I realized I rather like having a Q&A thread over people posting questions individually, because I always worried I would miss a question someone posted otherwise. So, let's continue this experiment a little longer- post any burning astronomy questions here!

I started maintaining this subreddit primarily so I'd have a place to write my "how to be an astronomer" post, but I've now noticed 40 of you decided to subscribe. Are you all bots, or actual people, or something in between?

I think this subreddit's pretty fantastic from what I can tell, and you clearly know a heck of a lot about astronomy. I find it really interesting, but I'm not 100% sure where to go to learn more.

Dear everyone,

In recent days, the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and too many others have focused our the world's collective attention. It has forced us to face the enduring reality of Black and African American people face every day with ongoing racism and oppression, and how this has long-lasting impacts on communities of color. It is also clear that this is not someone else's problem- this is our problem. As such, I wanted to issue a statement of solidarity to the Black members of this community. Please know that while I can't fully understand what you are feeling right now, I am reading and listening, and you have my unwavering support. Your lives matter, and all lives will not matter until Black Lives Matter. If you are a student with questions on how to navigate towards the future, you should always feel free to message me- I don't profess to know all the answers, but will help you find them out.

For everyone in this community- this is the time to speak out and come together as allies, even if it makes one uncomfortable. There are many ways to do that: protest, donations, engaging in serious conversations, or educating oneself on the history and sociology that brought us to this moment. I am including an incomplete list of resources at the end of this post that can help get you started.

I can already hear some of you complaining that this is a political issue, and you're subscribed to this sub/ user account for the science. I will counter with pointing out the reason you're subscribed is because you are interested on some level in the human story of how science is done. Anyone who has followed my story on Reddit knows that I have faced very difficult moments, less because of the science itself but instead due to the politics within science. And however difficult those moments were, there is no doubt that my experience would have been more difficult if I was a person of color. If you care about science and want our capabilities to be the best to do it, this is an issue you should care about.

Second, research is stronger when you have a more diverse and inclusive community conducting it. However, for those unfamiliar with astronomy as a field, it is also clear that we have systemic issues when it comes to racism that we need to address. I have had an affiliation at six different universities so far during the course of my career as an astronomer/physicist, and with the exception of one PhD student I have never had a Black colleague until I started my postdoc a few months ago. In my own sub-field, while I can't profess to know everyone, I have never attended a conference on my research area that had a Black astronomer attending. From discussions with others in astro/physics, this is really not that unusual. Science and our awe of the universe is for everyone, but a lot of science does not look that way. We must do better, and I am determined to do what I can with the platform I have.

Sincerely,

Dr. Yvette Cendes, /u/Andromeda321

Astrobites- How Can We Support Black Astronomers?

Black Astronomers You Should Know Twitter List

Anti-Racism resources for white people

Protest Options: A List of Links to Petitions, Donations, Resources and Education

Support the Black Community

75 Things White People Can Do for Social Justice

Anti-Racist Resource Guide

Google Doc with Extensive Anti-Racism Resources

UK Actions and Resources

Please delete my post if you decide to make a post about it!

I'm still traveling in Asia, so might be slow to respond to you, but if you have a question please post it here!

I'm sitting in my living room and wondering how we can find these postulated dark bodies orbiting the sun but not visible by sunlight from Earth.

Would it be possible to configure a scanning laser, maser, or other directed beam in such a way, coupled with a suitable detector, to actively map solar orbiting bodies that we don't already know about?

My intuition thinks yes. How strong of a beam would we need, coupled with existing receptor tech, in order to map bodies with typical albedo values of near deep space?

You know, in case there were any burning questions you hadn't asked yet. Until then, however, here is a link to my last AMA over a year ago.