Meredith Rawls
@merrdiff.bsky.social
Astronomer at UW, data pipeline wrangler for Rubin Observatory, satellite mitigation leader via IAU CPS SatHub, mom, violist, Ballardite (Seattle), family cargo e-bike evangelist, Episcopalian, etc. Opinions all mine
Pinned
Meredith Rawls
@merrdiff.bsky.social
· Aug 7
Sometimes instead of going to bed at a reasonable hour you take pictures with your astronomer mom in matching @startorialist.com shirts featuring the @vrubinobs.bsky.social Lagoon Nebula "first look" image she helped make happen 🔭
I love that I can buy a Sound Transit pillow, but what I really need is a King County Metro bus toy. Purple, red, green, and blue variants, of course.
I can by 80,000 kinds of toy car for my kids, and a decent number of trains, but all I want are buses and bikes soundtransitshop.com/products/lin...
I can by 80,000 kinds of toy car for my kids, and a decent number of trains, but all I want are buses and bikes soundtransitshop.com/products/lin...
Link Pillow
Your dream transit is here. • 100% polyester • 10″ × 10″ • Spot wash with warm water.
soundtransitshop.com
November 15, 2025 at 7:53 PM
I love that I can buy a Sound Transit pillow, but what I really need is a King County Metro bus toy. Purple, red, green, and blue variants, of course.
I can by 80,000 kinds of toy car for my kids, and a decent number of trains, but all I want are buses and bikes soundtransitshop.com/products/lin...
I can by 80,000 kinds of toy car for my kids, and a decent number of trains, but all I want are buses and bikes soundtransitshop.com/products/lin...
All cars should be required to have speed limiters that don't allow you to exceed the posted speed limit, just like the e-scooters you won't stop complaining about
When you bring your car in to get yours installed, you can choose either $0 tab renewals for the life of the vehicle or a free ebike
When you bring your car in to get yours installed, you can choose either $0 tab renewals for the life of the vehicle or a free ebike
"my least woke opinion is---"
That's enough. We've had enough people indulging in the "thrill of a little conservatism", as a treat. Of considering reactionary thought to be a salacious and taboo in a world descending into reactionary mania.
Give me your MOST woke opinions. We're bringing it back.
That's enough. We've had enough people indulging in the "thrill of a little conservatism", as a treat. Of considering reactionary thought to be a salacious and taboo in a world descending into reactionary mania.
Give me your MOST woke opinions. We're bringing it back.
November 14, 2025 at 5:32 PM
All cars should be required to have speed limiters that don't allow you to exceed the posted speed limit, just like the e-scooters you won't stop complaining about
When you bring your car in to get yours installed, you can choose either $0 tab renewals for the life of the vehicle or a free ebike
When you bring your car in to get yours installed, you can choose either $0 tab renewals for the life of the vehicle or a free ebike
Last summer I was lucky enough to witness the aurora dance above a perfectly dark northern horizon (bortle class 2) on Vancouver Island.
So few people know what they're missing by existing in a perpetually-lit world.
Not to mention, many aurora pics from dark sites still have satellite streaks. 🔭
So few people know what they're missing by existing in a perpetually-lit world.
Not to mention, many aurora pics from dark sites still have satellite streaks. 🔭
Lots of folks captioning aurora photos like "for a few minutes we didn't think about politics"
guess I'm built different, every time I'm out trying to see night sky stuff I frequently think about how much light pollution is entirely preventable with just a tiny bit of regulation
guess I'm built different, every time I'm out trying to see night sky stuff I frequently think about how much light pollution is entirely preventable with just a tiny bit of regulation
November 13, 2025 at 10:18 PM
Last summer I was lucky enough to witness the aurora dance above a perfectly dark northern horizon (bortle class 2) on Vancouver Island.
So few people know what they're missing by existing in a perpetually-lit world.
Not to mention, many aurora pics from dark sites still have satellite streaks. 🔭
So few people know what they're missing by existing in a perpetually-lit world.
Not to mention, many aurora pics from dark sites still have satellite streaks. 🔭
Reposted by Meredith Rawls
Aurora color guide! What creates the different shades?
