Mark A. Norris
@markanorris.bsky.social
Astronomer, Educator, Traveller, Human, Mild cynic.
Reposted by Mark A. Norris
Join us for the next JHI Public Lecture (Dec 4th) as Professor Clive Ruggles (Leicester) explores the idea that our ancestors used "ancient observatories" as part of their ritual lives. www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/sun-stones...
Sun, stones and stars:exploring ancient sky knowledge
Join Professor Clive Ruggles as he dives into the ancient secrets of the sky with Sun, stones, and stars!
www.eventbrite.co.uk
November 10, 2025 at 11:52 AM
Join us for the next JHI Public Lecture (Dec 4th) as Professor Clive Ruggles (Leicester) explores the idea that our ancestors used "ancient observatories" as part of their ritual lives. www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/sun-stones...
Did you know that because space is expanding time appears to slow down when we observe distant galaxies?
I made a short video explaining cosmological time dilation, how we measure it, and what effects it has on how we view the universe.
Makes a change from comets.
youtu.be/mwtiHhVUALA
I made a short video explaining cosmological time dilation, how we measure it, and what effects it has on how we view the universe.
Makes a change from comets.
youtu.be/mwtiHhVUALA
How an expanding universe slows down time.
YouTube video by Mark Norris
youtu.be
November 8, 2025 at 9:05 AM
Did you know that because space is expanding time appears to slow down when we observe distant galaxies?
I made a short video explaining cosmological time dilation, how we measure it, and what effects it has on how we view the universe.
Makes a change from comets.
youtu.be/mwtiHhVUALA
I made a short video explaining cosmological time dilation, how we measure it, and what effects it has on how we view the universe.
Makes a change from comets.
youtu.be/mwtiHhVUALA
Well that’s a first. My only mildly sarcastic answer to a question about how we know 3I/ATLAS is a comet made it onto Have I Got News For You.
😂😂😂
😂😂😂
November 7, 2025 at 10:00 PM
Well that’s a first. My only mildly sarcastic answer to a question about how we know 3I/ATLAS is a comet made it onto Have I Got News For You.
😂😂😂
😂😂😂
Nice lunar rainbow while observing during the public stargazing night at the Alston Observatory.
November 5, 2025 at 8:41 PM
Nice lunar rainbow while observing during the public stargazing night at the Alston Observatory.
Reposted by Mark A. Norris
It’s #supermoon time! If you have clear skies tonight (not likely in NW England…!) do have a look. Your brain is not good at measuring the size and brightness of things on the sky, so you might not be able to tell, but a full moon is always nice to look at! 🌕 Spoke to BBC 5 Live about it at 6.55am.
November 5, 2025 at 7:53 AM
It’s #supermoon time! If you have clear skies tonight (not likely in NW England…!) do have a look. Your brain is not good at measuring the size and brightness of things on the sky, so you might not be able to tell, but a full moon is always nice to look at! 🌕 Spoke to BBC 5 Live about it at 6.55am.
Quick update video on the real science (plus some hopefully not ill-informed speculation) of 3I/ATLAS around it's closest approach to the Sun.
Rapid brightening! Changing colour? non-gravitational acceleration! It is Aliens yet?
No. But it's still cool.
youtu.be/oX8vBXhFQ5o
Rapid brightening! Changing colour? non-gravitational acceleration! It is Aliens yet?
No. But it's still cool.
youtu.be/oX8vBXhFQ5o
All The Latest Real Science on 3I/ATLAS
YouTube video by Mark Norris
youtu.be
November 4, 2025 at 12:49 AM
Quick update video on the real science (plus some hopefully not ill-informed speculation) of 3I/ATLAS around it's closest approach to the Sun.
Rapid brightening! Changing colour? non-gravitational acceleration! It is Aliens yet?
No. But it's still cool.
youtu.be/oX8vBXhFQ5o
Rapid brightening! Changing colour? non-gravitational acceleration! It is Aliens yet?
