at my hotel in Cape Town definitely had a Game of Thrones vibe.
So, why aren't these a thing in the UK?
February 2, 2025 at 9:26 PM
So, why aren't these a thing in the UK?