Emily Lakdawalla 🏳️⚧️ Uranus Expert
@elakdawalla.bsky.social
Planetary scientist, freelance science writer and space artist, queer, ADHD, mom. Turns out it’s hard to be all those things at once. Shop at elakdawalla.Etsy.com
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Hi! I'm Emily. I'm a planetary geologist, a science writer, space artist, queer, ADHD, mom. I write & post about solar system & exoplanet science for Sky & Telescope and elsewhere, & post about space-themed art & jewelry I sell at elakdawalla.etsy.com. I live in Los Angeles. Also, cats.
Well, this is annoying. A bill signed in to law in June amends the California state sales tax to cover digital products, which didn't used to be taxed here, which means everyone's software costs go up ~10% on January 1. It's section 2 here: www.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNa...
Bill Text - SB-122 Taxation.
SB 122 Taxation.
www.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
September 16, 2026 at 12:37 AM
Well, this is annoying. A bill signed in to law in June amends the California state sales tax to cover digital products, which didn't used to be taxed here, which means everyone's software costs go up ~10% on January 1. It's section 2 here: www.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNa...
Um so I totally missed that there's a fission-powered spacecraft being developed for a 2028 launch to Mars. The NEPA process for its launch is going to be interesting...
science.nasa.gov/mission/skyf...
science.nasa.gov/mission/skyf...
SkyFall - NASA Science
NASA's SkyFall mission to Mars, building on the success of the Ingenuity helicopter, will send a trio of aircraft to survey the Red Planet, uncover clues about its climate history, scout areas inacces...
science.nasa.gov
September 16, 2026 at 12:22 AM
Um so I totally missed that there's a fission-powered spacecraft being developed for a 2028 launch to Mars. The NEPA process for its launch is going to be interesting...
science.nasa.gov/mission/skyf...
science.nasa.gov/mission/skyf...
In my inbox today: a couple press releases about the ESA-JAXA BepiColombo mission getting ready for Mercury orbit arrival in November! Super exciting -- only the second Mercury orbiter ever!
September 15, 2026 at 11:40 PM
In my inbox today: a couple press releases about the ESA-JAXA BepiColombo mission getting ready for Mercury orbit arrival in November! Super exciting -- only the second Mercury orbiter ever!
Reposted by Emily Lakdawalla 🏳️⚧️ Uranus Expert
This summer, Mack Baysinger worked at the L.A. Times as an AAAS Mass Media Fellow supported by AGU. In Baysinger's words:
Thank you to everyone who helped me swap out my lab coat for a reporter's notebook! I'm pictured here with my desk neighbor, Noah Haggerty, a 2024 AAAS Mass Media Fellow.
Thank you to everyone who helped me swap out my lab coat for a reporter's notebook! I'm pictured here with my desk neighbor, Noah Haggerty, a 2024 AAAS Mass Media Fellow.
September 15, 2026 at 8:07 PM
This summer, Mack Baysinger worked at the L.A. Times as an AAAS Mass Media Fellow supported by AGU. In Baysinger's words:
Thank you to everyone who helped me swap out my lab coat for a reporter's notebook! I'm pictured here with my desk neighbor, Noah Haggerty, a 2024 AAAS Mass Media Fellow.
Thank you to everyone who helped me swap out my lab coat for a reporter's notebook! I'm pictured here with my desk neighbor, Noah Haggerty, a 2024 AAAS Mass Media Fellow.
Reposted by Emily Lakdawalla 🏳️⚧️ Uranus Expert
A lot of trans people are looking at this election cycle as a now or never type thing. If Democrats continue to be wishy washy on trans rights, and win, this will start a backslide until they've given up on most of the things we really care about.
September 15, 2026 at 8:13 PM
A lot of trans people are looking at this election cycle as a now or never type thing. If Democrats continue to be wishy washy on trans rights, and win, this will start a backslide until they've given up on most of the things we really care about.
Reposted by Emily Lakdawalla 🏳️⚧️ Uranus Expert
Study finds 71% of gender differences consistent w/ effects of power differences. High-power individuals & men tend to display higher agency, dominance & risk-taking. Low-power individuals & women tend to display higher communion, sensitivity & cooperation. www.psypost.org/are-gender-d...
Are gender differences really power differences? Large-scale analysis finds strong behavioral parallels
Could the behavioral gap between men and women just be a power gap? New research finds that placing people in powerful roles produces psychological changes that almost perfectly mimic traditional gend...
www.psypost.org
September 15, 2026 at 8:39 PM
Study finds 71% of gender differences consistent w/ effects of power differences. High-power individuals & men tend to display higher agency, dominance & risk-taking. Low-power individuals & women tend to display higher communion, sensitivity & cooperation. www.psypost.org/are-gender-d...
Reposted by Emily Lakdawalla 🏳️⚧️ Uranus Expert
When they eventually make a movie about this time, please don't put the male politicians in good suits. IMO, the ugly, low rent tailoring should be part of the story.
September 15, 2026 at 2:19 AM
When they eventually make a movie about this time, please don't put the male politicians in good suits. IMO, the ugly, low rent tailoring should be part of the story.
