Michelle Collins
@runningastronomer.bsky.social
✨Astronomer searching for and studying the faintest galaxies in the Universe ✨co-host of the @starxiv.bsky.social podcast ✨ Enthusiastic-but-mediocre runner 🏃🏻♀️ vegan 🌱 She/her
Ease into the weekend by catching up on the @starxiv.bsky.social podcast! In our latest episode, we talk about forecasting coronal mass ejections from the Sun ☀️🔭☄️🧪
Payel's final paper compares how weel state-of-the-art Chat-GPT type models can predict the occurrence of solar flares and coronal mass ejections across high-resolution images, videos, and high-resolution time series data 🔭 ☄️. Find out more at arxiv.org/abs/2510.23400.
November 15, 2025 at 8:21 AM
Ease into the weekend by catching up on the @starxiv.bsky.social podcast! In our latest episode, we talk about forecasting coronal mass ejections from the Sun ☀️🔭☄️🧪
How do intermediate mass black holes form? I talked about this paper which investigates formation channels by environment using semi analytical models 🧪☄️🔭
Michelle's 2nd paper discusses a semi-analytical approach to modelling the formation of intermediate mass black holes in star clusters. They find different distributions in the cluster mass-black hole mass plane for globular and nuclear star clusters, Tune in for more! 🔭☄️ arxiv.org/abs/2511.00200
November 14, 2025 at 7:04 AM
How do intermediate mass black holes form? I talked about this paper which investigates formation channels by environment using semi analytical models 🧪☄️🔭
Train conductor is great today! He welcomed us to Thursday morning, told us to hang on and that Friday was coming to save us. At the next stop he reminded us that a warm smile can go a long way, so we should try it 😂
November 13, 2025 at 9:05 AM
Train conductor is great today! He welcomed us to Thursday morning, told us to hang on and that Friday was coming to save us. At the next stop he reminded us that a warm smile can go a long way, so we should try it 😂
More context on one of the papers we discussed this week. #journalclubforyourears 🧪☄️🔭
A counterpoint: bsky.app/profile/astr...
This work uses only a very small, non-representative subset of supernovae—some of which are not even spectroscopically confirmed as being Type Ia —and crucially relies on an obsolete version of supernova measurements from circa ≈ 2010. The SN community doesn’t give it serious weight.
November 12, 2025 at 9:05 PM
More context on one of the papers we discussed this week. #journalclubforyourears 🧪☄️🔭
Loved this paper that @payeldas.bsky.social discussed. Are type 1a supernova the standard candles we think they are? And is the universes expansion accelerating or decelerating?!! Exciting times in cosmology! 🧪☄️🔭
Payel's second paper claims a expansion of the universe that is decelerating rather than accelerating after correcting for a correlation between age and magnitude of Type 1a supernovae 🔭 ☄️. Find out more at arxiv.org/abs/2510.13121.
November 12, 2025 at 6:05 PM
Loved this paper that @payeldas.bsky.social discussed. Are type 1a supernova the standard candles we think they are? And is the universes expansion accelerating or decelerating?!! Exciting times in cosmology! 🧪☄️🔭
Are some high alpha abundance stars genuinely young? Some of them might be, as @payeldas.bsky.social discusses in our latest episode 🧪☄️🔭
Payel's first paper finds bona-fide young alpha-enriched stars in the Milky Way! An unexpected find as alpha enrichment usually happens early in a chemical evolution history 🔭 ☄️. Find out more at arxiv.org/pdf/2510.15654.
