The day I became a Toronto resident was the day my wonder about having (mostly) functional public transit turned into having a list of complaints

Every time I complain about the TTC, I remember COTA

Being on the environmental science team means I'm constantly in awe of the magnitude of the work that the geologists et al have to put in each planning day (on top of all the work done by the instrument and engineering teams).

Every time I'm on MSL planning I still almost can't believe that we're able to say "I would like to take a picture of that rock (or whatever)" and within a handful of days get a photo of that rock (or whatever) FROM THE SURFACE OF MARS.

Imagine flying all the way around the Moon and back and seasickness after landing is what does you in.

The Moon! The Sun's corona! A crewed spacecraft! Oh my!

HOLY SHIT

Shadows Across Vavilov Crater A close-up view taken by the Artemis II crew of Vavilov Crater on the rim of the older and larger Hertzsprung basin. The right portion of the image shows the transition from smooth material within an inner ring of mountains to more rugged terrain around the rim. Vavilov and other craters and their ejecta are accentuated by long shadows at the terminator, the boundary between lunar day and night. The image was captured with a handheld camera at a focal length of 400 mm, as the crew flew around the far side of the Moon. Credit: NASA

Shadows at the Edge of Lunar Day The Artemis II crew captures a portion of the Moon coming into view along the terminator – the boundary between lunar day and night – where low-angle sunlight casts long, dramatic shadows across the surface. This grazing light accentuates the Moon’s rugged topography, revealing craters, ridges, and basin structures in striking detail. Features along the terminator such as Jule Crater, Birkhoff Crater, Stebbins Crater, and surrounding highlands stand out. From this perspective, the interplay of light and shadow highlights the complexity of the lunar surface in ways not visible under full illumination. The image was captured about three hours into the crew’s lunar observation period, as they flew around the far side of the Moon on the sixth day of the mission. Credit: NASA

Ready for a Close Up Captured by the Artemis II crew, the heavily cratered terrain of the eastern edge of the South Pole-Aitken basin is seen with the shadowed terminator – the boundary between lunar day and night – at the top of the image. The South Pole-Aitken basin is the largest and oldest basin on the Moon, providing a glimpse into an ancient geologic history built up over billions of years. Credit: NASA

Postcards from the far side

www.flickr.com/photos/nasa2...

#Artemis 🔭🧪

oh man...

images.nasa.gov/details/art0...

Earth sets at 6:41 p.m. EDT, April 6, 2026, over the Moon’s curved limb in this photo captured by the Artemis II crew during their journey around the far side of the Moon. Orientale basin is perched on the edge of the visible lunar surface. Hertzsprung Basin appears as two subtle concentric rings, which are interrupted by Vavilov, a younger crater superimposed over the older structure. The lines of indentations are secondary crater chains formed by ejecta from the massive impact that created Orientale. The dark portion of Earth is experiencing nighttime. On Earth’s day side, swirling clouds are visible over the Australia and Oceania region. Credit: NASA.

A New View of the Moon

Earth sets over the Moon’s curved limb in this photo captured by the Artemis II crew during their journey around the far side of the Moon.

flic.kr/p/2s6971B #Artemis 🧪🔭

On a black background of space, a blue and white Earth just before 'setting' behind the Moon, in foreground, seen from Artemis II, 6 April 2026

Totality seen from lunar orbit, the Moon eclipses the Sun, revealing a view few humans have ever witnessed, a dark disc surrounded by a pale solar corona.

✅ #Artemis II update: 'Earthset', 6 April 2026, and 'totality', 7 April, seen from lunar orbit, the Moon eclipses the Sun, a view few humans have ever witnessed (pics: NASA)

🔗 www.nasa.gov/gallery/jour...

@exploration.esa.int l

Also it's pretty much what I was thinking about the 2024 solar eclipse. I can't even imagine the experience of all this FROM BEHIND THE MOON.

