diff --git a/apps/dashboard/src/lib/observatory/overlays/RescueVerdict.svelte b/apps/dashboard/src/lib/observatory/overlays/RescueVerdict.svelte
index 489c3e7..aca3c96 100644
--- a/apps/dashboard/src/lib/observatory/overlays/RescueVerdict.svelte
+++ b/apps/dashboard/src/lib/observatory/overlays/RescueVerdict.svelte
@@ -28,7 +28,12 @@
 	let {
 		frame = 0,
 		verdict,
-		fadeWindow = [600, 615, 645, 660],
+		// Hold the verdict on screen for the REST of the loop, not a ~1s flash.
+		// Fade in over 600→620, hold fully readable through the field's decay to
+		// rest, then fade out just before the seamless wrap (705→719, back to 0
+		// at 719 so the loop seam stays clean). This is the demo money-card: the
+		// viewer needs seconds to read "root cause found", not a blink.
+		fadeWindow = [600, 620, 705, 719],
 		tone = 'triumph'
 	}: Props = $props();
 
diff --git a/apps/dashboard/src/routes/(app)/observatory/+page.svelte b/apps/dashboard/src/routes/(app)/observatory/+page.svelte
index 0f50505..78dc362 100644
--- a/apps/dashboard/src/routes/(app)/observatory/+page.svelte
+++ b/apps/dashboard/src/routes/(app)/observatory/+page.svelte
@@ -62,10 +62,15 @@
 		loading = true;
 		error = '';
 		try {
+			// Pull the DENSE real subgraph (the well-connected hotspot), not the
+			// newest-memory neighborhood — 'recent' centers on a lonely fresh node
+			// (~12 nodes), while 'connected' surfaces the populous, edge-rich field
+			// (~150 real memories, thousands of edges) so the Observatory reads as
+			// a living brain doing real work, not a sparse placeholder.
 			const data = await api.graph({
-				max_nodes: 300,
+				max_nodes: 200,
 				depth: 3,
-				sort: 'recent'
+				sort: 'connected'
 			});
 			graphData = data;
 			nodeCount = data.nodeCount;