November 12, 2025 at 3:50 PM
Are some high alpha abundance stars genuinely young? Some of them might be, as @payeldas.bsky.social discusses in our latest episode 🧪☄️🔭
What was the Sun's birth cluster like? I loved reading about this method which uses the Sednoid objects in the outer solar system to investigate this 🧪☄️🔭
☄️ Michelle's first paper constrains the birth cluster of the Sun. Using N-body simulations and the orbital properties of the Sednoids in the outer Solar system, they can improve constraints on the density of, and time the Sun spent in, the cluster by an order of magnitude! 🔭 arxiv.org/abs/2510.19910
November 12, 2025 at 12:04 PM
What was the Sun's birth cluster like? I loved reading about this method which uses the Sednoid objects in the outer solar system to investigate this 🧪☄️🔭
Slightly late, but sounding great, episode 24 of @starxiv.bsky.social has dropped! Tune in for gravitational lenses, black holes and forecasting solar flares! 🔭🧪☄️
Episode 24 of the StarXiv is out! Tune in as Payel and Michelle discuss the latest from the astro-arXiv, including young, high alpha stars, intermediate black holes, solar flares, Euclid lenses and more! Listen below, on Spotify or wherever you get podcasts 🔭 🧪
November 12, 2025 at 8:43 AM
Slightly late, but sounding great, episode 24 of @starxiv.bsky.social has dropped! Tune in for gravitational lenses, black holes and forecasting solar flares! 🔭🧪☄️
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I've just subscribed to support Benty Fields, my go to resource for looking at the arxiv and organising journal clubs (including our @starxiv.bsky.social one). Support them if you can! www.benty-fields.com/support
benty-fields - Support
Support benty-fields.com.
www.benty-fields.com
November 11, 2025 at 4:07 PM
🔭☄️
I've just subscribed to support Benty Fields, my go to resource for looking at the arxiv and organising journal clubs (including our @starxiv.bsky.social one). Support them if you can! www.benty-fields.com/support
benty-fields - Support
Support benty-fields.com.
www.benty-fields.com
November 11, 2025 at 4:06 PM
I've just subscribed to support Benty Fields, my go to resource for looking at the arxiv and organising journal clubs (including our @starxiv.bsky.social one). Support them if you can! www.benty-fields.com/support
😍🔭
New #Euclid image drop from @esa.int and @ec-euclid.bsky.social! 😍
Meet LDN 1641, a ‘dark cloud’ about 1300 light-years from Earth, observed by Euclid back in 2023 to test its guiding systems. ⬛️☁️
Meet LDN 1641, a ‘dark cloud’ about 1300 light-years from Earth, observed by Euclid back in 2023 to test its guiding systems. ⬛️☁️
November 5, 2025 at 11:32 AM
😍🔭
Reposted by Michelle Collins
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Our interstellar comet has reappeared from behind the Sun! (I note there’s no sign of it having fired any engines while hidden from us….)
Comet 3I Atlas is back in the field of view of the PUNCH WFI instruments. Here is co-added stack of all of the images from the clear filter (centered around 550nm) from October 27th.
October 30, 2025 at 8:06 AM
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Is everyone excited about tomorrow? It's the coolest day of the year. Where we all discuss the spooky goings on of DARK MATTER! That's right, it's dark matter day again. What is it? What does it do? And how do we study it, given it's invisible? Get excited! #darkmatterday
a logo for dark matter star atlas dac is displayed
Alt: Are you afraid of the dark? DARK MATTER!
media.tenor.com
October 30, 2025 at 7:24 AM
Is everyone excited about tomorrow? It's the coolest day of the year. Where we all discuss the spooky goings on of DARK MATTER! That's right, it's dark matter day again. What is it? What does it do? And how do we study it, given it's invisible? Get excited! #darkmatterday
Have you heard of the MEGATRON simulations? They're trying to understand the metallicity plateau in the faintest galaxies. Download our latest episode to find out more 🔭🧪☄️
Michelle's first paper discussed MEGATRON! No, it's not some sort of transformer, but a neat suite of simulations that can help us understand what sets the metallicity of the faintest galaxies. Tune in for more! 🔭 ☄️ arxiv.org/abs/2510.05232
October 28, 2025 at 10:28 AM
Have you heard of the MEGATRON simulations? They're trying to understand the metallicity plateau in the faintest galaxies. Download our latest episode to find out more 🔭🧪☄️
How did the proto galaxy form? Nicole took us through this paper that discussed the importance of compaction events in shaping the early Galaxy 🔭🧪☄️
