James Tuttle Keane
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jtuttlekeane.bsky.social
James Tuttle Keane
@jtuttlekeane.bsky.social
2.4K followers 310 following 230 posts
planetary scientist 🪐 science illustrator 🎨 trekkie 🖖 dog dad 🐶 Pasadena 🌹 views are my own 🏳️‍🌈 he/him
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jtuttlekeane.bsky.social
New paper out! Let’s do a gravity science mission to Mars!
Artist rendering of a GRAIL/GRACE-like spacecraft pair orbiting Mars. Image credit: Hellas Basin from Mars Express (ESA / DLR / FU Berlin / Aster Cowart), GRAIL (NASA / JPL-Caltech / MIT), composited by James Tuttle Keane.
October 13, 2025 at 3:43 PM
jtuttlekeane.bsky.social
Alan Stern & Orkan Umurhan—there are unusual dark streaks and swirls in the northern part of Sputnik Planitia (the giant nitrogen-ice glacier that makes up part of Pluto’s heart). They propose that this is the consequence of melt (liquid nitrogen) rising from the base of the glacier! #Pluto10
A photograph of a sketch in my notebook where I summarize a talk by Alan Stern and Orkan Umurhan. on the left is a sketch of Pluto centered on Sputnik Planitia. I highlight the northern part of Sputnik Benicia, where there are some darkened streaks amongst the convective swirls of the glacier. On the right hand side of the sketch, I zoom in to a cross-section of this portion of the glacier. In the side profile, you can see a thick, nitrogen ice glacier, shown mostly in grays, overlying a water-rich icy crust, shown in red. They hypothesis that the bottom of the glacier is melting, producing effectively liquid nitrogen. Unlike basal melt in a terrestrial glacier (water) which stays confined to the bottom of the glacier, basal melt in a nitrogen ice glacier would be buoyant and rise through the glacier to the surface. I show that here with some blue coloring: I show a layer of blue at the bottom of the glacier, and then a upwelling that goes towards the surface. At the surface of the cross-section, I show the surface of Sputnik, including a convective cell that is bordered by a trough. The upwelling melt reaches the surface first at the trough, fills in the topographic low, and darken it. in a text box to the side, I explain their hypothesis. They believe that this region of Sputnik is sublimating away. As the glacier thins, it reduces stress on the ice, promoting the growth of larger grain sizes. Larger green sizes, inhibit convection, and make it harder for the glacier to lose heat. Thus the bottom of the glacier can get warmer and melt.
July 23, 2025 at 2:13 PM
jtuttlekeane.bsky.social
10 years ago, the New Horizons mission flew past Pluto. That world, that mission, and the team of people that made it happen—changed my life.

Last week was the #Pluto10 workshop. It was amazing to see all of the continuing science from Pluto!
A photograph of a sketch in my notebook, done for the T +10 years Pluto workshop that was held last week at APL. The sketch shows the number 10 drawn out in a very modern font. At the top of the one is the new horizon spacecraft, glistening in gold. The number one is almost a trail left behind the spacecraft, drawn in a blue gradient. Inside of the zero is a sketch of Pluto itself, centered on the encounter hemisphere, and Sputnik Planitia. Pluto is in shades of red, brown, yellow, and gray. Beneath the large number 10 is the title of the conference, “progress and understanding the Pluto system: 10 years after flyby.“ I’ve also drawn some colorful rainbow “swooshes” behind the graphics. The entire drawing is maybe 6 inches across, as you can see the pen just next to the notebook for scale.
July 23, 2025 at 2:02 PM
jtuttlekeane.bsky.social
Fun night at the Alf!
A photograph of me standing at the podium at the elf paleontology Museum. I’m wearing a yellow jacket and khaki slacks and talking into the microphone. Behind me is a large projector screen that shows the title “the dinosaur astronomer“ with some paleo art of a dinosaur looking to the night sky, and my contact information. The projector in the stage are lit up by a purple light.
July 19, 2025 at 9:20 PM
jtuttlekeane.bsky.social
Talking at the Alf Museum of Paleontology tonight! I’m going to talk about what dinosaurs would’ve seen in the night sky, if they had been astronomers! 🔭🦖