No. But it's still cool.
youtu.be/oX8vBXhFQ5o
Can anyone remind me how to extract previous estimates of orbital elements from the minor planet center?
i.e. how do I see how the numbers have changed as measurements have improved?
i.e. how do I see how the numbers have changed as measurements have improved?
November 1, 2025 at 11:07 PM
Can anyone remind me how to extract previous estimates of orbital elements from the minor planet center?
i.e. how do I see how the numbers have changed as measurements have improved?
i.e. how do I see how the numbers have changed as measurements have improved?
I made a (relatively) short video looking at the 8 reasons Avi Loeb thinks 3I/ATLAS has a 40% chance of being aliens.
I’m not impressed.
youtu.be/y-oQ44pQdCU?...
I’m not impressed.
youtu.be/y-oQ44pQdCU?...
3I/ATLAS: Does it Really Have 40% Chance It's Alien?
YouTube video by Mark Norris
youtu.be
October 29, 2025 at 4:10 PM
I made a (relatively) short video looking at the 8 reasons Avi Loeb thinks 3I/ATLAS has a 40% chance of being aliens.
I’m not impressed.
youtu.be/y-oQ44pQdCU?...
I’m not impressed.
youtu.be/y-oQ44pQdCU?...
Morale in some areas of UK academia might be a bit low right now, but some people still have a (good) sense of humour.
October 28, 2025 at 11:44 AM
Morale in some areas of UK academia might be a bit low right now, but some people still have a (good) sense of humour.
What are the odds that the plans for this look xeroxed with Falcon 9 crudely crossed out and Zhuque-3 written in the corner in biro?
China's first REUSABLE rocket, Zhuque-3, has completed engine tests and begun final preparations before its maiden flight.
October 26, 2025 at 11:22 AM
What are the odds that the plans for this look xeroxed with Falcon 9 crudely crossed out and Zhuque-3 written in the corner in biro?
Loeb latest: “If 3I/ATLAS is a massive mothership, it will likely continue along its original gravitational path and ultimately exit the Solar system.”
Getting his excuses in early. Even if moves like a comet and leaves the solar system it’s still aliens.
🤦♂️
avi-loeb.medium.com/the-imminent...
Getting his excuses in early. Even if moves like a comet and leaves the solar system it’s still aliens.
🤦♂️
avi-loeb.medium.com/the-imminent...
The Imminent Solar Conjunction of 3I/ATLAS
On October 21, 2025, the interstellar object 3I/ATLAS will be exactly on the opposite side of the Sun relative to Earth, constituting a…
avi-loeb.medium.com
October 24, 2025 at 10:35 AM
Loeb latest: “If 3I/ATLAS is a massive mothership, it will likely continue along its original gravitational path and ultimately exit the Solar system.”
Getting his excuses in early. Even if moves like a comet and leaves the solar system it’s still aliens.
🤦♂️
avi-loeb.medium.com/the-imminent...
Getting his excuses in early. Even if moves like a comet and leaves the solar system it’s still aliens.
🤦♂️
avi-loeb.medium.com/the-imminent...
Can’t help but feel that Trump focussing on his golden monstrosity will not be a great look politically if there is a recession, or a stock market crash…
Leavitt: "At this moment in time, of course, the ballroom is really the president's main priority."
October 23, 2025 at 6:20 PM
Can’t help but feel that Trump focussing on his golden monstrosity will not be a great look politically if there is a recession, or a stock market crash…
Irritated by all the publicity hungry nonsense about 3I/ATLAS and aliens I made a video describing what we actually know about this unusual tourist from deep space and deep time that is racing through our solar system.
Spoiler: it's a comet, a cool one, but still a comet.
youtu.be/clrp8aW4RJk?...
Spoiler: it's a comet, a cool one, but still a comet.
youtu.be/clrp8aW4RJk?...
It Came From Deep Space! - 3I/ATLAS in the first 100 days
YouTube video by Mark Norris
youtu.be
October 23, 2025 at 12:38 PM
Irritated by all the publicity hungry nonsense about 3I/ATLAS and aliens I made a video describing what we actually know about this unusual tourist from deep space and deep time that is racing through our solar system.
