John Ilee
@johnilee.bsky.social
STFC Ernest Rutherford Fellow &
Associate Professor in Astrophysics at the University of Leeds. Assembled in Yorkshire.
https://johnilee.github.io/
Associate Professor in Astrophysics at the University of Leeds. Assembled in Yorkshire.
https://johnilee.github.io/
For anyone in London next weekend - get yourself down to this absolutely wonderful combination of art & astronomy. It’s a really special place.
Honk, honk! We're also excited to say that a mesmerising mobile observatory bus known as 'Moon Palace' will be stopping off outside the RAS for a two-day visit this February. 🔭🚌
Designed for all ages, it has telescopes, out-of-this-world artwork, lunar maps & 'cosmic tea' in alien head mugs. 🎨🌘👽️
Designed for all ages, it has telescopes, out-of-this-world artwork, lunar maps & 'cosmic tea' in alien head mugs. 🎨🌘👽️
February 11, 2026 at 9:41 PM
For anyone in London next weekend - get yourself down to this absolutely wonderful combination of art & astronomy. It’s a really special place.
Reposted by John Ilee
The future of fundamental physics research in the UK is under serious threat because of the massive government cuts to STFC funding. Please read this open letter by advanced fellows.
advancedfellows-openletter-stfc.github.io/index.html
advancedfellows-openletter-stfc.github.io/index.html
Advanced Fellows Response to UKRI Investment Approach
advancedfellows-openletter-stfc.github.io
February 10, 2026 at 6:34 AM
The future of fundamental physics research in the UK is under serious threat because of the massive government cuts to STFC funding. Please read this open letter by advanced fellows.
advancedfellows-openletter-stfc.github.io/index.html
advancedfellows-openletter-stfc.github.io/index.html
Reposted by John Ilee
Very interesting to see this laid out by someone who was, until very recently, on STFC's Science Board.
And incase you missed it, here is George Efstathiou (recently retired STFC Science Board member) going on the record about why it's come to this...
telescoper.blog/2026/02/06/t...
telescoper.blog/2026/02/06/t...
The STFC Funding Crisis – Guest Post by George Efstathiou
The following guest post by George Efstathiou is a response to the current STFC funding crisis I blogged about here, and specifically to a letter by the Executive Chair of STFC, Professor Michele D…
telescoper.blog
February 8, 2026 at 5:55 PM
Very interesting to see this laid out by someone who was, until very recently, on STFC's Science Board.
Reposted by John Ilee
Listeners to Radio 4’s Inside Science today get an essay from me in defence of astronomy as pure research. Please listen in and let me know what you think.
Show starts 4.30pm GMT here: www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b...
Show starts 4.30pm GMT here: www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b...
BBC Radio 4 - BBC Inside Science
A weekly programme looking at the science that's changing our world.
www.bbc.co.uk
February 5, 2026 at 2:07 PM
Listeners to Radio 4’s Inside Science today get an essay from me in defence of astronomy as pure research. Please listen in and let me know what you think.
Show starts 4.30pm GMT here: www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b...
Show starts 4.30pm GMT here: www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b...
Reposted by John Ilee
Read our full response here: www.iop.org/about/news/v...
The IOP have set up a mechanism to measure the impact of this news, and ask that anyone impacted to please complete this form and provide as much information as they can along with any evidence: www.iop.org/feedback-fol...
(3/3)
The IOP have set up a mechanism to measure the impact of this news, and ask that anyone impacted to please complete this form and provide as much information as they can along with any evidence: www.iop.org/feedback-fol...
(3/3)
Vital science cut in "devastating blow"
Cutting edge science cut by up to 60% as Institute of Physics warns of “devastating blow” to physics.
www.iop.org
January 29, 2026 at 11:57 AM
Read our full response here: www.iop.org/about/news/v...
The IOP have set up a mechanism to measure the impact of this news, and ask that anyone impacted to please complete this form and provide as much information as they can along with any evidence: www.iop.org/feedback-fol...
(3/3)
The IOP have set up a mechanism to measure the impact of this news, and ask that anyone impacted to please complete this form and provide as much information as they can along with any evidence: www.iop.org/feedback-fol...
(3/3)
Reposted by John Ilee
Another positive is that the community response to the planned cuts 16 years ago actually had an effect. Some extra funding was found at the last minute. So, it is worth speaking out and pointing out these planned cuts will do a lot of damage to very active, and successful, research areas. 4/4
January 29, 2026 at 11:15 AM
Another positive is that the community response to the planned cuts 16 years ago actually had an effect. Some extra funding was found at the last minute. So, it is worth speaking out and pointing out these planned cuts will do a lot of damage to very active, and successful, research areas. 4/4
Reposted by John Ilee
The Royal Astronomical Society is gravely concerned at the drastic cuts to support for UK astronomy outlined by the Science and Technology Facilities Council.
