Oh look I'm also complaining about the potential for satellite collisions in New Scientist again too: https://www.newscientist.com/article/2512470-spacexs-starlink-dodged-300000-satellite-collisions-in-2025/ (article by @astrojonny.bsky.social@bsky.brid.gy)
Oh look I'm complaining about satellite collision risks in IEEE Spectrum too: https://spectrum.ieee.org/kessler-syndrome-crash-clock
(Holy crap, no wonder I'm tired.)
Ooof I am just totally overwhelmed by everything today. And it's going to be an extremely long day, with many hours of talking. I hope that some of the (many, many, many) conversations I'm going to have today make a difference for at least one of the gigantic awful problems that are happening right now. I guess that's as good as I can hope to do.
Sending peace (and productive anger, where needed).
Oh hey look I'm complaining about satellite pollution in the New York Times again https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/22/science/space-junk-seismographs.html?unlocked_article_code=1.GlA.KMQQ.E6FkFCBrSevf&smid=url-share
Oh look I'm also complaining about the potential for satellite collisions in New Scientist again too: https://www.newscientist.com/article/2512470-spacexs-starlink-dodged-300000-satellite-collisions-in-2025/ (article by @astrojonny.bsky.social@bsky.brid.gy)
I have to update the Starlink numbers in my talk. But this time, I last gave my talk TWO DAYS AGO. This is stupid.
There are 27 more Starlinks in orbit today than there were on Monday: there are now 9,526 Starlink satellites orbiting above our heads.
1,458 have already been burned up in the atmosphere (and at least 1 of those made it to the ground in the easiest place in the world to find space debris...) adding many hundreds of tons of weird metals to the stratosphere. #ProfSamLectureTour
Are you fucking kidding me?? I have to update the Starlink numbers AGAIN from YESTERDAY.
There are now 9,551 Starlink satellites in orbit. 25 more than yesterday. FUUUUUUCCCKKKK I am going to bed.
#ProfSamLectureTour
Oh hey look I'm complaining about satellite pollution in the New York Times again https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/22/science/space-junk-seismographs.html?unlocked_article_code=1.GlA.KMQQ.E6FkFCBrSevf&smid=url-share
can pol
An ocean scientist I know lost her federal government job this week. Canada should be scooping up American scientists left and right, not firing our scientists!! She works on carbon observation in the ocean, which is, you know, really fucking important. Everyone else who works on it on the west coast also got cut
Maybe a good time to reach out to your MPs and ask how the fuck we're supposed to be a world leader or whatever if federal scientists are fired and univerities are all drowning?
crowdsource advice-seeking on latex/markdown
Did I say I was good at latex? HA HA HA I brought this on myself didn't I?
I want to get some writing done but I'm stuck in why-won't-latex-find-my-bibliography purgatory instead
(Not asking advice, it's too specific and I'm probably doing something dumb. Just yelling into the void about latex. Feels very grad-student-y)
crowdsource advice-seeking on latex/markdown
I FIXED IT!! I SAID THE RIGHT INCANTATION!!
crowdsource advice-seeking on latex/markdown
I started writing this book project using zettlr in markdown, because that seemed like the best way to incorporate many citations from a wild variety of journals/books/articles. But I am now having serious problems trying to integrate files.
Latex is hard but I know it quite well, I just don't have a latex editor that I like that's reliable (I'm not doing this on overleaf, it's just me, no sharing needed).
Recs? Advice? I'm running Ubuntu.
crowdsource advice-seeking on latex/markdown
Did I say I was good at latex? HA HA HA I brought this on myself didn't I?
I want to get some writing done but I'm stuck in why-won't-latex-find-my-bibliography purgatory instead
(Not asking advice, it's too specific and I'm probably doing something dumb. Just yelling into the void about latex. Feels very grad-student-y)
The last talk in this week's portion of the #ProfSamLectureTour is at SFU in Burnaby tomorrow. Once again, open to the public if you're in the area! https://www.sfu.ca/physics/news-events/events/2026/jan/Colloquium_Samantha_Lawler.html
Today I'm going to get breakfast with a friend, get a bunch of writing done (probably at the public library), and then bus/ferry/bus/train/bus my way from downtown Victoria to Burnaby.
Today's #ProfSamLectureTour everything-is-connected adventure was visiting a UVic lab where they are testing balloon-borne internet delivery. I have some doubts about whether or not this is actually feasible/safer than satellites, and need to do a lot of reading. But I love seeing some different ideas happening, and what is more solarpunk than high-tech balloons/airships delivering your internet?
I just want to eat ice cream and go to bed but it's almost time for dinner with UVic profs...
Well, that was incredibly pleasant, I had amazing conversations about meteorites, space debris, Indigenous sky knowledge, farming, and mentoring students, AND I got ice cream. Wins all around!
Now time to figure out how I'm getting to SFU tomorrow and then sleep for a really long time. #ProfSamLectureTour
Prof. Sam Lawler