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Dr. Catherine Neish

@planetneish.bsky.social
632 followers 406 following 392 posts

Professor at The University of Western Ontario in planetary geology. Also a parent and OG X-Phile. I use she/her pronouns. planetneish.ca

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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
Our new review paper about Selk crater, the target of NASA’s Dragonfly mission, just came out! It’s behind a paywall, but you can email me for a copy. 🐲🚁
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Reposted by Dr. Catherine Neish
Sarah Hörst @planetdr.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
Hot off the presses and many years in the making- what we know about Selk crater now… Looking forward to rendering it obsolete journals.sagepub.com/doi/epub/10.... 🧪🔭
journals.sagepub.com
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
If you email me, I can send you a copy!
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
People in my life don’t ask, they simply tell me to “get better” with no other context than I am wearing a mask (and perhaps clearing my throat). Responding that I am not sick just makes it weirder.
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
We will return with Season 3 in a few months! @arcticsaxifrage.bsky.social
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
For the last episode of Season 2, Popcorn Science discusses the earliest sci-fi movie ever made - “Le Voyage dans la Lune” (1902). Listen to us talk for 55 minutes about this 15 minute silent film, touching on space cannons, Jules Verne, and the many, many ways you can die on the Moon.
popcornscience.ca
Le Voyage dans la Lune
The moon landing was faked on a soundstage (in Montreuil, Seine-Saint-Denis in 1902)!
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
In this case, I think it was lazy writing. Sweets was canonically in foster care until age 6, then was adopted by a supportive older couple who passed away before the show started. His caring adoptive family sent a traumatized child to college? It doesn’t make sense.
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
The one that really confused me was Sweets, the psychologist. He had two PhDs at the age of 22. I don’t even know how that is possible, unless you start college at age 10.
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
There’s an episode of Bones where a grad student murders their advisor because he didn’t want her as a co-author on his paper. Seemed a bit… extreme.
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
I’m so glad to hear she won! If you want to hear more about my deep dive into its science, we recently covered it on my podcast. Really fantastic series - looking forward to Season 2.
podcasts.apple.com
Pluribus
Podcast Episode · Popcorn Science Podcast · July 12 · 1h 1m
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
Yeah, The X-Files really expanded my vocabulary as a teenager. Oubliette? Syzygy? Coprophages?? I learned so much!
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
@arcticsaxifrage.bsky.social
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
Today on Popcorn Science, we celebrate our “Independence Day”. We journey back to 1996 to discuss how to hack an alien spaceship with a Macintosh Powerbook, why the aliens chose an inefficient strategy to destroy humanity, and how much we loved Fruitopia.
podcasts.apple.com
Independence Day
Podcast Episode · Popcorn Science Podcast · September 13 · 1h
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
My PhD student and I are going to be on CBC’s Quirks & Quarks today! The pinnacle of achievement for any Canadian scientist. 👩🏻‍🔬 www.cbc.ca/radio/quirks...
cbc.ca
Summertime and the science isn't always easy | CBC Radio
Summer is fieldwork time for many scientists. We talk to researchers who have been busy hiking on fresh lava, capturing thousands of ticks, shooing away moose from their study sites, and even spelunki...
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Who should I write to lodge concerns about these guidelines? I am not comfortable submitting to a journal which has given referees tacit approval to use an LLM. I'm not convinced my unpublished work will not be shared with GenAI company; recent news suggests they are not properly sandboxed.
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 29/08/2026
@arcticsaxifrage.bsky.social
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 29/08/2026
After a short hiatus, Popcorn Science returns this week with the 2013 movie “Gravity.” This movie is a spectacle with many unrealistic elements, such as overlapping satellite orbits, space suit attire, and George Clooney being interested in a woman his own age.
popcornscience.ca
Gravity
If you decide to listen, then you gotta just get on with it. Sit back, enjoy the ride. You gotta plant both your feet on the ground and start livin' life.