Spoiler: it's a comet, a cool one, but still a comet.
youtu.be/clrp8aW4RJk?...
Spoiler: it's a comet, a cool one, but still a comet.
youtu.be/clrp8aW4RJk?...
Will Sam Altman and the other AI leaders be able to walk off into the sunset with their riches when the AI bubble explodes?
Or will the powerful whose wealth got vapourized find something, anything, to charge them with?
Might explain the desperate attempts to keep the bubble inflated.
Or will the powerful whose wealth got vapourized find something, anything, to charge them with?
Might explain the desperate attempts to keep the bubble inflated.
October 15, 2025 at 11:39 AM
Will Sam Altman and the other AI leaders be able to walk off into the sunset with their riches when the AI bubble explodes?
Or will the powerful whose wealth got vapourized find something, anything, to charge them with?
Might explain the desperate attempts to keep the bubble inflated.
Or will the powerful whose wealth got vapourized find something, anything, to charge them with?
Might explain the desperate attempts to keep the bubble inflated.
We have ~5 companies spending a collective trillion plus (and having to spend hundreds of billions a year in perpetuity) in hopes of cornering what is optimistically currently a $20 billion market.
No plausible amount of growth can prevent this being a financial disaster for most involved.
No plausible amount of growth can prevent this being a financial disaster for most involved.
I was already a hard AI-skeptic but this cements my long suspicion that there is no feasible path to anything close to return on invested capital for these data centers. Tech would need 15 to 25 times current AI revenues within the next 2-3 years just to break even. Not financially viable.
October 12, 2025 at 4:52 PM
We have ~5 companies spending a collective trillion plus (and having to spend hundreds of billions a year in perpetuity) in hopes of cornering what is optimistically currently a $20 billion market.
No plausible amount of growth can prevent this being a financial disaster for most involved.
No plausible amount of growth can prevent this being a financial disaster for most involved.
Made the mistake of upgrading MacOS.
Don’t think a single package has escaped unscathed.
Excuse me while I spend hours cursing my way through dozens of stackoverflow posts explaining why one obscure library after the other no longer works. All so Anaconda will maybe, sort of, work again.
Don’t think a single package has escaped unscathed.
Excuse me while I spend hours cursing my way through dozens of stackoverflow posts explaining why one obscure library after the other no longer works. All so Anaconda will maybe, sort of, work again.
September 11, 2025 at 6:50 AM
Made the mistake of upgrading MacOS.
Don’t think a single package has escaped unscathed.
Excuse me while I spend hours cursing my way through dozens of stackoverflow posts explaining why one obscure library after the other no longer works. All so Anaconda will maybe, sort of, work again.
Don’t think a single package has escaped unscathed.
Excuse me while I spend hours cursing my way through dozens of stackoverflow posts explaining why one obscure library after the other no longer works. All so Anaconda will maybe, sort of, work again.
Vice Chancellors/Heads of British/Australian/European Universities right now.
August 29, 2025 at 5:07 PM
Vice Chancellors/Heads of British/Australian/European Universities right now.
I guess that would buy him 3 months in the job, until Trump fires him.
Assuming he still planned to give honest numbers of course…
Assuming he still planned to give honest numbers of course…
🚨 Trump's new BLS nominee E.J. Antoni suggests pausing the monthly jobs report: Until it is corrected, the BLS should suspend issuing the monthly job reports but keep publishing the more accurate, though less timely, quarterly data
August 12, 2025 at 5:16 PM
I guess that would buy him 3 months in the job, until Trump fires him.
Assuming he still planned to give honest numbers of course…
Assuming he still planned to give honest numbers of course…
Never heard of Twilio before noticing that every scam caller number I get is registered to them.
It can’t be great for their business that the iPhone now seems to flag any Twilio associated number as suspected spam.
They might want to try stopping their service being abused…
It can’t be great for their business that the iPhone now seems to flag any Twilio associated number as suspected spam.
