#StarsAreStillInteresting

I agree #StarsAreStillInteresting!

Thanks for your work on this! This legacy is so important to carry on.

The article is now published in the Astrophysical Journal: doi.org/10.3847/1538...

And data are now public on MAST: archive.stsci.edu/hlsp/owls

#stellarastro #StarsAreStillInteresting 🔭

Astronomers Map Stellar ‘Polka Dots’ Using NASA’s TESS, Kepler - NASA Science Scientists have devised a new method for mapping the spottiness of distant stars by using observations from NASA missions of orbiting planets crossing their

Sweet NASA feature article on @sabinastro.bsky.social's work on mapping stellar surfaces: 🔭🧪 #stellarastro

science.nasa.gov/missions/tes...

Why? Because:
1) #StarsAreStillInteresting
2) Messy stars complicate our view of exoplanet atmospheres. To remove stellar contamination, you must map it. 🗺️

Text reads ‘Since starlight is the principle medium by which we can stuff the universe, the study of stars is important in astronomy.’

@dalcantonjd.bsky.social proofing student thesis #starsarestillinteresting

Figure 3 of Petz & Kochanek (2025). Caption: "The Gaia DR3 𝑀𝐺 and 𝐵𝑃 − 𝑅𝑃 color-magnitude diagram of the final candidates divided into groups based on the dashed lines. The curves are solar metallicity 1 and 10 Gyr MIST isochrones. One type of light curve is shown in each group."

Here's a Gaia (❤️ RIP) color magnitude diagram of #stars with "slowly varying" brightness, found in ASAS-SN photometry. These human-timescale flickers are superimposed on smoother changes during stellar evolution, as stars glide across the CMD. 🔭 #StarsAreStillInteresting

arxiv.org/abs/2501.14058

And the most exciting (to me) are sources like this... long timescale, slow, often low amplitude changes in brightness. A LOT of stars show these kinds of changes, they're almost totally unexplored, and Gaia is the best platform for finding them! #StarsAreStillInteresting 🔭

Ooooh, we absolutely need more #starsarestillinteresting content here!

#StarsAreStillInteresting, my ill-formed dog, and my great-grandfather who ate cats.

(The whole “They’re eating the dogs, They’re eating the cats” was a little uncomfortable for me.)

What a wonderful interloper, as far as interlopers go. #starsarestillinteresting