Earthset from Artemis II. I am overcome.

"We will always choose Earth. We will always choose each other." -Christina Koch, after flying around the Moon www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-j1...

NASA released the Artemis II astronauts’ first downlinked images, 1.5 days into the first astronaut moonshot in more than half a century . “It was the most spectacular moment, and it paused all four of us in our tracks,” commander Reid Wiseman said.

I appreciate the coincidence that some of us tonight will commemorate the exodus from Ancient Egypt as four astronauts make their exodus from this planet. 🚀

Everyone is go for launch! Proceeding with T-10 countdown! #artemisII Watch live at plus.nasa.gov

If you're like wait what is going on today, I wrote a whole THING about it

Weather is 90% go! #ArtemisII

T minus 58 minutes! We are going! #artemisii

Looks like it's still on! NASA's live launch coverage begins at 12:50 p.m. at plus.nasa.gov It's my first big event happening while I'm on "the outside" but I'm cheering on the astronauts, the whole mission team, and all of my former colleagues working 24/7 to bring this broadcast to you!

"We are going" ...to eat this donut ...to the Moon! Artemis II liftoff April 1 at 6:24pm ET! www.nasa.gov

Mystery orcas are (back) in Puget Sound! Enjoyed working with @jesstaylorprice.bsky.social on this one: www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/arti...

Another fun article I edited this last week: These frog mating calls may also serve as weather reports, by Jude Coleman: www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/arti...

Each spring, people try to "save" baby animals that don't need rescue at all, and end up doing much more harm than good. @mtrgovich.bsky.social has the scoop: www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/arti...

Can you believe these fish have been cloning themselves for over 100,000 years? Great working on @annieroth.bsky.social on this fascinating update about Amazon mollies: www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/arti...

As an editor, I find myself having to turn down otherwise interesting story ideas if the pitch doesn't have a great answer to "Why now?" Fortunately @theopennotebook.bsky.social just dropped a great guide to figuring out your news hook: www.theopennotebook.com/2026/02/24/w...

Great working with @annieroth.bsky.social on this story about caterpillar hearing: www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/arti...

The dramatic rescue of a manatee from a storm drain in Melbourne Beach, Florida - by Bethany Augliere www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/arti...

Can Florida save the reef gecko? @mstarling.bsky.social provides an essential update: www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/arti...

Nice to work with @timvernimmen.bsky.social on this story about how crucial elephant elders are in passing down knowledge to younger generations.

Great working with @marybates.bsky.social on this story!

Another fun story for Nat Geo: Tent-making bats are skilled architects with integral roles in the health of forests - and they're adorable!

Can apes imagine? A tea party-like experiment with a bonobo revealed that the ape could track pretend juice and grapes. The fascinating research features Kanzi, the late, great primate prodigy! New story for @nationalgeographic.bsky.social: www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/arti...

Awww NASA made me a dark matter map on my birthday! www.nationalgeographic.com/science/arti...

Who else was excited about Kepler-22b showing up in #Pluribus? I covered this planet's discovery in 2011 for CNN, and then dressed up as it for Halloween that year! www.cnn.com/2011/12/05/u...

bird migration is powered by extra + extra powerful mitochondria - that are activated ONLY during migration season. @lizlandau.bsky.social www.quantamagazine.org/turbocharged...

Did you know plants can heat themselves up? Even cooler, these beetles in the Amazon detect the changes infrared intensity to go pollinate those plants, representing one of the oldest forms of pollination. My latest for National Geographic: www.nationalgeographic.com/science/arti...

If Neil and Buzz took their historic steps in 2025, I feel like instead of "Men Walk on Moon" the headline would be "You'll Never Guess Where These Astronauts Landed." RIP legendary science journalist John Noble Wilford.

Did you know that a black hole could fall into a star, only to then blow up the star from the inside?! 🤯 Loved getting back to my astrophysics roots to write this one for Nat Geo! www.nationalgeographic.com/science/arti...