Answering this a bit, I guess:

The Moon seen through a window. Knobs and techy shit seen around the window. NASA/Artemis II/Kevin M. Gill

Pre-flyby view of the Orion spacecraft window from the Artemis II crew.

flic.kr/p/2s68SXB

The Moon. NASA/Artemis II/Kevin M. Gill

New shot of the Moon taken only a few hours ago by the Artemis II crew! More of the lunar far side coming into view :-D

flic.kr/p/2s676GN

Spectacular high-resolution image of our home planet viewed through the Orion Crew Module window by the Artemis II astronauts as they continue their journey to the Moon on Flight Day 2, 3 April 2026 (pic: NASA)

A full disc image of Earth, as seen from the Orion Crew Module. The planet is a pale blue, swirling with white clouds and glowing slightly lighter blue in place from reflected light. At lower left, a large brown landmass is Africa, with Spain and Portugal with twinkling lights where the planet curves. At top right, auroras glow in a thin green glow, just barely separated from the planet's surface. Earth is set against the black of space (pic: NASA/R.Wiseman)

😮 Awesome views from Day 2 of #Artemis II this morning.

@exploration.esa.int @esaearth.esa.int

Yeah that’s cool

Hot tip re: someone I just had to block: "Trans men shouldn't transition because they become Men, The Source Of All Worldly Problems" is still transphobic! (In addition to being bioessentialist nonsense)

A screenshot of a CBC headline reading "Poilievre backs J.K. Rowling's support for Olympic ban of transgender women from women's sports." Below that is text reading "International Olympic Committee announced new gender policy ahead of L.A. Games."

Mark Carney should call an early election just so I can have the pleasure of watching Carleton tell this man to go to hell a second time.

A photo of a whiteboard on which is written in black marker "Are grad students obsolete?" Below that in blue, someone has written "Maybe?"

Serious questions are being asked.

This Zenith Movie was taken on Sol 1957 (2018-02-06) at approximately 7:09 LTST and a solar longitude of 125.8°.

The answer did (somehow) end up being the Crosstown, but it now appears that we'll never know what this rover's name would have been as the CSA is cancelling the mission 😔

just remember how insanely fast nature rebounded when everyone stopped rolling coal for 10 minutes in the early pandemic

Things that are really fun to think about while you're trying to decide what you're doing after you get your PhD :)

I love writing emails referring to myself in the third person. I have not been fundamentally broken as a person by academia.

A screenshot of a combination Doordash and Starbucks ad declaring that "pumpkin spice season is back."

...I don't think this is true?

Talking to Mars This week, PhD student Diana Hayes takes a look at how we communicate with spacecraft dispersed throughout the solar system. Given the numbe...

This week, PhD Student @dchayes.ca sheds some light on how we talk to spacecraft on and around other planets: york-pvl.blogspot.com/2026/02/talk... The situation on the red planet is particularly complex and therefore particularly interesting! Like any infrastructure, maintenance is critical

Curiosity Blog, Sols 4812-4819: Back Into the Hollows - NASA Science Written by Diana Hayes, Graduate student at York University, Toronto

Curiosity Blog, Sols 4812-4819: Back Into the Hollows
Written by Diana Hayes, Graduate student at York University, Toronto, Canada @dchayes.ca
Earth planning date: Friday, Feb. 20, 2026

science.nasa.gov/blog/curiosi...

A screenshot of a quoted tweet from the Ottawa Senators that reads: A match up that's felt destined for the last 365 days Join us Sunday morning at Bert's Bar at the Canadian Tire Centre for the Gold Medal Watch Party Doors open at 7:30 AM Breakfast buffet available for purchase for attendees The quote reads: I never thought the Ottawa Senators would be inviting us to the Canadian Tire Centre to cheer AGAINST Brady Tkachuk and Jake Sanderson. But here we are.

No, but I did see that one as well. I eventually tracked it down as a screenshot from a video where the camera flies up and over the terrain, which obviously makes it not a real image / video.