Read our statement 👉 ras.ac.uk/news-and-pre...
Read our statement 👉 ras.ac.uk/news-and-pre...
Proposed budget cuts a catastrophe for UK astronomy
The Royal Astronomical Society (RAS) is gravely concerned at the drastic cuts to support for UK astronomy outlined by the Science and Technology Facilities Council (...
ras.ac.uk
January 28, 2026 at 9:07 PM
The Royal Astronomical Society is gravely concerned at the drastic cuts to support for UK astronomy outlined by the Science and Technology Facilities Council.
Read our statement 👉 ras.ac.uk/news-and-pre...
Read our statement 👉 ras.ac.uk/news-and-pre...
Reposted by John Ilee
We're so excited to share the results of the ALMA large program ARKS that studied the distribution of dust and gas in a sample of 24 exoKuiper belts. With @lucaroundtheworld.bsky.social, Meredith Hughes and a large collaboration, we just published 10 papers presenting our first results arkslp.org
January 20, 2026 at 9:18 AM
We're so excited to share the results of the ALMA large program ARKS that studied the distribution of dust and gas in a sample of 24 exoKuiper belts. With @lucaroundtheworld.bsky.social, Meredith Hughes and a large collaboration, we just published 10 papers presenting our first results arkslp.org
Reposted by John Ilee
Well this is worrying. NASA has maintained funding for ADS but not SciX (a broader database). In response, management is planning to *close* ADS in Feb 2026, forcing all users to switch to SciX. ☄️🔭
Funding info: ads.harvard.edu/adsug/2025/0...
Transition plan: ads.harvard.edu/adsug/2025/0...
Funding info: ads.harvard.edu/adsug/2025/0...
Transition plan: ads.harvard.edu/adsug/2025/0...
December 9, 2025 at 12:59 PM
Well this is worrying. NASA has maintained funding for ADS but not SciX (a broader database). In response, management is planning to *close* ADS in Feb 2026, forcing all users to switch to SciX. ☄️🔭
Funding info: ads.harvard.edu/adsug/2025/0...
Transition plan: ads.harvard.edu/adsug/2025/0...
Funding info: ads.harvard.edu/adsug/2025/0...
Transition plan: ads.harvard.edu/adsug/2025/0...
Reposted by John Ilee
YEMS is hiring a postdoc to work on planet formation, exoplanet detection, high contrast imaging, and/or related topics.
🫸https://aas.org/jobregister/ad/811cf8bb
🫸https://aas.org/jobregister/ad/811cf8bb
December 4, 2025 at 2:57 PM
YEMS is hiring a postdoc to work on planet formation, exoplanet detection, high contrast imaging, and/or related topics.
🫸https://aas.org/jobregister/ad/811cf8bb
🫸https://aas.org/jobregister/ad/811cf8bb
Reposted by John Ilee
🔊Announcing a new Physics/Astro PhD scholarship scheme in Edinburgh, for students from a Black heritage, inc mixed Black background. Please help me spread the word. The scholarship covers all tuition fees, living costs & research travel. #blackinSTEM 🔭👩🔬⚛️
ℹ️: www.ph.ed.ac.uk/studying/pos...
ℹ️: www.ph.ed.ac.uk/studying/pos...
October 20, 2025 at 3:52 PM
🔊Announcing a new Physics/Astro PhD scholarship scheme in Edinburgh, for students from a Black heritage, inc mixed Black background. Please help me spread the word. The scholarship covers all tuition fees, living costs & research travel. #blackinSTEM 🔭👩🔬⚛️
ℹ️: www.ph.ed.ac.uk/studying/pos...
ℹ️: www.ph.ed.ac.uk/studying/pos...
Reposted by John Ilee
We can see Io rotate slightly over the hour-long timelapse, tracking volcanoes on its surface!
And check out the Conversation piece for a cool slider showing how NGC 1068 lines up perfectly with previous data from LBTI.
And check out the Conversation piece for a cool slider showing how NGC 1068 lines up perfectly with previous data from LBTI.
October 14, 2025 at 3:35 AM
We can see Io rotate slightly over the hour-long timelapse, tracking volcanoes on its surface!
And check out the Conversation piece for a cool slider showing how NGC 1068 lines up perfectly with previous data from LBTI.
And check out the Conversation piece for a cool slider showing how NGC 1068 lines up perfectly with previous data from LBTI.
