Sarah holding a glass trophy in a box. The trophy is glass with a bulb shape, with a metallic part at the bottom which looks like the screw part of the bulb. On the glass is the Pride in STEM logo and "decadal award winner, Sarah Cosgriff". Sarah is wearing brown trousers, a short sleeve barong, and a blue and dusty pink bolero with butterfly sleeves.

Last night, I was one of the recipients of a Decadal Award from @prideinstem.bsky.social.

I've been spending some time thinking of the last 5 years of my LGBTQ+ and asexual advocacy work. It's something I fell into, and I'm so grateful for the opportunities and support I've received.

If you intend to vote Scottish Green this May, please be aware of potential voter confusion on the peach coloured regional list ballot paper.

Take care to mark your X next to the actual Scottish Greens and not another party which has 'GREEN' dominating their ballot insignia.

Hey, just @samsighs.bsky.social checking in!

The BIG Event 2026 is still open for bookings and we'd love to see you there!

Time to grab a ticket?

www.big.uk.com/BIGEvent2026

Artemis II being safely brought down by Tunnock’s tea cakes

#artemis #tunnocks

All the feels. Welcome home #ArtemisII. Flawless entry, spectacular mission. #Artemis

Astronauts Victor Glover and Christina Koch in their orange astronaut suits as they sit inside the side of a helicopter after it has landed

LOL, trying to stay offline and do my work, and friends are sending me

"LOOK AT THIS NEW PIC!" texts ....

This one is worth it.

First PoC and first woman to go around another world. Don't stop talking about this point. It's important.

#ArtemisII

Matt and Duncan in the sun in front of Edinburgh Castle

Mostly a quiet week for us what with the Easter break - but we did manage an in person team meeting!

So what's better, human or robotic space exploration? Happy to make the case for robotic on Sky News today (with a little shout out to Europa Clipper, arriving at Jupiter in 2030 🥳)

We don't want to see what Jim is saying to you about whatever... We wanna concentrate on what you have to say!

Top presenting tip. If you're using MS Teams, mute the notifications during your meeting! support.microsoft.com/en-gb/office...

Projected onto an enormous IMAX screen, you can see the white Orion spacecraft to the left approaching the grey ball of the Moon. Both are set against the blackness of space.

The same view of the Orion spacecraft approaching the Moon against the blackness of space.

It is completely wild to me that in November 2022, @andysaunders-1.bsky.social and I were in the IMAX at work setting up for his lecture, watching #ArtemisI approach the Moon, and today an actual crew aboard the spacecraft is getting much the same view. #ArtemisII

A back garden during a hailstorm, with plant pots covered in small hailstones, as a woman in a yellow raincoat runs across the path.

I'm dreaming of a white Easter...

This is that same amazing view, but with camera settings set that really show this is a backlit photo of Earth—only a thin sliver of it illuminated by the Sun.

Source: www.nasa.gov/image-detail...

Credit: NASA/Reid Wiseman

Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen – in the centre of the image – peers out the window of the Orion spacecraft on day 3 of NASA's Artemis II mission. The controls over the commander and pilot seats are illuminated in the foreground, but the cabin is otherwise dark to avoid unnecessary glares on the windows.

The Moon approaching as seen by the crew of Artemis II on Flight Day 3

An illuminated sliver of Earth set against the blackness of space is seen through the window of the Orion spacecraft in this photograph from the Artemis II crew on the third day of their journey to the Moon.

✅ #Artemis II update: the Orion spacecraft with its European Service Module is now more than halfway to its destination, and crew preparations for lunar flyby are under way 🧪🔭

@exploration.esa.int

Inside a school sports hall, sits the portable planetarium. The planetarium is a big black inflatable dome, reaching most of the way to the hall ceiling. It has a white zip running half way up one side, which forms the doorway to get inside. The Tayside Planetarium banner stand is in the foreground. The hall is empty of people, before a day of shows begins for the school children.

