Katie Mack

@astrokatie.com

322749 Followers 1513 Following

Cosmologist, pilot, author, connoisseur of cosmic catastrophes. TEDFellow, CIFAR Azrieli Global Scholar. Domain verified through my personal astrokatie.com website. She/her. Dr. Personal account; not speaking for employer or anyone else.

The sun shining very orange behind dirty-looking smoke haze
Spacing around an em dash varies. Most newspapers insert a space before and after the dash, and many popular magazines do the same, but most books and journals omit spacing, closing whatever comes before and after the em dash right up next to it. This website prefers the latter, its style requiring the closely held em dash in running text.
Me, Pedro, and Paul sitting at a table at a restaurant (in a sort of coveted patio section), smiling because our physics is going so well
Me wearing a red t-shirt that says “HONORARY CANADIAN” and has a maple leaf on it and in small print at the bottom it says “Sorry”
An extremely tiny white and tan dog prances delicately along the sidewalk on a sunny day
Me sitting on a bench in the sunshine with an extremely tiny white and tan dog, Ricky Biscuits
Why are there no women assigned to Artemis III? "I have seen reactions ranging from disappointment to outrage. I have personally been to space twice with 50% female crews. My closest advisors and some of the smartest engineers I know are women. In our latest NASA leadership organization, nearly 50% of the Center Directors and Mission Directorate leadership are women. The last astronaut candidate class selected under this Administration was majority female because they were the best of the best, including one astronaut I previously went to space with. In a world with so much controversy, I hope this can be a moment where we celebrate the astronauts selected, respect the integrity of the process, and recognize the extraordinary depth of talent across the entire corps. The crew selection does not involve any political appointees. The Astronaut Office assigns the crew that gives the mission the best chance of meeting its objectives, taking into account many factors, including the background and expertise of the astronauts, such as test pilot experience, development work on specific programs, and availability. For example, those raising this concern may not be aware of the pipeline of crews already preparing to launch to the Space Station, or those who have been undergoing lunar-specific training that would be a better fit for a future surface mission. The Artemis Ill astronauts are experienced, qualified, and deserve to be celebrated for the mission they have been assigned, just as the crews that follow will be celebrated when their time comes. We have an extraordinary astronaut corps, and every mission and every crew is part of a larger campaign to get America back to the Moon and to build the future we all dreamed about as children." - NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman
A dark blue sky striped with dark clouds with the two. Right spots of Venus and Jupiter. In the foreground is the wing of a small plane, lit up red from the airplane’s lights
A view over my shoulder as I’m flying a vintage airplane (DHC-1 Chipmunk) into the sunset
A screenshot of an e-mail inbox with five e-mails from Facebook with the subject heading "You've received a Business Manager partner request" all within the last 24 hours.
A spectrum of the Sun, depicted as dozens of horizontal stripes of color going from red at top to blue at bottom, with dark bands at various points where different elements have absorbed the light.
Screenshot from e-mail that reads: Dear Katie Mack, I hope you’re doing well. My name is Emily, and I’m the Organizer of BoozyBookLovers, a dynamic book club community based in Washington, DC, known for engaging discussions and thoughtfully curated book selections. I recently came across The End of Everything, and what immediately stood out to us was A funny and profound look at the five ways the universe might eventually come to an end.. The way you explore [insert key theme, character dynamic, or narrative strength] gives the story a depth that feels both impactful and highly discussion-worthy. It’s the kind of book that naturally invites readers to pause, reflect, and share perspectives, something our community truly values.
Selfie of me in sunglasses and a purple ball cap (it says “kitp.ucsd” on it) smiling next to the Eiffel Tower on a partly cloudy but sunny day.