Different atoms getting "excited" at different altitudes
The bright reds are a sign of a particularly intense event
Different atoms getting "excited" at different altitudes
The bright reds are a sign of a particularly intense event
November 12, 2025 at 3:34 AM
Aurora color guide! What creates the different shades?
Different atoms getting "excited" at different altitudes
The bright reds are a sign of a particularly intense event
Different atoms getting "excited" at different altitudes
The bright reds are a sign of a particularly intense event
Reposted by Meredith Rawls
I had good luck at Magnuson park!
November 12, 2025 at 2:29 AM
I had good luck at Magnuson park!
Seattle Aurora 🙄 ... squint for colors that are only visible to cameras and increasingly hidden by clouds! (but it's real, you are not making it up!)
November 12, 2025 at 2:24 AM
Seattle Aurora 🙄 ... squint for colors that are only visible to cameras and increasingly hidden by clouds! (but it's real, you are not making it up!)
Reposted by Meredith Rawls
Near the Utah/Wyoming border now
November 12, 2025 at 1:38 AM
Near the Utah/Wyoming border now
Reposted by Meredith Rawls
Seeing the Northern Lights! (taken with an iPhone in the Southern Suburbs of St Paul)
November 12, 2025 at 1:43 AM
Seeing the Northern Lights! (taken with an iPhone in the Southern Suburbs of St Paul)
If you are blessed with halfway clear skies and a latitude north of, like, 40, go look for Aurorae!!
November 12, 2025 at 1:40 AM
If you are blessed with halfway clear skies and a latitude north of, like, 40, go look for Aurorae!!
Hey look it's a @vrubinobs.bsky.social difference imaging zooniverse game! Help us classify real vs bogus detections with REAL RUBIN DATA! www.zooniverse.org/projects/ebe...
November 11, 2025 at 7:09 PM
Hey look it's a @vrubinobs.bsky.social difference imaging zooniverse game! Help us classify real vs bogus detections with REAL RUBIN DATA! www.zooniverse.org/projects/ebe...
Reposted by Meredith Rawls
You have to send this link to everyone you know who voted I Seattle: info.kingcounty.gov/kcelections/... It takes like 30 seconds to make sure your vote was counted. Folks on here have all seen this probably, but your friends and family might not have!
King County Elections
Led by Director Julie Wise, King County Elections conducts accurate, secure, and accessible elections for King County's over 1.4 million registered voters.
info.kingcounty.gov
November 10, 2025 at 11:58 PM
You have to send this link to everyone you know who voted I Seattle: info.kingcounty.gov/kcelections/... It takes like 30 seconds to make sure your vote was counted. Folks on here have all seen this probably, but your friends and family might not have!
If you voted in Seattle
Are you sure it was counted???
Now would be the time to check on that
Are you sure it was counted???
Now would be the time to check on that
Incredible. Progressive challenger Katie Wilson now has a 91-vote lead in Seattle’s race for mayor. She had been steadily gaining on incumbent Bruce Harrell.
There are about 8,000 ballots left to count.
There are about 8,000 ballots left to count.
November 11, 2025 at 12:13 AM
If you voted in Seattle
Are you sure it was counted???
Now would be the time to check on that
Are you sure it was counted???
Now would be the time to check on that
Seattle area space nerds! Join me at UW's Space Diplomacy Symposium and help me feel a little less like the only scientist in the room (which was last year's vibe). It's Fri Nov 7 and costs $45 ($20 for students), which I think includes lunch and def includes coffee. www.law.uw.edu/academics/pr...
Space Diplomacy Symposium 2025 | UW School of Law
The University of Washington School of Law is a top-ranked public law school.
www.law.uw.edu
October 31, 2025 at 6:17 PM
Seattle area space nerds! Join me at UW's Space Diplomacy Symposium and help me feel a little less like the only scientist in the room (which was last year's vibe). It's Fri Nov 7 and costs $45 ($20 for students), which I think includes lunch and def includes coffee. www.law.uw.edu/academics/pr...
Just stumbled across an astophotographer's timelapse reel of Comet Lemmon, and it clearly shows what we've done to the sky in the last 5 years
A screenshot does not do it justice; the reel is on both fb and insta www.instagram.com/reel/DQcijH0...