The Artemis 2 crew posing for their official portrait. The four astronauts are standing or sitting in the orange launch suits. Pilot Victor Glover, a bald black man stands at the rear, with mission specialist Christina Koch, a white woman with medium length brown hair standing to the left of the picture, holding her helmet in her hand. Seated in front is mission commander Reid Wiseman, a white man with short brown hair. Seated to the right of the picture is Jeremy Hansen, a white man with short brown hair, who has a Canadian flag patch on his shoulder, unlike the other three that have the US flag.

An exciting Thursday with the dome at Woodlands PS, Carnoustie. They got so lucky that the Artemis 2 crew successfully launched the night before. We got to talk about a lunar mission with the astronauts in Earth orbit, getting ready to slingshot towards the Moon! #artemisII #planetarium #scotland

Artemis II blasts closer to the far side of the Moon The mission's last, big push on its lunar journey takes humans out of the Earth's orbit for the first time since 1972.

I’m rapidly discovering that I’m basically incapable of reading anything about #ArtemisII without crying. And I’m OK with that. I hoped but didn’t entirely believe that anything like this would happen in my lifetime, and here it is, happening right now.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Inside a school sports hall, sits the portable planetarium. The planetarium is a big black inflatable dome, reaching most of the way to the hall ceiling. It has a white zip running half way up one side, which forms the doorway to get inside. The Tayside Planetarium banner stand is in the foreground. The hall is empty of people, before a day of shows begins for the school children.

The Artemis 2 crew posing for their official portrait. The four astronauts are standing or sitting in the orange launch suits. Pilot Victor Glover, a bald black man stands at the rear, with mission specialist Christina Koch, a white woman with medium length brown hair standing to the left of the picture, holding her helmet in her hand. Seated in front is mission commander Reid Wiseman, a white man with short brown hair. Seated to the right of the picture is Jeremy Hansen, a white man with short brown hair, who has a Canadian flag patch on his shoulder, unlike the other three that have the US flag.

An exciting Thursday with the dome at Woodlands PS, Carnoustie. They got so lucky that the Artemis 2 crew successfully launched the night before. We got to talk about a lunar mission with the astronauts in Earth orbit, getting ready to slingshot towards the Moon! #artemisII #planetarium #scotland

I you think these are already breathtaking enough and THEN YOU NOTICE THE AURORAE 😍😱

That's home. That's us.

This image of home just came down from the Artemis II crew.

Taken after their translunar injection burn, there are aurorae at top right and lower left, and zodiacal light at lower right.

Credit: NASA/Reid Wiseman

Artemis service module separation was so pretty.

Happy Artemis launch day everyone!

Blast off currently scheduled for 23:24 UK (18:24 EDT). There is go/no-go decision to start loading the propellants around 12:30 UK.

Some music while you wait?

On day 8 of the #Artemis mission, the crew will practice building a shelter inside the Orion capsule, to protect them in the event of the major solar storm. Thinking this practice might be better done earlier in the mission? 🤔 Anyway, here's very much hoping for 0 sun-burps in the next 10 days! 🔭🧪

Remember to be wary, as today is the only day of the year that incorrect or misleading information is posted on the internet.

I usually say "practice at home, with your phone to record you, or present it to your flatmate or your cat".... Or plush toys!

Definitely recommending this technique to folks in my next training session.

Artemis II is scheduled to launch on Wednesday evening.

“But that’s the way talks have always been done!” – academia has a huge status quo bias, change is slow.

Embrace your rebellious side and go do your talks differently! Audiences get bored, so novelty is a big asset. And by doing it YOUR WAY, it’ll be more honest, authentic, and genuine.

#PHDChat

Storytelling is not always effective

Remember, the goal is to get your audience to listen to what you're saying and understand it.

If storytelling isn't going to help with that, abandon ship!

Presenting to small audiences

If there’s 6 people or less, then you have a very intimate setting.

Full on PPT to 5 or 6 people gets a bit awkward.

So instead, make it a conversation or discussion. Don't be afraid to throw out your plan if the context changes.


#Academia #PHDChat

Reminder, our bi-annual award for early career science communicators closes for applications on Friday 10th April!

Find out what the Josh Award is, who is eligible, what it celebrates and how to apply at big.uk.com/josh.