A mammoth-sized discovery for #FossilFriday! 🦣 Researchers extracted the world's oldest RNA from Yuka, a 39,000-year-old juvenile mammoth mummy from Siberia! Very excited to write this up for @nationalgeographic.bsky.social: www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/arti...

I left CNN in 2014 but my interview with James Watson was still referenced in his obit (along with a shout-out to Rosalind Franklin) www.cnn.com/2025/11/07/u...

Took a group of science journalists from @dcswa.bsky.social out for a 530-million-year stroll along the Billy Goat Trail today. ⚒️

In case you missed it: scientists found this sign of possible past life on Mars! My latest for Nat Geo: www.nationalgeographic.com/science/arti...

Spotted this snake 🐍 in Shenandoah National Park on Saturday. Can anyone identify it?

NASA’s acting chief calls for the end of Earth science at the space agency arstechnica.com/space/2025/0...

How did I get this far in life and _just_ find out that every cube is a multiple of 9, ±1? 1³ = 1 = 0⸱9 +1 2³ = 8 = 1⸱9 -1 3³ = 27 = 3⸱9 +0 4³ = 64 = 7⸱9 +1 5³ = 125 = 14⸱9 -1 6³ = 216 = 24⸱9 +0 7³ = 343 = 38⸱9 +1 Proof is easy: any can be written as (3k-1)³, (3k)³, or (3k+1)³; then just expand.

Just solved a tech issue bugging me all day yesterday by restarting my computer. Somewhere, a discarded 40-year-old Apple IIe gets its wings.

The number of "This is my last day" posts on LinkedIn regarding what was these people's dream jobs is staggering. My heart goes out to everyone who is not leaving by choice.

Nothing to see here, just *the most energetic explosions in the universe since the big bang.* They came from supermassive black holes eating stars, reported in a new study today using NASA data. My latest: science.nasa.gov/science-rese...

Here we are in 2025. Overheard on the street in DC: "I'm definitely not a Charlotte. I think I'm a cross between Miranda and Carrie."

RIP Edmund White, acclaimed novelist but also a wonderful creative writing professor. Here is a story I had written about him for CNN back in 2011: web.archive.org/web/20120210...

I am an old soul who still gets excited to see something I wrote in print in the @nytimes.com 😍

Join the AAAS to celebrate the winners of the Mani L. Bhaumik Breakthrough of the Year Award. Ceremony begins at 4:00 PM and a reception will follow at 5:30 PM. Register and type DCSWA as your affiliation. 📍 Address: 1200 New York Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20005 Registration: 🔗 shorturl.at/JuoWz

DCSWA 🦆 Members: Join us on June 26 at Sonny's Pizza. There will be dairy free and gluten free options for those with dietary restrictions. No registration required. 📍Sonny’s Pizza is a few blocks from the Columbia Heights metro station. Address: 3120 Georgia Ave NW, Washington, DC 20010.

Have been thinking this for a long time now:

Monkeys kidnap the babies of other monkeys, and then wear them around for days on end... it's a grim tale I've written for the @nytimes.com! www.nytimes.com/2025/05/19/s...

Loved working on this deep-dive into how mitochondria enable bird migration!

It's a big publication day for me today! First, how do some birds get the energy to fly hundreds to thousands of miles without stopping? The answer may in their mitochondria. I report for @quantamagazine.bsky.social www.quantamagazine.org/turbocharged...

How do birds migrate thousands of miles, flapping nonstop for hours or days at a time without food or rest? Lab and field studies reveal that migrating birds have "turbocharged" mitochondria in their cells that produce extra energy. @lizlandau.bsky.social: www.quantamagazine.org/turbocharged...

I think that maybe 20-30 years from now we will understand in more detail why some of us can't get pregnant naturally and don't respond well to the most advanced interventions of today (which also break our bank accounts, bodies, and minds). I'll be too old by then. undark.org/2025/03/13/o...

My mom just used the word "vibes" in a text for the first time so I think we have officially entered a new linguistic era with this word.