My name is London Black. Nearly a decade ago, I decided to study the stars. The journey I’ve taken since that day has followed a long and winding road, a road which did not always move in the same coherent direction.
I studied astrophysics as an undergraduate student in Austin, TX, and found that I loved learning and could teach myself just about anything I put my mind to. I developed an appreciation for the mysteries of quantum mechanics (nobody knows what ‘spin’ is, least of all anybody who’s trying to convince you that they do), exoplanet research, galaxy formation, pure math, and – strangely enough – traffic flow theory. I took a hiatus from considering a more advanced degree and instead began exploring startup culture in Austin. I briefly mentored college students looking to build their own ventures. I then went to work at a climate consulting startup for five years, where I met hundreds of passionate, frustrated, kind, deeply driven advocates all working around the world to solve various human (and human-caused) challenges in energy affordability, resilience, housing, healthcare, climate education, climate science, biodiversity, food access, and other issue areas. I worked with, and for, wonderful people.
All the while, I built my personal library of science fiction, space law and policy, and technical books, seeking each and every day to find opportunities to learn new things about this vast and wonderful cosmos we humans are so lucky to enjoy, if briefly.
I’m currently writing a book of short cosmic horror stories and building a board game. In my spare time I practice botany and photography for fun, read, and play Dungeons and Dragons, among other things.