Nicole’s second paper showed our Galaxy’s oldest stars mark a dense proto-Galaxy at its center, mirroring compaction-driven starbursts seen in Milky Way–like Auriga simulations that shaped the early, central galaxy. arxiv.org/abs/2510.17693 🔭☄️
October 28, 2025 at 7:33 AM
How did the proto galaxy form? Nicole took us through this paper that discussed the importance of compaction events in shaping the early Galaxy 🔭🧪☄️
A second epoch of velocity data on the Ursa Major III/unions 1 system reveals that it is likely a star cluster! A suspected binary turned out to be a binary after all! Listen to the episode to learn more 🔭🧪☄️
In Michelle's second paper, she updates us all on the offensively faint Ursa Major III/UNIONS 1 stellar association. Is it a galaxy wtih dark matter or a star cluster? This new paper searches for signs of dark matter and/or binary stars to answer this question! arxiv.org/abs/2510.02431 🔭 ☄️
October 27, 2025 at 6:40 PM
A second epoch of velocity data on the Ursa Major III/unions 1 system reveals that it is likely a star cluster! A suspected binary turned out to be a binary after all! Listen to the episode to learn more 🔭🧪☄️
Are quasi stars responsible for the mysterious little red dots found by JWST? And do all supermassive black holes pass through this phase? Find out by tuning into our latest episode! 🔭🧪☄️
Nicole’s first paper showed that quasi-stars, black holes cocooned in stellar envelopes, can reproduce JWST’s “Little Red Dots,” matching their red colours and Balmer breaks. These could be SMBHs in formation. arxiv.org/abs/2510.17952 🔭☄️
![Predicted SEDs of a 10^6 M⊙ total mass, late-stage quasi-star both on its own (black dashed line) and embedded in a host galaxy (solid blue line) compared with JWST observations of LRDs (red) that includes the emission from the host stellar component with masses ∼10^9.5 M⊙. The top row shows comparisons with UNCOVER-45924 (I. Labbe et al., 2024) and the bottom row with MoM-BH*-1 (R. P. Naidu et al., 2025). We show models with (left) and without (right) dust. Semi-synthetic models of quasi-stars embedded in a host galaxy are shown in blue, using hosts properties inferred for UNCOVER-24996 and MoM-UDS-948311 respectively. The faded colors surrounding the lines represent 1σ uncertainties in JWST measurements. Gray dashed lines indicate key wavelengths: the Balmer break (H∞), Hγ, Hβ, [OIII], and both CaII lines. Discrepancies in emission lines likely arise from the use of LTE atmospheres at nonzero metallicity, particularly in the Hβ emission and CaII absorption lines - these are discussed in Sec. 2.2. Shaded regions indicate the far-UV and NIR approach, highlighting a few of the well fit continuum regions discussed in Sec. 3. The stellar parameters of the quasi-star model at this point are Teff=6241 K, log(g)=−0.003, and Z=0.](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:cugc4wn2mruqtvx7lm2kztiy/bafkreihl6ovaillakosqgxbqbas2th4gwg2hvaglvrjk4hjepp6dxf54qe@jpeg)
October 27, 2025 at 4:09 PM
Are quasi stars responsible for the mysterious little red dots found by JWST? And do all supermassive black holes pass through this phase? Find out by tuning into our latest episode! 🔭🧪☄️
Feeling like you need to ease into this half-term week? Start your day by listening to us discuss recent astronomy papers! Our latest episode is live, check it out wherever you get your podcasts! 🧪🔭☄️
Episode 23 has dropped! Tune in to hear about faint galaxies, failed galaxies and how binaries are always causing trouble. 🔭☄️ starxiv.com/2025/10/27/e...
Episode 23 – Failed galaxies, faint galaxies, and the proto-Galaxy
In this episode, Michelle and Nicole explore the chemistry of faint galaxies and RR-Lyrae stars, tracing the proto-Galaxy, discussing the failure of some galaxies, examining quasi-stars in relation…
starxiv.com
October 27, 2025 at 11:24 AM
Feeling like you need to ease into this half-term week? Start your day by listening to us discuss recent astronomy papers! Our latest episode is live, check it out wherever you get your podcasts! 🧪🔭☄️
Reposted by Michelle Collins
Episode 23 has dropped! Tune in to hear about faint galaxies, failed galaxies and how binaries are always causing trouble. 🔭☄️ starxiv.com/2025/10/27/e...
Episode 23 – Failed galaxies, faint galaxies, and the proto-Galaxy
In this episode, Michelle and Nicole explore the chemistry of faint galaxies and RR-Lyrae stars, tracing the proto-Galaxy, discussing the failure of some galaxies, examining quasi-stars in relation…
starxiv.com
October 27, 2025 at 9:21 AM
Episode 23 has dropped! Tune in to hear about faint galaxies, failed galaxies and how binaries are always causing trouble. 🔭☄️ starxiv.com/2025/10/27/e...