They might want to try stopping their service being abused…
July 24, 2025 at 8:33 AM
Never heard of Twilio before noticing that every scam caller number I get is registered to them.
It can’t be great for their business that the iPhone now seems to flag any Twilio associated number as suspected spam.
They might want to try stopping their service being abused…
It can’t be great for their business that the iPhone now seems to flag any Twilio associated number as suspected spam.
They might want to try stopping their service being abused…
They were supposedly best friends for more than a decade. He invited Epstein to his wedding. He flew on Epstein’s notorious plane multiple times.
I suspect even someone as dense as Trump knew he was in the files. A lot.
I suspect even someone as dense as Trump knew he was in the files. A lot.
Exclusive: The Justice Department told President Trump in May that his name is among many in the Epstein files.
Justice Department Told Trump in May That His Name Is Among Many in the Epstein Files
Bondi told president at the meeting that Justice also decided to not release more Jeffrey Epstein documents because of the presence of child pornography and the need to protect victims.
on.wsj.com
July 23, 2025 at 7:52 PM
They were supposedly best friends for more than a decade. He invited Epstein to his wedding. He flew on Epstein’s notorious plane multiple times.
I suspect even someone as dense as Trump knew he was in the files. A lot.
I suspect even someone as dense as Trump knew he was in the files. A lot.
A diversity of viewpoints. From the far right to the far far right.
It’s news. It doesn’t need viewpoints.
It’s news. It doesn’t need viewpoints.
July 23, 2025 at 7:47 PM
A diversity of viewpoints. From the far right to the far far right.
It’s news. It doesn’t need viewpoints.
It’s news. It doesn’t need viewpoints.
We had a set of drawers that was surplus to requirements so I turned it into a desk.
It only cost £20 and a couple of hours.
It only cost £20 and a couple of hours.
July 22, 2025 at 12:46 PM
We had a set of drawers that was surplus to requirements so I turned it into a desk.
It only cost £20 and a couple of hours.
It only cost £20 and a couple of hours.
He wants it to give honest factual information except where those facts go against his specific ideological tastes.
I feel like sci-fi has explained what happens when you make an AI schizophrenic with conflicting rules.
I feel like sci-fi has explained what happens when you make an AI schizophrenic with conflicting rules.
July 14, 2025 at 7:13 AM
He wants it to give honest factual information except where those facts go against his specific ideological tastes.
I feel like sci-fi has explained what happens when you make an AI schizophrenic with conflicting rules.
I feel like sci-fi has explained what happens when you make an AI schizophrenic with conflicting rules.
There are loads of interesting interactions and apparent tidal features in the first look LSST data.
Not sure if the narrow feature in the first image is a background tidal feature or an artefact. The second image definitely shows a possible compact elliptical in formation.
skyviewer.app/explorer
Not sure if the narrow feature in the first image is a background tidal feature or an artefact. The second image definitely shows a possible compact elliptical in formation.
skyviewer.app/explorer
June 24, 2025 at 11:39 PM
There are loads of interesting interactions and apparent tidal features in the first look LSST data.
Not sure if the narrow feature in the first image is a background tidal feature or an artefact. The second image definitely shows a possible compact elliptical in formation.
skyviewer.app/explorer
Not sure if the narrow feature in the first image is a background tidal feature or an artefact. The second image definitely shows a possible compact elliptical in formation.
skyviewer.app/explorer
Nothing will convince you that crypto is a bubble more quickly than talking its loudest advocates.
Apparently the main advantage a “stable coin” has over real money is that it is stable because its value is tethered to real money…
Apparently the main advantage a “stable coin” has over real money is that it is stable because its value is tethered to real money…
June 9, 2025 at 11:49 AM
Nothing will convince you that crypto is a bubble more quickly than talking its loudest advocates.
Apparently the main advantage a “stable coin” has over real money is that it is stable because its value is tethered to real money…
Apparently the main advantage a “stable coin” has over real money is that it is stable because its value is tethered to real money…