Great to see our paper on methanol in TW Hya finally come out today (with Catherine Walsh and Jenny Calahan). A quick overview.... 🔭 ☄️ #radioastro
arxiv.org/abs/2510.04106
arxiv.org/abs/2510.04106
October 7, 2025 at 11:11 AM
Great to see our paper on methanol in TW Hya finally come out today (with Catherine Walsh and Jenny Calahan). A quick overview.... 🔭 ☄️ #radioastro
arxiv.org/abs/2510.04106
arxiv.org/abs/2510.04106
Reposted by John Ilee
Methanol emission tracing ice chemistry and dust evolution in the TW Hya protoplanetary disk
https://arxiv.org/pdf/2510.04106
John D. Ilee, Catherine Walsh, Jenny C. Calahan.
https://arxiv.org/pdf/2510.04106
John D. Ilee, Catherine Walsh, Jenny C. Calahan.
https://arxiv.org/abs/2510.04106
arXiv abstract link
arxiv.org
October 7, 2025 at 4:32 AM
Methanol emission tracing ice chemistry and dust evolution in the TW Hya protoplanetary disk
https://arxiv.org/pdf/2510.04106
John D. Ilee, Catherine Walsh, Jenny C. Calahan.
https://arxiv.org/pdf/2510.04106
John D. Ilee, Catherine Walsh, Jenny C. Calahan.
Reposted by John Ilee
Today is a special paper day for me: for the first time we can do chemistry in a circumplanetary disk around a planetary-mass companion! Gabriele Cugno and I used JWST to tease out the signal of CT Cha b, finding a rich carbon chemistry (7 molecules + 1 isotopolog detected)! arxiv.org/abs/2509.15209
September 19, 2025 at 3:22 PM
Today is a special paper day for me: for the first time we can do chemistry in a circumplanetary disk around a planetary-mass companion! Gabriele Cugno and I used JWST to tease out the signal of CT Cha b, finding a rich carbon chemistry (7 molecules + 1 isotopolog detected)! arxiv.org/abs/2509.15209
Reposted by John Ilee
A very cool result! Julo+ with a paper on “Stellar halo subtraction … with integral field spectroscopy… on the PDS70, HTLup, and YSES1 systems” showing that the YSES 1b #exoplanet has a lot of emission lines - H alpha , H beta, He I, Ca H and K triplets, Na in absorption… oh my! #astrodon ☄
September 16, 2025 at 7:17 AM
A very cool result! Julo+ with a paper on “Stellar halo subtraction … with integral field spectroscopy… on the PDS70, HTLup, and YSES1 systems” showing that the YSES 1b #exoplanet has a lot of emission lines - H alpha , H beta, He I, Ca H and K triplets, Na in absorption… oh my! #astrodon ☄
Reposted by John Ilee
My periodic reminder for #astrosci #astrodon #exoplanets Early Career Researchers to please, please, please have a simple web site with your current email address on it - rationale here: kenworthy.space/advice/
September 12, 2025 at 4:22 AM
My periodic reminder for #astrosci #astrodon #exoplanets Early Career Researchers to please, please, please have a simple web site with your current email address on it - rationale here: kenworthy.space/advice/
Sending my apologies to the reviewer for this one… 😬
September 10, 2025 at 8:41 AM
Sending my apologies to the reviewer for this one… 😬
Reposted by John Ilee
It is well within the power of journalists to simply stop interviewing this individual
August 12, 2025 at 8:03 PM
It is well within the power of journalists to simply stop interviewing this individual
Lots of fun today at John Smeaton Academy talking all about science, art, radio astronomy & building planets onboard the amazing Moon Palace. Thanks for having us and for all the amazing questions!
July 14, 2025 at 6:56 PM
Lots of fun today at John Smeaton Academy talking all about science, art, radio astronomy & building planets onboard the amazing Moon Palace. Thanks for having us and for all the amazing questions!
Reposted by John Ilee
I couldn’t agree more about those pretty public images… 😉
Sorry to have missed this great conference but huge thanks to everyone posting updates. It’s been great to follow along! #skao2025
Sorry to have missed this great conference but huge thanks to everyone posting updates. It’s been great to follow along! #skao2025
Great #SKAO2025 conference summary from McClure-Griffiths. Ups: Community! Real SKA image/dishes! So much SKA Precursor science! Downs: Timeline, especially for MID. Lessons: Pretty public images matter, data is difficult, telescopes are always delayed.
June 20, 2025 at 2:58 PM
I couldn’t agree more about those pretty public images… 😉
Sorry to have missed this great conference but huge thanks to everyone posting updates. It’s been great to follow along! #skao2025
Sorry to have missed this great conference but huge thanks to everyone posting updates. It’s been great to follow along! #skao2025