Reposted by Michelle Collins
New press release about our new paper led by my PhD student Mariana Pouseiro Júlio! 🔭🧪☄️
English version here: www.aip.de/en/news/dark...
English version here: www.aip.de/en/news/dark...
October 27, 2025 at 10:45 AM
New press release about our new paper led by my PhD student Mariana Pouseiro Júlio! 🔭🧪☄️
English version here: www.aip.de/en/news/dark...
English version here: www.aip.de/en/news/dark...
Reposted by Michelle Collins
Exams are stupid! But if you must do them, it helps to lower the stakes! Very neat results. Because I enjoy being angry I think I’ll bring this up at the next faculty meeting and watch all the middle aged white men get upset!
Proud of the work I published with @djphysicswebb.bsky.social . Gender Gap in intro physics is eliminated when employing retake exams because women do better on the FIRST try - suggesting exam STAKES (not differences in preparation/understanding) explain gender gap. 🧪 link.aps.org/doi/10.1103/...
High-stakes exams inflate a gender gap and contribute to systematic grading errors in one introductory physics series
A study in introductory physics suggests high-stakes exams are causing a gender gap, rather than measuring it.
link.aps.org
October 21, 2025 at 9:24 PM
Exams are stupid! But if you must do them, it helps to lower the stakes! Very neat results. Because I enjoy being angry I think I’ll bring this up at the next faculty meeting and watch all the middle aged white men get upset!
Reposted by Michelle Collins
Seeking PhD candidates that want to do a thesis on exoplanet atmosphere retrieval + machine learning inference. Please apply by 31 October to Dr. Max Dax's and my shared project here: is.mpg.de/news/new-max... . Abstract for the thesis project is attached to this thread below!
New Max Planck Artificial Intelligence Network Starts Call for Applications for its Ph.D. Program
The Max Planck Artificial Intelligence Network is a Ph.D. Program that provides doctoral researchers with fully funded Ph.D. fellowships and a pool of outstanding faculty comprising directors and inde...
is.mpg.de
October 17, 2025 at 12:46 PM
Seeking PhD candidates that want to do a thesis on exoplanet atmosphere retrieval + machine learning inference. Please apply by 31 October to Dr. Max Dax's and my shared project here: is.mpg.de/news/new-max... . Abstract for the thesis project is attached to this thread below!
Exciting stuff covered in the latest episode of the Starxiv! Have we found true, intermediate age RR Lyrae? Check it out! Links in @starxiv.bsky.social bio 🔭🧪☄️
In Payel's first paper, she discusses a paper that claims a bona fide discovery of an intermediate-age RR Lyra! Always thought to have been a safe bet indicator of a metal-poor and old stellar population. Found out more here:
arxiv.org/abs/2509.22336
arxiv.org/abs/2509.22336
October 16, 2025 at 7:37 AM
Exciting stuff covered in the latest episode of the Starxiv! Have we found true, intermediate age RR Lyrae? Check it out! Links in @starxiv.bsky.social bio 🔭🧪☄️
Episode 22 of the StarXiv is live! As I was away last week, I had to wait to listen until this morning, and it's a great line-up of papers from @payeldas.bsky.social and @nbuckley0810.bsky.social. Check it out on our website or wherever you get podcasts 🔭🧪☄️ starxiv.com/2025/10/13/e...
Episode 22 – ORCs, rings, and Galactic histories
In this episode, Payel and Nicole discuss what happens to the metallicity gradient of a satellite galaxy after it merges with its host, the existence of intermediate-age RR lyrae and radio rings, t…
starxiv.com
October 13, 2025 at 10:10 AM
Episode 22 of the StarXiv is live! As I was away last week, I had to wait to listen until this morning, and it's a great line-up of papers from @payeldas.bsky.social and @nbuckley0810.bsky.social. Check it out on our website or wherever you get podcasts 🔭🧪☄️ starxiv.com/2025/10/13/e...
Yesterday's high Street takeover for world space week was amazing! Satellites, space, telescopes, music, arts and crafts, and some fabulous astronomers to entertain the crowds 🔭🧪👩🏻🚀🛸🛰️👽
October 12, 2025 at 7:34 AM
Yesterday's high Street takeover for world space week was amazing! Satellites, space, telescopes, music, arts and crafts, and some fabulous astronomers to entertain the crowds 🔭🧪👩🏻🚀🛸🛰️👽