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Wed, Apr 30, 2025 08:43 PM All times are UTC

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Tanya Hill

Honorary Fellow of the University of Melbourne and Senior Curator (Astronomy), Museum Victoria

I am an extragalactic astronomer, Honorary Fellow of the University of Melbourne, and am currently working in the field of science communication at Melbourne Planetarium.

I have been the Curator (Astronomy) at Melbourne Planetarium, Scienceworks since 1999, drawing on my background in research astronomy to create more than a dozen planetarium productions. The most recent of these are now screened in over fifty planetariums across sixteen countries world-wide.

I am proud to be the Australian Representative of the European Southern Observatory’s (ESO) Science Outreach Network. This sees me working with Astronomy Australia Limited (AAL) to promote ESO’s extensive research accomplishments throughout Australia.

I am also involved in projects to bring research astronomy data into the planetarium to both engage the public and to turn the planetarium into a tool for research astronomers wanting to know more from their data.

Space Science Series

Look up! Your guide to some of the best meteor showers for 2017

Jan 02, 2017 11:23 am UTC| Science

After a disappointing 2016, when most of the annual major meteor showers were washed out by moonlight, 2017 looks far more promising. Of the big three, the Quadrantids in January and Geminids in December are both...

Space Science Series

Why all the super buzz about the supermoon?

Nov 09, 2016 08:34 am UTC| Science

A beautiful full moon will grace our skies on Monday November 14 this year. Full moons always rise around sunset, so look for it towards the east during evening twilight. Every month, occasionally even twice a month,...

Space Science Series

Cosmic coincidence: the International Space Station passes by Venus and Saturn

Oct 27, 2016 05:21 am UTC| Science

Look west in the evening sky and Venus is almost impossible to miss, shining with a brilliant steady light. In fact, it is so bright its often mistaken for a plane. On the evening of Friday October 28, Venus is going to...

Say hello to the Earth's nearest exoplanet neighbour: Proxima Centauri b

Aug 27, 2016 12:51 pm UTC| Science

After years of searching, an international team of astronomers says theyve found definitive evidence of a planet orbiting Proxima Centauri, the closest star to the sun. The details are published in Nature today, and this...

SkyWatch: Mars, Saturn, the full moon and Scorpius

May 20, 2016 00:12 am UTC| Science

This weekend Mars appears at its best and brightest. It reaches opposition on Sunday, May 22, which means the planet will appear opposite the sun as viewed from Earth and it brings Mars closest to Earth for the next few...

The International Space Station: 100,000 laps and counting

May 18, 2016 07:58 am UTC| Science

The International Space Station (ISS) has completed more than 100,000 orbits of Earth. It reached this impressive milestone on Monday afternoon (AEST), May 16. The stations odometer has clocked more than 4 billion...

Economy

Asian Stocks Mixed as China, Japan Factory Data Disappoint; India, Korea Decline on Geopolitical Risks

Asian stock markets were mostly flat on Wednesday as investors weighed weak factory activity data from China and Japan, alongside Australian inflation figures and heightened regional tensions. Chinas official manufacturing...

Oil Prices Dip Amid Tariff Concerns, Rising Inventories, and OPEC+ Output Worries

Oil prices slipped in early Asian trading Wednesday, pressured by renewed concerns over global economic growth and fuel demand due to U.S. tariff policies and rising crude inventories. Brent crude futures fell 17 cents, or...

U.S. Stock Futures Dip as Investors Monitor Trade Developments, Earnings, and Key Data

U.S. stock futures slipped Tuesday evening as investors digested signs of easing trade tensions, soft economic data, and awaited major corporate earnings. SP 500 futures fell 0.2% to 5,571.75, while Nasdaq 100 futures...

India Eyes Swift U.S. Trade Deal with Rare Forward MFN Clause

India is accelerating trade talks with the U.S., offering significant concessions to secure a fast-track deal ahead of President Donald Trumps proposed 26% reciprocal tariff deadline in July. According to Indian government...

Sweden’s Q1 2025 GDP Stalls, Missing Growth Forecasts

Swedens economy stagnated in the first quarter of 2025, with gross domestic product (GDP) showing no growth compared to the previous three months, according to preliminary data from the Statistics Office released Tuesday....