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
I’m so happy that you’re covering this! I went in spoiler free, and was absolutely shocked at the changes. So much so that I was yelling at my television by the end. He cut out everything that I loved about this movie (and I do love the original). I don’t think I will ever watch it again.
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
Had the same experience with papaya. Now I don’t touch the stuff!
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 22/08/2026
It was my seven year old's son favourite scene in the episode.
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 06/08/2026
Yes! My son is of an age where he no longer wants to come into the women’s bathroom with me, but he’s still a spazz, so i don’t like him going alone. Last time I did that he slipped and hit his head on the floor (we were at a swimming pool). 😕 Gender neutral bathrooms would help!
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
Worst episode of the series by far, imo. And not just because of the CSM “reveal.” I disliked the endless monologuing, and Mulder felt extremely out of character.
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Reposted by Dr. Catherine Neish
Western Space @westernuspace.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
@westernu.ca planetary scientist @planetneish.bsky.social Neish and PhD candidate Sashank Vanga travelled to Hawai‘i Volcanoes Nat'l Park in June to investigate lava flows that could reveal new clues about the Moon’s volcanic past 🌋 Learn more here: 🔗 news.westernu.ca/2026/07/hawa...
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
An article describing the field work I conducted in Hawai'i this June with my PhD student and LRO's Mini-RF team. We can learn so much about other planets by studying key analogues on Earth! 🌋
news.westernu.ca
Hawai‘i serves as model for studying the Moon’s volcanic history
Western planetary scientists travelled to Hawai‘i to investigate lava flows that could reveal new clues about the Moon’s volcanic past.
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Reposted by Dr. Catherine Neish
Western Space @westernuspace.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
The Dragonfly mission to Saturn's moon Titan just got one step closer. Dragonfly, led by an international team including co-investigator @westernu.ca professor @planetneish.bsky.social has completed its frame qualification testing in prep for the July 2028 launch. 🔗 spaceq.ca/nasa-dragonf...
spaceq.ca
NASA Dragonfly rotorcraft enters integration phase ahead of Titan mission
The NASA Dragonfly mission has completed frame testing. The rotorcraft will explore Titan and search for complex organic molecules in 2034.
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Reposted by Dr. Catherine Neish
John E Moores @arcticsaxifrage.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
You now can catch @planetneish.bsky.social and me on the radio! We dropped by London Morning with Andrew Brown yesterday to talk all about scientific accuracy in movies: www.cbc.ca/listen/live-... To hear more of our conversations, check out Popcorn Science Podcast on Apple Podcasts and Spotify!
cbc.ca
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 15/07/2026
I concur! My daughter was 2 months old when I started my first faculty position. I would not recommend that anyone else do this! I ended up being diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome a year later. But she’s 13 now and things are much better!
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Reposted by Dr. Catherine Neish
Johns Hopkins APL @jhuapl.bsky.social · 13/07/2026
Titan has rivers, dunes and a rich organic chemistry unlike anywhere we've explored. Join us July 16 for a live look at Dragonfly and the mission preparing to investigate this remarkable ocean world. www.youtube.com/live/nQeXWoPfUBY
youtube.com
Eye on Dragonfly Live | A Behind-the-Scenes Look at NASA's Mission to Titan
YouTube video by NASA Science
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 14/07/2026
Small correction - I am a Dragonfly Co-I, but no longer the astrobiology group lead. That is @planetdr.bsky.social.
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Reposted by Dr. Catherine Neish
John E Moores @arcticsaxifrage.bsky.social · 14/07/2026
Congrats to Dr. Elisa Dong (co-supervised student of myself and @planetneish.bsky.social ) who successfully defended her PhD dissertation this afternoon!
A new PhD graduate in front of a monitor displaying the first slide of their exceptional presentation
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 12/07/2026
FYI, our Pluribus pod just came out, if you’re interested to learn more about the science on the show: www.popcornscience.ca/pluribus/ind...
popcornscience.ca
Pluribus
You will never have to consume this podcast. Not unless you want to, which we assume is unlikely.
