Swapna Krishna

#space | #science | #startrek | #gaming | #scicomm
I write a space newsletter called Ad Astra. I also make YouTube videos about space. I usually live update about space things as they’re happening.
 Occasionally: Fast Company, Wired, NPR, Science Friday, StarTrek dot com 
Author of A POCKET GUIDE TO STARGAZING (Chronicle Books, 2023) and co-editor of SWORD STONE TABLE (Vintage, 2021).

I live outside Philly.

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npub1yl0y9my6e4agvckz6sav7e7e4ln5870a8ntwldvg0sxjh0h7s8ls4nr3a9

NIP-05 Address

skrishna@wandering-shop.mostr.pub

Profile Code

nprofile1qqsz0hjzajdv675xvtpdgwk0vlv6le6rl87ne4h0kky8crfthmlgrlcpz3mhxue69uhhyetvv9ujumn0wd68ytnzvue666wh

Publishing to

relay.nostr.bg

Author Public Key

npub1yl0y9my6e4agvckz6sav7e7e4ln5870a8ntwldvg0sxjh0h7s8ls4nr3a9

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Last Notes

2025-02-11 17:57:34 UTC

This week's space news:
- JWST will look at the asteroid that could hit Earth in March
- Boeing notified employees that NASA might cancel SLS contracts
- A report says Artemis III might be too expensive
and more!
https://www.adastraspace.com/p/jwst-asteroid-armageddon

2025-01-29 16:30:03 UTC

ICYMI: I am sending out a space newsletter outlining big space news for the week on Tuesdays, in addition to my more in-depth examinations every Friday!
Here's this week's edition:
https://www.adastraspace.com/p/space-news-jwst-starship-spacex-blue-origin

2025-01-24 16:26:37 UTC

What will happen in space policy over the next four years? It's clear there will be some drastic changes, and it's hard to say for sure how things will be different. But here's what I can glean based on past behavior and this first week of speeches, orders, announcements, and personnel moves:
https://www.adastraspace.com/p/trump-space-policy
#space

2025-01-16 18:45:12 UTC

For the last decade, the ESA’s GAIA spacecraft has been making the most detailed map ever of the Milky Way.
This week, it took its last science readings.
My video this week is a love letter to Gaia, highlighting just a few cool things we learned about our galaxy thanks to this spacecraft,
https://youtu.be/uo9A2B2VyZY

2025-01-16 13:11:00 UTC

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@nprofile…he2d haha yes!!! One of my favorite places to be, it’s so much fun

2025-01-09 17:50:39 UTC

Will Mars Sample Return *ever* happen? That's the question I tackle in my latest newsletter.
Spoiler alert: I'm not overly optimistic.
https://www.adastraspace.com/p/mars-sample-return-update

2025-01-09 14:33:46 UTC

NASA made a big announcement about Mars Sample Return, their ambitious program to return samples from the surface of Mars to Earth. The press conference left me with....a lot of questions.
Newsletter at 11 am ET: adastraspace.com
https://youtu.be/e275Helpkxc

2024-12-13 16:43:24 UTC

Here's the newsletter version of what's going on with Orion's heat shield, and what we learned from NASA, if you've been waiting for that: https://www.adastraspace.com/p/artemis-ii-orion-heat-shield-root-cause
https://wandering.shop/@skrishna/113645871894796298

2024-12-13 13:59:47 UTC

NASA finally disclosed with the problem is with Orion's heat shield. And they're not fixing it before Artemis II.
- Is NASA making the right decision?
- What's wrong with the heat shield?
- Why didn't they release the independent report?
- What does this mean for Artemis II and III?
https://youtu.be/5QzvsHu1g1M

2024-12-05 18:47:01 UTC

NASA announced a delay to Artemis II and III today.
Artemis II: April 2026
Artemis III (moon landing): mid-2027

2024-12-05 16:15:05 UTC

It looks like billionaire Jared Isaacman will be the next NASA administrator. Wondering what he might do as the head of the agency? I have some thoughts based on his past comments:
https://youtu.be/Qsiu3k75cV4

2024-11-14 20:04:40 UTC

We may finally know why the Arecibo Telescope collapsed.
Four years after the iconic observatory failed, a new report sheds light on the platform collapse -- and I take you through it step by step in this video.
Newsletter tomorrow: adastraspace.com
https://youtu.be/Jhv44CduX8k

2024-11-14 19:38:15 UTC

2024-11-07 18:25:33 UTC

You probably read about Voyager 1’s impressive switch to a transmitter that hasn’t been used since 1981.
But what isn’t being made clear is that if NASA can’t turn on the old transmitter, the Voyager 1 mission is effectively over.
Newsletter tomorrow @ 11 am ET: adastraspace.com
https://youtu.be/7PpZ1NFn_oc

2024-10-31 18:14:08 UTC

In September 2026, NASA is planning on landing the first astronauts on the moon in 50+ years as part of the Artemis program.
Here's why I don't think they'll make that deadline.
Newsletter tomorrow at 11 am et: adastraspace.com
https://youtu.be/a5TECIn17eI

2024-10-17 15:50:04 UTC

If you watched SpaceX’s mid-air “catch” of the Super Heavy booster on Sunday and wondered:
- was the rocket on fire
- what was that black smoke
- was the catch just for show
- why not land the thing or use parachutes
this is the newsletter issue for you!
https://www.adastraspace.com/p/spacex-super-heavy-catch

2024-10-16 20:29:43 UTC

If you’ve watched the video of SpaceX's mid-air booster catch from their test flight Sunday, you may have questions. I have answers to/analysis about:
- was the rocket on fire?
- what was that black smoke?
- why didn't they use parachutes?
- was it a catch or docking?
- why a catch, was that just all for show?
- why not land the thing??
Newsletter will be out tomorrow: adastraspace.com
https://youtu.be/TpQiL8tqWK4