Reposted by Emily Lakdawalla 🏳️⚧️ Uranus Expert
My latest @newscientist.com cartoon
September 15, 2026 at 2:48 PM
My latest @newscientist.com cartoon
Reposted by Emily Lakdawalla 🏳️⚧️ Uranus Expert
It's true, the 2026 Arctic Report Card will be published without federal support! 🧊 Read more about the partnership making it happen: eos.org/agu-news/the...
September 14, 2026 at 3:41 PM
It's true, the 2026 Arctic Report Card will be published without federal support! 🧊 Read more about the partnership making it happen: eos.org/agu-news/the...
Microslop problem spotted at an LA Metro rail station today lol
September 15, 2026 at 8:52 PM
Microslop problem spotted at an LA Metro rail station today lol
Reposted by Emily Lakdawalla 🏳️⚧️ Uranus Expert
A man rapped with his dog at the Apollo, the stage famous for booing acts off before their first verse, and the crowd went wild for both of them.
September 13, 2026 at 10:41 AM
A man rapped with his dog at the Apollo, the stage famous for booing acts off before their first verse, and the crowd went wild for both of them.
This is all crazy
NASA employees say they've lost vital equipment and staff needed to make sophisticated spacecraft amid the agency's abrupt relocations over the past several months. n.pr/3SK34oz
NASA rushed engineers out of their labs. They say it risks future space missions
NASA employees say they've lost vital equipment and staff needed to make sophisticated spacecraft amid the agency's abrupt relocations over the past several months.
n.pr
September 15, 2026 at 2:44 PM
This is all crazy
Reposted by Emily Lakdawalla 🏳️⚧️ Uranus Expert
HOLY SHIT SHES THE BABADOOK LADY
September 15, 2026 at 12:24 PM
HOLY SHIT SHES THE BABADOOK LADY
Reposted by Emily Lakdawalla 🏳️⚧️ Uranus Expert
I once convinced a very arrogant and very annoying young software engineering student at Queen's who was definitely not on uppers that we lived in a simulation and I had been sent to tell him he was the chosen one.
I regret this.
I regret this.
when I was a much younger man I had a habit of trying to convince conspiracy theorists I met of even crazier theories. if they denied the moon landing, I'd try to convince them the moon itself was a hoax, etc.
Starting to worry that might have done lasting harm.
Starting to worry that might have done lasting harm.
September 15, 2026 at 6:06 AM
I once convinced a very arrogant and very annoying young software engineering student at Queen's who was definitely not on uppers that we lived in a simulation and I had been sent to tell him he was the chosen one.
I regret this.
I regret this.
Reposted by Emily Lakdawalla 🏳️⚧️ Uranus Expert
Nice photo but pretty easy to scroll past until you realize it was taken on Mars.
Clouds over Mont Mercou - Curiosity, sol 3075 - From Thomas Appéré (thomasappere.bsky.social) - https://flic.kr/p/2kQvCSE
September 15, 2026 at 2:23 AM
Nice photo but pretty easy to scroll past until you realize it was taken on Mars.
Reposted by Emily Lakdawalla 🏳️⚧️ Uranus Expert
Breaking: Judge blocks Trump administration plans to limit visa length for grad students, postdocs www.statnews.com/2026/09/14/c...
Judge blocks Trump administration plans to limit visa length for grad students, postdocs
A federal judge halted a Trump administration plan to place a four-year cap on the kinds of visas used by graduate students and postdocs
www.statnews.com
September 14, 2026 at 10:00 PM
Breaking: Judge blocks Trump administration plans to limit visa length for grad students, postdocs www.statnews.com/2026/09/14/c...
Reposted by Emily Lakdawalla 🏳️⚧️ Uranus Expert
The American Astronomical Society today announced that Dr. Emily Levesque (University of Washington) has been confirmed as the next Editor in Chief of the AAS journals. 🔭https://aas.org/press/emily-levesque-named-editor-chief-aas-journals
@publishing.aas.org
@publishing.aas.org
September 14, 2026 at 4:25 PM
The American Astronomical Society today announced that Dr. Emily Levesque (University of Washington) has been confirmed as the next Editor in Chief of the AAS journals. 🔭https://aas.org/press/emily-levesque-named-editor-chief-aas-journals
@publishing.aas.org
@publishing.aas.org
Reposted by Emily Lakdawalla 🏳️⚧️ Uranus Expert
i’ve been saying this for years and it especially needs to happen now that he has passed
desperately need for there to be a Bob Mackie Met Gala (while he’s still with us) and have him as the guest of honor with Cher and Diana Ross by his side
September 14, 2026 at 8:48 PM
i’ve been saying this for years and it especially needs to happen now that he has passed
Reposted by Emily Lakdawalla 🏳️⚧️ Uranus Expert
I was sorry to hear that Bob Mackie had died today, surely the designer with the most sparkling of legacies. Here is just one of the countless dazzling garments worn by Cher in the late #1970s #JuliensAuctions #FashionHistory 🗃️🪡
September 14, 2026 at 8:49 PM
I was sorry to hear that Bob Mackie had died today, surely the designer with the most sparkling of legacies. Here is just one of the countless dazzling garments worn by Cher in the late #1970s #JuliensAuctions #FashionHistory 🗃️🪡
Reposted by Emily Lakdawalla 🏳️⚧️ Uranus Expert
An old one, a collaboration with David Hardy, Colliers Moonlanders by me, background by Dave, a bit of front projection to get the shadows rendered on the backdrop, and provide indirect light.