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 12/07/2026
@arcticsaxifrage.bsky.social
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 12/07/2026
In this week’s episode of Popcorn Science, we cover the AppleTV series, “Pluribus”. For our first ever in-person recording, we cover virus transmission, exoplanets, and Vince Gilligan’s love of Albuquerque. Spoiler alert - this episode has the longest “science shine” section of any of our podcasts!
popcornscience.ca
Pluribus
You will never have to consume this podcast. Not unless you want to, which we assume is unlikely.
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Reposted by Dr. Catherine Neish
Johns Hopkins APL @jhuapl.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
Join APL and NASA experts July 16 at 2 p.m. ET for a live behind-the-scenes look at NASA's Dragonfly, hear from the engineers and scientists preparing the spacecraft, and see what's next for this audacious mission of exploration. www.youtube.com/live/nQeXWoPfUBY
youtube.com
Eye on Dragonfly Live | A Behind-the-Scenes Look at NASA's Mission to Titan
YouTube video by NASA Science
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
I was there last year! They have pandas. (Real ones too!)
A cartoon panda sits next to the author in Macau.
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 28/06/2026
As promised, here is a pic of the notes taken by @arcticsaxifrage.bsky.social in the theatre. I especially like “he has a cats t-shirt” and “glasses on neck.”
A set of scrawled notes about Project Hail Mary.
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 28/06/2026
For the second part of our Andy Weir double feature, John and I discuss “Project Hail Mary.” In this episode, we talk about alien life, the fallacy of the “lone genius”, and why Andy Weir may be a bit too much of a “bro”.
popcornscience.ca
Project Hail Mary
Give us some words of encouragement because you are in for an episode which will amaze amaze amaze you so much that you'll want to fist my bump!
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 15/06/2026
Thanks Sarah! I agree - getting the “feel” right is so important. I don’t mind the errors so long as it’s not distracting to the story. It was fun to rewatch this again a decade after it came out.
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 14/06/2026
This week’s Popcorn Science kicks off our Andy Weir double header, starting with “The Martian.” We discuss wind on Mars, how hard it is to grow potatoes, and why sometimes a movie is better than a book. @arcticsaxifrage.bsky.social
popcornscience.ca
The Martian
We don't want to come off as arrogant here, but Catherine and John are the greatest scientists on this podcast.
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
No, I was by far the biggest X-Files nerd. Plus, it was a several hour long drive. I made up for it by visiting every filming location when I moved to Vancouver in 1999.
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
One of my biggest regrets was not skipping high school attend the filming of “The End” at GM Place in 1998.
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
Yes. They left after Season 5, but returned for “I Want to Believe” and Seasons 10 and 11. The Ryan Coogler reboot is filming there now.
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
One point of light - my 13 year old daughter and her friends recently started a book club! I was surprised when they picked “The Life of Pi” one month. I read that when I was much older.
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 07/06/2026
I had a similar thought when watching E.T. and Back to the Future with my kids. It would be like me watching a black and white movie from the 50s as a child, which I can’t say I ever did. I guess the 80s really had the juice, eh?
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 02/06/2026
Fun fact, this isn’t the National Mall, but it is Main Mall of the campus of the University of British Columbia (my alma mater). Love the National Monument photoshopped into this shot.
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 02/06/2026
And why is the poster on the floor? Didn’t Doggett carefully roll it up at the end of Season 9? Maybe Mulder had a whole stack of them in a filing cabinet.
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 02/06/2026
I’m looking forward to the Director’s cut! I think I like that movie more than most fans.
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 02/06/2026
Love seeing all the Vancouver actors again, including this one from “Nisei”(?).
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 02/06/2026
”I Want to Believe“ was also filmed in the Vancouver area, but I guess that’s not technically an episode.
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Dr. Catherine Neish @planetneish.bsky.social · 30/05/2026
@arcticsaxifrage.bsky.social
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