Credit: Lars Leber Photography, larsleber.com/info
A screenshot does not do it justice; the reel is on both fb and insta www.instagram.com/reel/DQcijH0...
Credit: Lars Leber Photography, larsleber.com/info
October 31, 2025 at 3:30 PM
Just stumbled across an astophotographer's timelapse reel of Comet Lemmon, and it clearly shows what we've done to the sky in the last 5 years
A screenshot does not do it justice; the reel is on both fb and insta www.instagram.com/reel/DQcijH0...
Credit: Lars Leber Photography, larsleber.com/info
A screenshot does not do it justice; the reel is on both fb and insta www.instagram.com/reel/DQcijH0...
Credit: Lars Leber Photography, larsleber.com/info
An appropriately terrifying story for Halloween — and why "we need to hire a crossing guard!" cannot fix school traffic safety. Fewer drivers and slower drivers could, but we're pretty awful at that!
Hundreds of school crossing guards have suffered injuries on the job after being hit by a vehicle, and dozens of them have died, according to an investigation by AP and Cox Media Group Television Stations.
Crossing guards face life-threatening dangers on the job
An investigation by The Associated Press and Cox Media Group Television Stations found that school crossing guards face dangerous conditions, with many injured or killed on the job.
bit.ly
October 31, 2025 at 2:57 PM
An appropriately terrifying story for Halloween — and why "we need to hire a crossing guard!" cannot fix school traffic safety. Fewer drivers and slower drivers could, but we're pretty awful at that!
Driving tomorrow?
SLOW DOWN
Kids and pedestrians deserve to live
SLOW DOWN
Kids and pedestrians deserve to live
Your annual reminder that US streets and vehicles are generally not designed to keep pedestrians, especially small ones, safe.
So wonderful Halloween is the most likely day you’ll kill a child with your car, and someone will kill a child you care about with theirs.
www.vox.com/future-perfe...
So wonderful Halloween is the most likely day you’ll kill a child with your car, and someone will kill a child you care about with theirs.
www.vox.com/future-perfe...
October 31, 2025 at 2:46 AM
Driving tomorrow?
SLOW DOWN
Kids and pedestrians deserve to live
SLOW DOWN
Kids and pedestrians deserve to live
Some days you take your kid to gymnastics and the next thing you know someone says your name and it turns out to be YOUR HIGH SCHOOL MATH TEACHERS
(They're married, now retired, one taught me AP Calc and the other Pre-Calc & AP Stats)
They planned this Seattle visit to watch grandkids for the week
(They're married, now retired, one taught me AP Calc and the other Pre-Calc & AP Stats)
They planned this Seattle visit to watch grandkids for the week
October 29, 2025 at 6:19 AM
Some days you take your kid to gymnastics and the next thing you know someone says your name and it turns out to be YOUR HIGH SCHOOL MATH TEACHERS
(They're married, now retired, one taught me AP Calc and the other Pre-Calc & AP Stats)
They planned this Seattle visit to watch grandkids for the week
(They're married, now retired, one taught me AP Calc and the other Pre-Calc & AP Stats)
They planned this Seattle visit to watch grandkids for the week
Right up there with "Wilson gets help from her parents with childcare because it's otherwise unaffordable" tbh
i cannot believe that “mamdani calls a close adult relative an ‘aunt’ even if they are not literally their parent’s sister” is what counts as a “scandal” these days
October 28, 2025 at 10:02 PM
Right up there with "Wilson gets help from her parents with childcare because it's otherwise unaffordable" tbh
Hello and happy October 2025
I just registered my kiddo for one week of summer sleepaway camp
For August 2026
😵💫
I just registered my kiddo for one week of summer sleepaway camp
For August 2026
😵💫
October 28, 2025 at 5:21 PM
Hello and happy October 2025
I just registered my kiddo for one week of summer sleepaway camp
For August 2026
😵💫
I just registered my kiddo for one week of summer sleepaway camp
For August 2026
😵💫
(Briefly dons church nerd hat)
I encouraged my Diocese to pass a resolution banning AI from pastoral work at our recent convention; a couple folks spoke against banning things we don't understand, so it was punted to Diocesan Council
I fear folks are already doing this & not interested to ban it 😫
