gwir
@astrolamb
π‘ NANOGrav Gravitational Wave Researcher π Astrophysics PhD Candidate, Vanderbilt University, Nashville TN π΄σ §σ ’σ ·σ ¬σ ³σ Ώ Siaradwr Cymraeg o Eryri βοΈ Writer - Astrobites.org π½ US βResident Alienβ π Uni of York Alumnus π± Dad of WiggleWorm ππ²πTriathlete π Swing Dancer
gwir
Bach o astronomi cymraeg yma ππ΄σ §σ ’σ ·σ ¬σ ³σ Ώ
βFor all we know, we could be in the middle of Keir Starmerβs finest hourβ.
Starmerβs critics say he is imperiling the UKβs special relationship with the US...
But is it Donald Trump who's doing the damage?
βtime to put on Gordon Lightfoot and get shit doneβ is a sentence I just said to myself
put a Welsh folk back on the throne
Me and three others in my department, currently... π«
why do you have three tabs of the same overleaf page open lol
itβs a good day to support local journalism. you can become a Nashville Scene member here for the cost of like, one coffee a month
Wrote something about what we're facing in funding for fundamental science - and why it matters: www.ox.ac.uk/news/2026-01... π π§ͺ #academicsky #Oxford cc @ox.ac.uk
Agreed
If stop talking about Wallen is just "a small change." What are the bigger changes you want to see?
A bit of good news this weekβ¦Yβall may remember this graphic I made, showcasing what the Presidentβs budget request would do to NASAβs science fleet (tldr it would decimate it). Well the house just passed a bill that soundly rejects these cuts, keeping NASA funding roughly the same as last yearπ§ͺπ
This week's cover story: The 2025 Nashvillians of the Year are the people behind Music City MigraWatch. These everyday citizens document ICE in their own communities.
βIn the beginning the Universe was created.
βThis had made many people very angry and has been widely regarded as a bad move.β
- Douglas Adams
Absolutely, it's his favourite way to relax in the evening β€οΈ
An orange cat in the bottom left watching the television on the right. The room is decorated with a bookshelf in the center covered in Christmas lights and garland. On the TV is Kat Abugazalehβs livestream
WiggleWorm is FASCINATED by the Heater Meter! π» @katforillinois.bsky.social #catsforkat
(Also, apologies for being so quiet recently. I am a non-citizen in a country that is monitoring my social media π)
...which we didn't expect! We plan further work to understand it better.
What does this all mean? We should model Fourier coefficients of the GWB, not PSDs! By modelling PSDs, we assume Gaussianity, which we have shown to mismodel the statistics of the astrophysical GWB.
Happy reading! π (4/4)
...under-estimate the tails of the distribution.
Additionally, we found that finite observation introduces a covariance term in our statistics. While small, it may be significant enough at the lowest frequencies for high amplitude sources. This is also a source of non-Gaussianity... (3/4)
At low frequencies, the Gaussian approximation is fine. But at frequencies with few sources, we really need to stop assuming Gaussianity!
We find that Poisson variance (aka "shot noise") drives non-Gaussianity when there are very few sources. Modelling this region as Gaussian can... (2/4)
I'm very excited to announce our latest paper! π
arxiv.org/abs/2511.09659
We investigate the Gaussian assumption for an astrophysical gravitational wave background in a pulsar timing array π
Note: our result can also be generalised to LIGO/Virgo/KAGRA and LISA astrophysical GWBs too!
πβοΈπ§ͺβοΈ (1/4)
Me, taking a selfie holding up the peace sign with my fingers and wearing a tshirt that shows a ufo with beans coming out below it in pride colours
Astronomer here.
Can confirm: Aliens are queer AF.
π½ π³οΈβπ π³οΈββ§οΈ
Silly @texasdemocrats.bsky.social β yβall should know youβre only allowed to skip town to block votes when youβre covering up for powerful pedophile rings, not when youβre trying to save democracy.
Weβre starting to think it was never about protecting kids
Three stunning and shaming paragraphs, by Rachel Wolf of Public First, in @theobserveruk.bsky.social
Welp, donβt you dare shill on astrobitesβ¦
ALL CAPS
THIS IS CATASTROPHIC FOR SPACE SCIENCE AND ASTROPHYSICS ...
GLOBALLY CATASTROPHIC, NOT JUST FOR AMERICANS ππ§ͺ
www.politico.com/news/2025/07...
I am one of those younger astronomers, lolololol π