2024-06-06 12:26:14 UTC

We’re less than 30 minutes from the launch time of Starship (7:50 am CT/1250 UTC) and the livestream has started:
#space #spacex #starship #spaceflight
https://www.spacex.com/launches/

2024-05-29 13:04:18 UTC

If you’ve been looking at everything NASA is doing and wondering “ok but when are we ACTUALLY going back to the moon, and what’s the plan here?” this video is for you.
Here’s a rough timeline of the Artemis program, along with context:
#space #science #scicomm #artemis #nasa #moon
https://youtu.be/aSXUjA-GaKQ

2024-05-24 15:40:01 UTC

If you’re more of a “read the news instead of watching it” person, I’ve got the newsletter post up now!
https://www.adastraspace.com/p/euclid-first-science-images
https://wandering.shop/@skrishna/112492394489859717

2024-05-24 11:04:51 UTC

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@npub1ktt…vzhh thank you!!! I haven’t had time to dig through all the papers yet so this is so helpful.

2024-05-22 20:32:50 UTC

Could recent information about dark energy fundamentally alter our understanding of the universe? It's possible. Here's a deep dive into what dark energy is and how new results on the expansion history of the universe may change everything we thought we knew.
Newsletter version: adastraspace.com
#space #science #scicomm #womeninstem #darkenergy #cosmology
https://youtu.be/YoGWou8hDZ4

2024-05-06 23:31:12 UTC

I have a special guest helping me cover this launch
https://stockroom.wandering.shop/media_attachments/files/112/396/747/981/170/141/original/7e8143fe1adfe00e.jpeg

2024-04-08 15:12:56 UTC

In San Antonio, waiting for the eclipse and the cloud cover is pretty terrible. How is it wherever you are??
#eclipse

2024-03-14 17:17:21 UTC

The reason I didn’t do any live posting about the Starship launch is I was frantically working on this. Here's my take on the launch (including video from the launch and flight because WOW SpaceX put on a good show here)
#space #spaceflight #spacex #starship
https://youtu.be/96PKXeaWfRE

2024-03-12 13:46:57 UTC

SpaceX has tentatively scheduled their megarocket Starship's third launch for Thursday morning.
Here's everything you need to know about the test flight and what exactly Starship is:
#space #spacex
Newsletter version: adastraspace.com
https://youtu.be/k9xzMfeQ01w

2024-02-20 02:26:54 UTC

If luck is on our side, there will be a moon landing attempt on February 22. If Intuitive Machines succeeds, this will be the first U.S. spacecraft to soft land on the moon since the Apollo missions.
(Newsletter coming tomorrow, sign up at adastraspace.com)
#space #science #scicomm #womeninstem
https://youtu.be/2L0PEcioDJo

2024-01-19 16:05:28 UTC

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@npub1hs0…gkgz Yes! I see what you're saying! It kind of went down nose first if the livestream is accurate

2024-01-19 16:01:06 UTC

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Confirmed that it was supposed to tip over. #Space #science #slim

2024-01-19 15:57:41 UTC

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Everyone is concerned about the spacecraft toppling over. I think it was supposed to do that but I am checking to confirm. #Space #science #slim

2024-01-19 15:50:19 UTC

For what it’s worth, the Deep Space Network is currently showing a downlink from SLIM #Space #science #slim
https://stockroom.wandering.shop/media_attachments/files/111/783/406/020/768/401/original/22b44d4880bdce47.jpeg

2024-01-19 15:27:40 UTC

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They’re still checking the status of the spacecraft.
#space #science #slim

2023-12-14 19:41:41 UTC

I'm taking a break from space videos through the end of the year BUT I will be back in the new year with a lot more stuff!! I just needed to give myself some time off.

2023-09-15 14:04:41 UTC

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@npub1dw5…6ys5 DO IT

2023-09-15 14:04:29 UTC

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@npub1p37…64k5 I am always happy to provide tips (this is my second time here) and I’m putting a lot more photos/locations in my Instagram Stories! I highly recommend it, my favorite place on earth besides Antarctica

2023-08-22 15:33:27 UTC

There have been a LOT of crashed moon landers over the past two years. Why did Russia's Luna-25 fail, and why is it so HARD to land on the moon? And what do we think will happen to India's Chandrayaan-3 -- the Vikram lander is scheduled to attempt a landing tomorrow.
#space #science #scicomm
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FS1_VbPqkY

2023-08-09 15:40:56 UTC

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@npub1typ…c8hh It's becoming worse every day. New Tweetdeck is so, so so bad.

2023-08-06 10:02:53 UTC

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@npub1nd5…4kky thank you! I am slowly but surely getting there!!

2023-07-15 01:18:56 UTC

My grocery store sells these frozen Key Lime Pie slices (in a 2-pack) and it really is the best thing
https://stockroom.wandering.shop/media_attachments/files/110/715/465/402/006/871/original/df2c5bd609b0fd53.jpeg

2023-07-13 17:41:40 UTC

JWST’s first anniversary image actually shows us, among other things, a circumstellar disk that might become a planetary system one day.
More on this breathtaking picture:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4HDer0Gu5vw
#space #science #scicomm #jwst

2023-07-12 19:27:33 UTC

My #StarTrekVoyager rewatch (now in season 7) has given me a new appreciation for the series. I always loved it, but now I think I love it more while also recognizing it has VERY high highs…and very low lows. It swings so wildly.
#StarTrek

2023-07-06 15:21:15 UTC

It's so funny how much space on all these social networks is taken up by people dunking on other social networks.