@alfpaleo.bsky.social
An artist rendering of a dinosaur looking to the stars, with the text: MOMENTS OF TIME THE DINOSAUR ASTRONOMER & HOW THE NIGHT SKY HAS CHANGED OVER TIME FEATURING DR. JAMES TUTTLE KEANE PLANETARY SCIENTIST JET PROPULSION LABORATORY FRIDAY, JULY 18 | 7:00 PM Raymond M. Alf Museum of Paleontology A photo of me with the text: DR. JAMES TUTTLE KEANE Planetary Scientist Jet Propulsion Laboratory Dr. James Tuttle Keane is a scientist at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Dr. Keane studies the interactions between orbital dynamics, rotational dynamics, and geologic processes on rocky and icy worlds across the solar system. Dr. Keane has extensive experience with NASA missions, including the GRAIL lunar orbiter, the New Horizons mission to Pluto and the Kuiper belt, and the Juno mission to Jupiter. Dr. Keane was recently awarded the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers. Asteroid (36773) Tuttlekeane is named in his honor. Dr. Keane is from Cedar Rapids, lowa, has degrees in astronomy and geology from the University of Maryland, and a doctorate from the University of Arizona.
July 18, 2025 at 6:13 PM
jtuttlekeane.bsky.social
“There's a reason why you separate military and the police. One fights the enemy of the state. The other serves and protects the people. When the military becomes both, then the enemies of the state tend to become the people.”
June 10, 2025 at 2:03 AM
jtuttlekeane.bsky.social
And there are some bonus stickers 🤩🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️
A set of four sticker. On the left is a black and white planet with the trxf “pride is infinite” on the planet. It’s wrapped in rainbow rings. In the middle are pluto and jupiter. Pluto is colored in the trans pride colors; Jupiter is colored in the queer pride colors. On the right is a view of a Mars rover descending, with an inclusive pride parachute, black/brown skycrane, and trans pride colored rover.
June 6, 2025 at 7:47 PM
jtuttlekeane.bsky.social
Happy pride month! I worked with some LA-based scientists and engineers, and we have a kickstarter for space pride t-shirts! Consider backing!
🛰️🏳️‍⚧️🚀🏳️‍🌈🪐

www.kickstarter.com/projects/spa...
A sketch of a colorful Mars rover holding an inclusive pride flag in its robot arm. It’s very stylized, colorful, and got a little smile. It’s on a starry background. A sketch of our Solar System, drom Mercury to Pluto. The planets are colored with the colors of an inclusive pride flag. It’s on a starry background. Above the planets is the text “Enough Space for Everyone”
June 6, 2025 at 7:47 PM
jtuttlekeane.bsky.social
And there are some bonus stickers 🤩🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️
A set of four sticker. On the left is a black and white planet with the trxf “pride is infinite” on the planet. It’s wrapped in rainbow rings. In the middle are pluto and jupiter. Pluto is colored in the trans pride colors; Jupiter is colored in the queer pride colors. On the right is a view of a Mars rover descending, with an inclusive pride parachute, black/brown skycrane, and trans pride colored rover.
June 6, 2025 at 7:46 PM
jtuttlekeane.bsky.social
Happy pride month! I worked with some LA-based scientists and engineers, and we have a kickstarter for space pride t-shirts! Consider backing!
🛰️🏳️‍⚧️🚀🏳️‍🌈🪐

www.kickstarter.com/projects/spa...
A sketch of a colorful Mars rover holding an inclusive pride flag in its robot arm. It’s very stylized, colorful, and got a little smile. It’s on a starry background. A sketch of our Solar System, drom Mercury to Pluto. The planets are colored with the colors of an inclusive pride flag. It’s on a starry background. Above the planets is the text “Enough Space for Everyone”
June 6, 2025 at 7:46 PM
jtuttlekeane.bsky.social
What today feels like
The poster from the movie alien versus predator. In the middle of the poster is the tagline “whoever wins… We lose. “
June 6, 2025 at 1:47 AM
jtuttlekeane.bsky.social
how it feels going to pride today
A looping GIF of Mon Mothma drinking shots at her daughter‘s wedding party in the TV show Andor. She is clearly distressed despite the party around her. In the show, she is dealing with a lot of political drama from an oppressive empire.
May 31, 2025 at 8:45 PM
jtuttlekeane.bsky.social
The NASA planetary science fleet chart if the president’s budget is enacted.
The NASA planetary science fleet chart. It shows two spirals with missions to Moon/Mars and the Solar System. I’ve crossed off all of the missions that will be cancelled in the president’s budget… and there are a lot of them.
May 30, 2025 at 9:57 PM
jtuttlekeane.bsky.social
Back at the National Academies this week for the first meeting of the lunar and planetary science panel for the “Non-Polar Destinations for Artemis” study! 🌖👩🏽‍🚀

It’s nice to be distracted with science this week. Today’s expected to be a rough day for NASA…
A selfie of me in the lobby of the National Academies building on the mall in DC. Behind me is the ornate ceiling of the central atrium, emblazoned in golds, blues, and yellows. The geometric patterns across the vaulted ceiling contain scenes and symbols of science. Blue light comes in through the windows. I’m in the lower right, smiling at the camera, while wearing my glasses, green button-down, and Star Trek Enterprise denim jacket (with a yellow command stripe). On the jacket is a prominent, inclusive space pride pin. A photo of my badge from this week’s meeting. The badge shows my name (James Keane) and institution (JPL) under a National Academies header logo. At the bottom is the date and label for the “panel on lunar and planetary science”. My work lanyard is strewn across the black table around the badge. The lanyard is a purple/pink Artemis lanyard. On the lanyard are several pins, including an inclusive space pride pin, gold Juno pin, Star Trek science delta, and a small pink USS Discovery-A. The lanyard has a broken Star Trek badge at the end, identical to what Khan wore on his necklace in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. The colors in the scene are warm and saturated.
May 30, 2025 at 3:19 PM
jtuttlekeane.bsky.social
Wonderful talk by @suesmrekar.bsky.social at JPL this week: A love letter to Venus, from Earth