I encouraged my Diocese to pass a resolution banning AI from pastoral work at our recent convention; a couple folks spoke against banning things we don't understand, so it was punted to Diocesan Council
I fear folks are already doing this & not interested to ban it 😫
it is always nerve-wracking to take a position on a question not-yet-resolved, but that's the only time when taking a position can actually be meaningful, so
I think that using AI to "automate pastoral work" is an indefensible abdication of, and damning misunderstanding of, one's duty as a cleric
I think that using AI to "automate pastoral work" is an indefensible abdication of, and damning misunderstanding of, one's duty as a cleric
“AI assistants for automating pastoral work”
October 28, 2025 at 3:59 PM
(Briefly dons church nerd hat)
I encouraged my Diocese to pass a resolution banning AI from pastoral work at our recent convention; a couple folks spoke against banning things we don't understand, so it was punted to Diocesan Council
I fear folks are already doing this & not interested to ban it 😫
I encouraged my Diocese to pass a resolution banning AI from pastoral work at our recent convention; a couple folks spoke against banning things we don't understand, so it was punted to Diocesan Council
I fear folks are already doing this & not interested to ban it 😫
It's fine, most of my meetings include people from Arizona, and many pertain to one or more telescopes in Chile
Clocks go back in the UK tonight. They change in the US on November 2nd. Welcome to the Week When No One Knows What Time It Is 😆
October 25, 2025 at 9:30 PM
It's fine, most of my meetings include people from Arizona, and many pertain to one or more telescopes in Chile
Anarcho-Urbanists UNITE
You can come if you're in an adjacent square, too, so long as you bike there
You can come if you're in an adjacent square, too, so long as you bike there
Turns out the real political spectrum is just how people feel about free parking 😂
Tag yourself!
Tag yourself!
October 24, 2025 at 8:51 PM
Anarcho-Urbanists UNITE
You can come if you're in an adjacent square, too, so long as you bike there
You can come if you're in an adjacent square, too, so long as you bike there
These feel so close to reclaiming parking lots for community… yet so far
If I had time I'd sign up and bring candy on my cargo bike! The folks who do this are the real heroes we need.
(I'd rather have a more walkable alley that trick-or-treaters visited, though, as our front door faces said alley)
If I had time I'd sign up and bring candy on my cargo bike! The folks who do this are the real heroes we need.
(I'd rather have a more walkable alley that trick-or-treaters visited, though, as our front door faces said alley)
A few years ago I learned America has a thing called Trunk or Treat where people dress up, drive to a parking lot, and pretend it's ok we don't have walkable communities anymore.
October 24, 2025 at 3:04 PM
These feel so close to reclaiming parking lots for community… yet so far
If I had time I'd sign up and bring candy on my cargo bike! The folks who do this are the real heroes we need.
(I'd rather have a more walkable alley that trick-or-treaters visited, though, as our front door faces said alley)
If I had time I'd sign up and bring candy on my cargo bike! The folks who do this are the real heroes we need.
(I'd rather have a more walkable alley that trick-or-treaters visited, though, as our front door faces said alley)
Reposted by Meredith Rawls
Trying to resist AI in everything feels so much like resisting car culture to me. AI and cars can be useful tools, but in extremely limited applications with tight regulation. 1/2
October 23, 2025 at 6:03 PM
Trying to resist AI in everything feels so much like resisting car culture to me. AI and cars can be useful tools, but in extremely limited applications with tight regulation. 1/2
Hey I got this email today, I guess I'm a week or so less exclusive, or just further down the alphabet 😒
I've received an 'exclusive' invite to try Nature's new 'research assistant', which will burn down a forest to provide a 'summary of the paper' I'm reading and I have SUCH exciting news for them, that's called an 'abstract' and the actual authors already wrote it for me, no forest-burning required.
October 22, 2025 at 8:05 PM
Hey I got this email today, I guess I'm a week or so less exclusive, or just further down the alphabet 😒