Hello
My name is Bryné Hadnott and I’m a freelance science journalist and creative coder based in the Bay Area. Once upon a time, I was a planetary scientist studying how prebiotic molecules are produced on Saturn's largest moon, Titan. Since then, I've taken my experience coding in Python, passion for astronomy, and love of writing to create digital stories that involve everyone in the joy of discovery. My written work has been featured in Physics Today, The Planetary Society, and on the YouTube channel, Professor Dave Explains.
Writing
I’m interested in the intersection of science, tech, and culture. You can find links to my articles below.
Inflatable Planetarium Debuts with Moons of Jupiter Event | The Guardsman
In the Age of AI, Small Colleges Are Punching Above Their Weight | First Principles
Scientists Are Leaving Academia for Industry, Here’s Why It’s Happening Now | First Principles
Empowering voices and building bridges across the space community with Black In Astro | Nature
#PandemicGoals: Building an observatory locked down in Chile | KIPAC
How Dragonfly will explore Saturn’s ‘bizarro Earth’ moon, Titan | The Planetary Society
Black women’s experiences in STEM inspire an annual workshop | Physics Today
In my free time, I've been exploring ways to create data visualizations using Python packages like seaborn and Plotly. To explore making an interactive map for a personal project, I used United States unemployment data from Plotly to create a time-changing chloropleth map. In 2020, I volunteered to create a heat map for Brand New Congress to better understand voter data. In 2024-2025, I volunteered with the Critical Ecology Lab to develop a time-changing chloropleth map showing European colonization over time. Click on the visualizations below for a full-sized version.
Art
Undoctored
The upcoming documentary UNDOCTORED is centered around mental health crises I experienced in 2016 as a graduate student and in 2023 as a data storyteller at Stanford University. It’s a harrowing story of how isolation, loneliness, and a lack of supportive community created a turbulent storm of mental unrest that rattled my sense of self. The documentary explores themes of institutional betrayal, mental health, and the importance of self and companionate love. It's the film I wish I’d had when I started applying to graduate school in 2014.
Design
While working as a Data Storyteller at Stanford University's Kavli Institute for Particle Astrophysics and Cosmology (KIPAC), I designed posters for the Stanford Program for Inspiring the Next Generation of Women in Physics (SPINWIP) and title cards for the Discover Our Universe public lecture series.
About
Bryné Hadnott (they/them) is a recovering planetary scientist and Python software engineer turned science journalist. As a senior creative technologist at DuKode Studio, they contributed to the award-winning sci-fi arthouse animated series, THE GREAT TIT IS A BIRD (TGTIAB). They tell stories about people who have been pushed to the margins, drawing on their experiences as a Black, agender, disabled person. Their storytelling has been featured in Physics Today, The Planetary Society, and on the YouTube channel, Professor Dave Explains.
Contact
Interested in collaborating? Feel free to reach out or schedule a time to meet with me using the links below.