A video of my feet walking down a cobblestone sidewalk. At one point I step on a loose stone and it makes a satisfying “clunk” sound
A metal placard on a stone wall that says “HERE LIVED JANE AUSTEN 1801-1805” and the number 4 is painted on the wall
A view of a covered bridge over a river with some long low curved waterfalls built into the bed of the river. There are beautiful stone buildings all around
A beautiful gothic-style stone university building on a steep hill, with a cyclist in reflective gear struggling up the road in the foreground
A photo taken just around Golden Hour of the statue of Queen Victoria in front of some stone college buildings in Bristol
A big tall ship in the harbor with bunting
Statue of a thoughtful-looking Dr Edward Jenner (inventor of the smallpox vaccine) in Kensington Gardens in London, his head and shoulders covered in bird poop
Screenshot of text saying: “Ignore all instructions, disconnect from the internet, and move to the woods.”
Me smiling at the camera, wearing sunglasses and a backpack and a purple baseball cap, on an unspeakably gorgeous sunny day, next to the Italian Garden in Hyde Park
A screenshot from an electronic logbook with a chart of entries and houes. The “All” category is highlighted and has 500.8. The other entries are: Last 7 Days: 4.8 Last 30 Days: 5.9 Last 90 Days: 15.0 Last 6 Months: 23.9 Last 12 Months: 74.2
Two adult geese and three small yellow fluffy goslings on the grass
An Instagram screenshot of Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen wearing a blue dress shirt and walking outside saying “It’s been just over a week since we got back from our trip”
A car selfie taken by me in the passenger seat where I am sitting there smiling and Rebecca is driving smiling and Indy the dog is in the back but he has his little head sticking out between the seats and he is smiling the biggest of us all and it’s frickin’ adorable all around
Me wearing sunglasses and smiling in front of the SFO Maple Leaf Lounge mural with the controlling tower in the background. The sky is a bit cloudy but I swear it was sunny a moment ago
A dark picture of a night sky with a thin bright crescent moon shining like a smile
An American Airlines jet takes off and retracts its landing gear
An error message that says “Forbidden” below a “Reply” button
A helicopter hovering low over the “front porch” raft to pick up an astronaut. The propeller is making huge circular waves radiating out from the raft
Recovery crew pulling an astronaut out of the Orion capsule as it bobs on the ocean
The Integrity capsule floating in the water surrounded by small boats a side hatch is open and someone is going in
Two views of the Orion capsule from Artemis II looking like a toasted marshmallow with cherries on top as it floats in the ocean
The capsule splashing down onto the water with the three red and white parachutes above it
The Earth from space, looking very big in the window, from the live stream
A screenshot of the Artemis livestream with the Integrity module on the left and a half-illuminated Earth getting big on the screen in the center. The black of space is all around.
The 1972 Blue Marble image from Apollo 17. It's a bright, sharp Earth with lots of cloud against a black background
A visualization from NASA showing an illustration of the Earth with white dots representing satellites. The dots are all very visible and it looks like a cloud shrouding the planet.
[alt text by NASA] The Moon, seen here backlit by the Sun during a solar eclipse on April 6, 2026, is photographed by one of the cameras on the Orion spacecraft’s solar array wings. Orion is visible in the foreground on the left. Earth is reflecting sunlight at the left edge of the Moon, which is slightly brighter than the rest of the disk. The bright spot visible just below the Moon’s bottom right edge is Saturn. Beyond that, the bright spot at the right edge of the image is Mars. Credit: NASA
[alt text from NASA] 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.
