
MatSci PhD Candidate @Caltech | @UWaterloo alum | Geochem, Venus, hydrothermal settings, pro-Nuclear☢️ Asteroid 29959. Civically engaged! Opinions are my own.
Pasadena, CA
Joined May 2013
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Seneca Velling retweeted
The US Federal State elevating the US South to sapience and modernity
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Seneca Velling retweeted
“I’m old. I’ve paid my home off,” said Ray Warner, a 72-year-old Akron resident. “Why would I pay property tax?”
Across the country, homeowners are asking the same question and revolting against property taxes at a scale not seen in a half century.
politico.com/news/magazine/2…
Seneca Velling retweeted
The Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope has been named one of TIME's Best Inventions of 2026.
Roman continues its journey in space to its final orbit, completing critical milestones along the way. We expect first images by early 2027.
go.nasa.gov/4yQuwkb
NASA may already have proof life once existed on another planet. Scientists might never get to find out ctvnews.ca/sci-tech/article/…
Seneca Velling retweeted
Replying to @ThePrimalDino
Do you believe that taking an extremely long time to do something makes it safer.. ? like 5 years of development is safer than 2 years? Were NASA’s decisions to pivot in weeks for Gemini VI/VII or months for Apollo 8 unsafe, or were they historic examples of competence that kept America in the space race?
Much of the Reddit noise seems to come from people looking for reasons to take out their affinity for specific hardware, political differences, or personality conflicts on America’s lunar program.
It has been long enough. We have been working for decades on America’s return to the Moon. We finally have the space policy, political alignment, resources, industry, and talent to accomplish this goal safely after a very long wait.
We have two landers, and we will preserve the option to use either for as long as possible while turning every knob available to improve the probability of success.
That means different vehicle configurations will remain on the table for Artemis IV until they are no longer viable. And for the most committed EUS advocates, it was never going to be an option within the timelines required. The OIG report already covered that. Even getting core stage production to an annual rate is a challenge.
The decision to consider Centaur, stretched Centaur, and other upper-stage options over EUS was made by nonpolitical NASA leadership assessing cost, technical work ahead within timelines. I know this is disappointing to some hardware fans, but the idea that it is all a cover for lander availability does not hold up. NASA would have wanted an Artemis III test before an Artemis IV landing regardless, and an extended-mission Centaur would offer far more value for a lunar base and other applications than EUS. That is the reality.
We are an energized and dynamic NASA and we are not just waiting around for others to deliver. It is NASA’s responsibility to drive the outcomes people have been waiting for, and that is exactly what we intend to do.
We are targeting October 23 for the next Artemis update, though that date is not final as folks return from IAC.
Seneca Velling retweeted
🚨 WE HAVE A PERMITTING DEAL🚨
And it is easily the best permitting bill we've ever gotten!
- The Bipartisan American Affordability and Jobs Act is HUGE (400+ pages) and both sides got a LOT.
- The bill is much bigger and better than either Manchin post-IRA in 2022 or Manchin-Barrasso in 2024.
Once I finish reading the text I'll publish an explainer. For now, here are a few high level takeaways.
1. Transmission: The bill is absolutely HUGE for transmission, going further than Manchin-Barrasso. Includes: interregional transmission, limited federal backstop authority, interconnection queue reforms, directives for advanced grid-enhancing tech, and oversight of utilities. It's absolutely AMAZING all of this got in.
2. NEPA: The bill has BIG changes to NEPA, including fixes for judicial review that underpins the law's costs. Still reading but this is even better than I expected!
3. Certainty: The bill includes strong provisions to push back on misuse of permitting, like we're seeing with the admin's abuses against offshore wind.
4. Historic Preservation: The bill includes changes to the NHPA 106 process, including changes to judicial review that will help right-size the process.
5. Clean Water: The bill fixes problems with section 401 by adding new requirements for states and makes section 404 nationwide permits easier to comply with.
6. Geothermal: The bill includes big wins for geothermal, including parity with oil and gas catexs.
7. Mining: The bill fixes the "Rosemont decision"
8. Endangered Species: The bill creates a new path for states to take on endangered species consultation.
9. Hydro: Fixes for certain hydroelectric projects
10. Ratepayer protection: The bill adds protections for ratepayers from added data centers. Looks to be stronger than the House passed bill by quite a bit.
Seneca Velling retweeted
The end of an era of US dominance in science
via @Nature
nature.com/articles/d41586-0…
If you want to live in a meritocracy you have to accept @Caltech will take the best of the best. We have <1000 UGs, ~1400 grads, 650 postdocs across Caltech and @NASAJPL (non-NASA ones).
They end DEI and install merit screening, but don’t like to accept the consequences.
JD Vance: "Some of America's most elite universities bring in foreigners to undercut the wages of American residents. There are 9 universities in particular that we believe merit an investigation. Those are Harvard, Yale, Stanford, Brown, the University of Pittsburg, UC Davis, Cal Tech, Arizona State, and MIT."
We have so few people how can we genuinely be making the splash here.
But either way, #Caltech admissions evaluates all applicants through a strict, merit-focused review that doesn’t use race, gender, national origin, etc as standalone criteria
registrar.caltech.edu/record…
Seneca Velling retweeted
More platitudes about the future of #Astrobiology from #NASA representatives at @theNASciences but no details as to why it is being diluted and diminished by @NASAScience_ after three decades of ground-breaking research and global leadership on one of the most amazing things NASA has ever done. Really depressing.
Replying to @AIP_Publishing
@AIP_Publishing Journal of Applied Physics article out today on compositional control of magnetocaloric performance and energy loss characterization in La-Fe-Si-Co/Ni based alloys.
Check out our work below 👇
pubs.aip.org/aip/jap/article…
Great read! We need to shift our language around space “colonization” & motivate a change in mindset about space generally, particularly for ISRU considerations.
It’s interesting how different cultures see this question of human exploration being intrinsic so differently.
Our astrobioethics paper was the most-read article in the journal Earth Science, Systems, Society in September 2026! 🥳 lyellcollection.org/doi/full…
Had a great talk at @NASA #VExAG meeting on weathering rinds and chemical kinetics of mica breakdown under Venus conditions with implications for a wetter Venus in the past!
Good questions on thickness of weathering rinds and survival of synthetic materials and minerals.
Seneca Velling retweeted
NASA Is Forfeiting Its Global Astrobiology Leadership
astrobiology.com/2026/10/06/…
#NASA @NASA @NASAScience_ @theNASciences #IAC2026 #astrobiology

































