Hi! I’m Sarah!

I’m a professional science communicator with an interest in astrobiology and a tendency to follow the science wherever it leads.

I hold a Master of Science in Communications from the University of Wisconsin–Whitewater and I am currently a PhD candidate in Communications at the University of North Dakota. I am also a research science affiliate in the science communication and education track with Blue Marble Space Institute of Science.

My PhD work studies how immersive media can transform the way we understand science, with a focus on planetarium domes as powerful storytelling environments. I am a recipient of two NASA SCoPE grants, and in partnership with NASA-funded OpenSpace, Adler Planetarium, and NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, I develop experiences that take audiences from Earth to the outer reaches of our solar system.

I served as the onboard communications officer for International Ocean Discovery Program Expedition 399 from April to June 2023 aboard the JOIDES Resolution, an NSF-funded ocean drilling research vessel. There, we conducted record-setting core recovery and fluid sampling near the Lost City Hydrothermal Field, one of the most important analog environments for life beyond Earth. I later designed a planetarium show within OpenSpace that connects this expedition to the search for life on ocean worlds like Europa.

Along the way, I’ve hiked to Everest Base Camp, dived with sharks, traveled to Chile’s ALMA Observatory in the Atacama Desert, and explored Patagonia, where I once held a Darwin’s frog. These experiences aren’t separate from my work… they shape how I tell stories about exploration, discovery, and our place in the universe.

Today, I bring those stories directly to communities across the United States through traveling dome shows, STEM programs, and public outreach, including frequent appearances on CNN. Whether I’m inside a planetarium or out on a sidewalk with a telescope, my goal is the same: to make science feel tangible, human, and impossible to ignore.

In my personal life, I’m a proud mom to two kiddos, Adaline and Miles. I’ve been keeping bees for eight years, and I have a wonderfully derpy dog named Hubble. I’m also always chasing the next adventure above, below, or beyond this pale blue dot.

Come explore it with me.