September 14, 2026 at 5:47 PM
An old one, a collaboration with David Hardy, Colliers Moonlanders by me, background by Dave, a bit of front projection to get the shadows rendered on the backdrop, and provide indirect light.
Reposted by Emily Lakdawalla 🏳️⚧️ Uranus Expert
This is awesome news from @paulchadwick.bsky.social
Dark Horse to Bring Paul Chadwick's 'Concrete' Back to Print as Omnibus Series
Full Omnibus Will Include All Seven Volumes of Eisner Award-Winning Series, and More
icv2.com
September 14, 2026 at 8:52 PM
This is awesome news from @paulchadwick.bsky.social
Reposted by Emily Lakdawalla 🏳️⚧️ Uranus Expert
Cis people do not understand how much trans people's rights have regressed in just 5 years.
5 years ago, there were none of these restrictions.
19 states banned legal recognition
21 states have bathroom bans
8 states ban gender marker changes on DLs
25 ban gender affirming care for trans youth
5 years ago, there were none of these restrictions.
19 states banned legal recognition
21 states have bathroom bans
8 states ban gender marker changes on DLs
25 ban gender affirming care for trans youth
September 14, 2026 at 2:57 PM
Cis people do not understand how much trans people's rights have regressed in just 5 years.
5 years ago, there were none of these restrictions.
19 states banned legal recognition
21 states have bathroom bans
8 states ban gender marker changes on DLs
25 ban gender affirming care for trans youth
5 years ago, there were none of these restrictions.
19 states banned legal recognition
21 states have bathroom bans
8 states ban gender marker changes on DLs
25 ban gender affirming care for trans youth
Reposted by Emily Lakdawalla 🏳️⚧️ Uranus Expert
Come be my boss!
Chicago-based Injustice Watch is seeking our next EIC. If you're an experienced manager with deep investigative skills who cares about independent, impactful reporting, please consider applying. $125K–$145K, with benefits.
www.injusticewatch.org/about/editor...
Chicago-based Injustice Watch is seeking our next EIC. If you're an experienced manager with deep investigative skills who cares about independent, impactful reporting, please consider applying. $125K–$145K, with benefits.
www.injusticewatch.org/about/editor...
Editor in Chief
Editor in Chief Injustice Watch is seeking an Editor in Chief to lead our nonprofit newsroom. The ideal candidate is an experienced manager and editor
www.injusticewatch.org
August 28, 2026 at 6:53 PM
Come be my boss!
Chicago-based Injustice Watch is seeking our next EIC. If you're an experienced manager with deep investigative skills who cares about independent, impactful reporting, please consider applying. $125K–$145K, with benefits.
www.injusticewatch.org/about/editor...
Chicago-based Injustice Watch is seeking our next EIC. If you're an experienced manager with deep investigative skills who cares about independent, impactful reporting, please consider applying. $125K–$145K, with benefits.
www.injusticewatch.org/about/editor...
Reposted by Emily Lakdawalla 🏳️⚧️ Uranus Expert
NASA conventionally releases its "Research Opportunities in Space and Earth Sciences" in mid-February of each year.
This announces dozens of grant programs that fund hundreds of science projects.
Last year, it was delayed by 5 months. This year, it has been delayed by 7 months so far.
This announces dozens of grant programs that fund hundreds of science projects.
Last year, it was delayed by 5 months. This year, it has been delayed by 7 months so far.
September 14, 2026 at 4:24 PM
NASA conventionally releases its "Research Opportunities in Space and Earth Sciences" in mid-February of each year.
This announces dozens of grant programs that fund hundreds of science projects.
Last year, it was delayed by 5 months. This year, it has been delayed by 7 months so far.
This announces dozens of grant programs that fund hundreds of science projects.
Last year, it was delayed by 5 months. This year, it has been delayed by 7 months so far.
Reposted by Emily Lakdawalla 🏳️⚧️ Uranus Expert
Happy birthday #GW150914!
11 years ago today, we caught our first gravitational wave, and founded a new type of astronomy
A decade later, we now have hundreds of observations!
🔭🧪🎂
11 years ago today, we caught our first gravitational wave, and founded a new type of astronomy
A decade later, we now have hundreds of observations!
🔭🧪🎂
September 14, 2026 at 11:58 AM
Happy birthday #GW150914!
11 years ago today, we caught our first gravitational wave, and founded a new type of astronomy
A decade later, we now have hundreds of observations!
🔭🧪🎂
11 years ago today, we caught our first gravitational wave, and founded a new type of astronomy
A decade later, we now have hundreds of observations!
🔭🧪🎂