Always a pleasant surprise to see my VERITAS hand drawn cover art in the wild
A photograph of Sue Smrekar giving a talk in the Von Karma auditorium at JPL. Sue is in the distance standing at a podium, wearing a green VERITAS polo. To the right is the projector that shows the cover art of the VERITAS proposal, which I drew. The cover was done in colored pencil, and shows the divergent evolution of Earth and Venus. They start similar, with water, but eventually diverge – where Venus becomes a hell scape and earth becomes of paradise. She’s presenting this in front of a large crowd which is facing her, and away from me. The room is well lit in hues of orange, purple and blue. to the far left is a replica of the Voyager spacecraft with a hiking and 10 of pointing upward, and scan platform, aiming towards Sue.
May 24, 2025 at 2:09 AM
jtuttlekeane.bsky.social
This is *pure evil*
April 16, 2025 at 3:58 PM
jtuttlekeane.bsky.social
Part 2 of 2

“ I am worried about the most critical element: the continual creation, care, and feeding of the scientific workforce.”
April 3, 2025 at 12:51 PM
jtuttlekeane.bsky.social
One of the highlights of National Academies ‘Space Science Week’: Margaret Kivelson giving an impassioned speech about the importance of science in the United States

Part 1 of 2
April 3, 2025 at 12:51 PM
jtuttlekeane.bsky.social
A bit wet
A selfie of me in the aftermath of the downpour. I’m soaking wet, and covered in a smattering of cherry blossom petals (including one on my forehead). The cherry blossom trees are behind me. I am wearing a blue dress shirt with suspenders. On the suspenders, you can see NASA pride pin
April 1, 2025 at 12:25 PM
jtuttlekeane.bsky.social
went for a walk to see the DC cherry blossoms, and I may have miscalculated the weather 🌸
April 1, 2025 at 12:20 PM
jtuttlekeane.bsky.social
a little trans pride Pluto for trans visibility day 🏳️‍⚧️
A simple digital sketch of Pluto. In this little sketch, Pluto is done very simple gray lind work. The view is centered on Sputnik Planitia, and you can see some of the latitudinal bands of different terrain circling the globe. However, I’ve colored Pluto with the colors of the trans Pride flag, starting with dark pink up at the top on the pole, light pink at the mid latitudes, a white cream color for the heart, and light blue for the icy glaciers, and dark blue for the equator and southern hemisphere. A little white sketch of new horizons is also shown over to the top right. It is on a dark gray background. I did the sketch in procreate on the iPad.
March 31, 2025 at 11:01 PM
jtuttlekeane.bsky.social
a little trans pride Pluto for trans visibility day 🏳️‍⚧️
March 31, 2025 at 10:56 PM
jtuttlekeane.bsky.social
News from Space Science Week at the National Academies: Louise Prockter is starting as acting NASA’s acting Planetary Science Directorate director next week (April 7th) for a 1 year term!
Photo from the National Acadmies Space Science Week, of Charles Webb presenting a slide showing a photo of Louise Prockter, and the note: PSD director (1 year term) starting April 7, 2025
March 31, 2025 at 2:38 PM
jtuttlekeane.bsky.social
Hello, #WonderCon! I’m on a panel this evening about science in science fiction with a bunch of JPL scientists tonight (8-9pm, Room 207) 🖖🏻🚀
A selfie of Aaron and I standing in the convention hall of wonder con in Anaheim California. We’re both smiling. I’m wearing a yellow star trek discovery jacket and comm badge. The hall is busy behind us.
March 29, 2025 at 10:51 PM
jtuttlekeane.bsky.social
Sabina Raducan—The DART impact provided an opportunity to calibrate models of asteroid properties and dynamics. They used this to study how asteroid moons, like Selam (the moon of Dinkinesh observed by the Lucy mission), formed. #LPSC2025
A photograph of a sketch that I did summarizing Sabina Raducan’s talk from LPSC 2025. The sketch is in my conference notebook and is done on a roughly 5 x 7” page in pencil and pen. The sketch shows the Didymos and Dinkinesh asteroid and their satellites. these two asteroids are similar and have recently been explored by NASA and ESA missions. Didymos is in ellipsoidal moon with a nearby similarly ellipsoidal satellite Dimorphos. Dinkinesh is a top shaped asteroid shown in the middle with a bilobate moon, Selam, that orbits further away. For each of the different asteroid systems, I have drawn the different spacecraft that have flown by, into or will soon arrive, including the dart mission which impacted Dimorphos, along with the light LICIACube small sat; the Hers mission, which will arrive in 2026 with two small sets Milani and Juventas; and Lucy, which flew by Dinkinesh in 2023. The authors use the DART impact to calibrate their SPH simulations of the formation of asteroid moons via mergers of smaller satellites. They hypothesis that Selam formed from the merger of four moonlets. they point to the bilobafe shape and the ridges on both bodies as evidence, speculating with the ridges formed from mergers of satellites.
March 17, 2025 at 12:53 AM