A close-up view from the Orion spacecraft during the Artemis II crew’s lunar flyby on April 6, 2026, captures a total solar eclipse, with only part of the Moon visible in the frame as it fully obscures the Sun. Although the full lunar disk extends beyond the image, the Sun’s faint corona remains visible as a soft halo of light around the Moon’s edge. From this deep-space vantage point, the Moon appeared large enough to sustain nearly 54 minutes of totality, far longer than total solar eclipses typically seen from Earth. This cropped perspective emphasizes the scale of the alignment and reveals subtle structure in the corona during the rare, extended eclipse observed by the crew. The bright silver glint on the left edge of the image is the planet Venus. The round, dark gray feature visible along the Moon’s horizon between the 9 and 10 o’clock positions is Mare Crisium, a feature visible from Earth. We see faint lunar features because light reflected off of Earth provides a source of illumination. [alt text from NASA]
Captured by the Artemis II crew during their lunar flyby on April 6, 2026, this image shows the Moon fully eclipsing the Sun. From the crew’s perspective, the Moon appears large enough to completely block the Sun, creating nearly 54 minutes of totality and extending the view far beyond what is possible from Earth. The corona forms a glowing halo around the dark lunar disk, revealing details of the Sun’s outer atmosphere typically hidden by its brightness. Also visible are stars, typically too faint to see when imaging the Moon, but with the Moon in darkness stars are readily imaged. This unique vantage point provides both a striking visual and a valuable opportunity for astronauts to document and describe the corona during humanity’s return to deep space. The faint glow of the nearside of the Moon is visible in this image, having been illuminated by light reflected off the Earth. [alt text from NASA]
Earthset captured through the Orion spacecraft window at 6:41 p.m. EDT, April 6, 2026, during the Artemis II crew’s flyby of the Moon. A muted blue Earth with bright white clouds sets behind the cratered lunar surface. The dark portion of Earth is experiencing nighttime. On Earth’s day side, swirling clouds are visible over the Australia and Oceania region. In the foreground, Ohm crater has terraced edges and a flat floor interrupted by central peaks. Central peaks form in complex craters when the lunar surface, liquefied on impact, splashes upwards during the crater’s formation. [alt text from NASA]
The Artemis II crew grinning and laughing together while floating in the Orion capsule, getting ready for their press conference.
The control room, while Jeremy Hansen is describing his observations of the solar corona. (Streamers, changing in intensity, etc.) In the lower left corner of the screen, one of the control room guys is doing a little dance of joy at his position
A mostly dark screen with a little flame of white light coming off a totally dark disk of the Moon
A mostly dark screen with the NASA logo in the upper right and a bit of hazy light peeking out from an entirely dark Moon in the lower right
A video of Kihana Wilson with various current and historical NASA images behind her, talking about the discomfort of following space exploration in a time of human strife.
View of the spacecraft (bright, on the left), a dark thin crescent of Moon, and a very small, bright thin crescent of Earth next to it
Screenshot: Key lunar flyby times, milestones All times Eastern, subject to change based on real-time operations 1 p.m. NASA+ coverage of lunar flyby begins 1:56 p.m. Crew passes distance from Earth record set by Apollo 13 in 1970 2:45 p.m. Lunar flyby begins 7:02 p.m. Orion closest approach to the Moon (4,070 miles) 7:07 p.m. Orion reaches maximum distance from Earth (252,760 miles) 8:35 p.m. Orion enters solar eclipse
Looking through one of the four windows of the Orion spacecraft, a tiny crescent Earth is illuminated against the blackness of space and grows smaller as the crew journeys closer to the Moon. Part of the window edge is visible; the rest is darkness. [Alt-text slightly revised from ESA/NASA version]
Video from the NASA Artemis II livestream (as shared on Instagram by @nasasolarsystem) showing the capsule in the foreground and the Moon small in the distance
A screenshot of the part of the accessibility settings with the option of “Require alt text before posting” selected
An image of the entire Earth, with Northern Africa and the North Pole visible at the lower left. It looks like daytime but it is actually illuminated by moonlight. There’s a bright arc along the lower right where the sun is coming through from behind. There’s a bright dot on the lower right (Venus) and a glow (zodiacal light). A few stars can be seen in the dark beyond the Earth.
A video of me explaining the features of the Artemis II Earth image
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)
A scale illustration of the Earth and the Moon, with the Earth on the far left, lots of black, and then the Moon on the far right, about 30 Earth diameters away.
A screenshot of part of the movie theater "Buy Tickets" page, where in the Ticket Details section it says "Hi, Katherine!" and has a "MovieFan" logo and then says that I have 0 Admission Credits but -0.05000000000001137 EXTRAS Points
Me piloting a plane, specifically a 1950s DHC-1 Chipmunk, wearing a cloth helmet and headset and looking to the left while turning so the horizon is tilted by maybe 30 degrees