Politics

Trump Touts Economic Record, Promises Tax Cuts at Michigan Rally Amid Recession Fears

President Donald Trump rallied supporters in Warren, Michigan, marking his first 100 days in office with bold claims about the U.S. economy, promises of sweeping tax cuts, and sharp criticism of Democrats. Speaking near...

Tensions Escalate as China, U.S., and Philippines Conduct Rival Patrols in South China Sea

Chinas navy conducted a patrol in the South China Sea on Tuesday, accusing the Philippines of provocations as Filipino and U.S. forces carried out joint aerial patrols over the disputed waters. The move comes amid rising...

U.S. Defense Secretary Scraps Women, Peace and Security Program Citing Military Focus

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced Tuesday the cancellation of the Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) program, originally enacted by President Donald Trump in 2017 to promote womens participation in global peace...

U.S. Urges India and Pakistan to Avoid Escalation After Kashmir Attack

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is set to hold talks with his Indian and Pakistani counterparts in an effort to prevent further escalation following a deadly militant attack in India-administered Kashmir. The State...

Trump Jokes About Becoming Pope After Death of Francis

U.S. President Donald Trump joked on Tuesday that hed like to succeed Pope Francis, who passed away last week at the age of 88. When asked who he would prefer as the next leader of the Catholic Church, Trump quipped, Id...

Science

Kennedy Sets September Deadline to Uncover Autism Causes Amid Controversy

U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced a bold plan to identify the cause of autism by September 2025. Speaking at a cabinet meeting with President Donald Trump, Kennedy declared a global...

AstraZeneca’s Imfinzi Gets US Approval for Bladder Cancer Treatment

AstraZenecas drug Imfinzi (NASDAQ: AZN) has received U.S. approval to treat adult patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer, a significant advancement in cancer therapy. The approval allows Imfinzi to be used in...

Sanofi’s New Hemophilia Drug Qfitlia Gains FDA Approval with Breakthrough Bimonthly Dosing

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Qfitlia, a groundbreaking hemophilia treatment by French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi (NASDAQ: SNY). Designed for patients aged 12 and older with hemophilia A or B,...

FDA Vaccine Chief Peter Marks Resigns Amid Controversy Over Transparency

Peter Marks, the U.S. Food and Drug Administrations (FDA) top vaccine official, has resigned after reportedly being forced out by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), according to The Wall Street Journal....

Museums have tons of data, and AI could make it more accessible − but standardizing and organizing it across fields won’t be easy

Ice cores in freezers, dinosaurs on display, fish in jars, birds in boxes, human remains and ancient artifacts from long gone civilizations that few people ever see museum collections are filled with all this and more....

Technology

Xiaomi Unveils MiMo AI Model, Shares Surge 5% on Breakthrough Launch

Xiaomi Corp (HK:1810) launched its first open-source large language model, MiMo, on Wednesday, marking its official entry into the competitive artificial intelligence space. The debut sent Xiaomis Hong Kong-listed shares...

Alibaba Launches Qwen 3 AI Model Amid Intensifying China Tech Competition

Chinese tech giant Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA) unveiled Qwen 3 on Tuesday, a next-generation AI model featuring hybrid reasoning capabilities aimed at boosting performance and adaptability. The move underscores Alibabas...

Amazon Enters Satellite Internet Race with First Kuiper Deployment

Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) has officially entered the satellite broadband market with the successful launch of 27 operational satellites for Project Kuiper, its high-speed internet initiative aimed at rivaling SpaceXs Starlink....

Chinese AI App DeepSeek Resumes Downloads in South Korea After Privacy Update

Chinese artificial intelligence app DeepSeek has resumed availability in South Koreas app stores after a two-month suspension due to data protection concerns. Downloads were halted in February when South Koreas Personal...

Nvidia Shares Dip as Huawei Tests Rival AI Chip

Nvidia Corporation (NASDAQ: NVDA) slipped in after-hours trading on Sunday, following reports that Chinas Huawei is testing a powerful artificial intelligence chip aimed at challenging Nvidias dominance. NVDA shares fell...