Phil Plait facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Phil Plait
Phil Plait at The Amazing Meeting on January 20, 2007
Born	Phillip Cary Plait (1964-09-30) September 30, 1964 (age 60) Washington, D.C., U.S.
Nationality	American
Other names	Bad Astronomer
Alma mater	University of Michigan University of Virginia
Scientific career
Fields	Physics, astronomy, science communication
Thesis	Hubble space telescope observations of the circumstellar ring around of supernova 1987A (1995)

Philip Cary Plait (born September 30, 1964), also known as The Bad Astronomer, is an American astronomer and science communicator. He loves sharing his knowledge about space! Phil worked with the Hubble Space Telescope team, studying images of stars and galaxies. He also helped NASA tell people about their exciting space missions.

Phil has written three books: Bad Astronomy, Death from the Skies, and Under Alien Skies. You might have seen him in science documentaries like How the Universe Works on the Discovery Channel. He also hosted episodes of Crash Course Astronomy, an online educational series.

Early Life and Space Dreams

Phil Plait grew up in Washington, D.C., in the United States. He became interested in astronomy when he was about five years old. His father brought home a telescope, and that night, Phil looked at Saturn. He says that one look was all it took; he was "hooked" on space!

Education and Space Research

Phil Plait studied at the University of Michigan. He later earned his PhD in astronomy from the University of Virginia in 1995. His studies focused on a special exploding star called SN 1987A.

During the 1990s, Phil worked with the COBE satellite. Later, he joined the Hubble Space Telescope team at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center. He helped analyze images from the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph. His work helped scientists understand how stars explode. He also helped capture some of the first high-resolution images of young stars.

Sharing Science with Everyone

After his research, Phil Plait focused on teaching people about space. From 2000 to 2007, he worked at Sonoma State University. There, he helped share information about the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope and other NASA projects online.

The Bad Astronomy Website

A big part of Phil's work is online. In 1998, he started the Bad Astronomy website. In 2005, he added a blog to it. His goal was to correct common misunderstandings about astronomy. He wanted to show how science helps us understand space, instead of believing myths.

• He explained why some ideas in movies about space are wrong.
• He also looked at fake science theories, like the "Planet X" cataclysm or ideas that the Moon landing was faked.
• His website became very popular, especially after he spoke out against a TV show that claimed NASA faked the Apollo missions.

The Bad Astronomy Blog

In 2005, Phil started the Bad Astronomy blog. It moved to Discover Magazine in 2008. The blog covers astronomy, but also talks about skepticism and how to spot fake science. In 2012, the blog moved to Slate magazine. Phil said that Slate was very supportive. He has written thousands of blog posts about almost every topic in astronomy! The blog later moved to SyfyWire and then to other online platforms.

Phil Plait on Screen

Phil Plait has appeared in many TV shows and movies. He helps make sure the science is correct.

• He hosted a three-part documentary series called Phil Plait's "Bad Universe" on the Discovery Channel.
• He has been in many science documentaries, including How the Universe Works.
• He was a science advisor for the 2016 movie Arrival.
• He also worked as the head science writer for the 2017 Netflix show Bill Nye Saves the World.

Promoting Scientific Thinking

Phil Plait (center) during TAM9 in 2011, with Richard Wiseman and Joe Nickell

From 2008 to 2009, Phil was the president of the James Randi Educational Foundation. This group helps people learn about scientific skepticism. This means using evidence and logic to understand the world. He often speaks at science and skepticism events. He talks about important topics like why widespread immunization (getting vaccines) is good for everyone's health.

Personal Life

Phil Plait used to live in Boulder, Colorado, with his wife, Marcella Setter, and their daughter. His daughter is interested in astronomy and science, just like him! Between 2011 and 2018, Phil and Marcella ran a company called Science Getaways. They organized vacations that included science-based adventures. As of 2024, Phil lives in rural Virginia.

Online Videos and Talks

The final slide to Plait's presentation at the JREF's 6th The Amazing Meeting convention

In 2011, Phil Plait gave a TED talk in his hometown of Boulder. In his talk, he explained how we could protect Earth from asteroids.

From 2015 to 2016, Phil taught Astronomy on the popular YouTube educational series Crash Course. He hosted 47 episodes, making complex astronomy topics easy to understand for millions of viewers.

Media Appearances

Phil Plait has been a guest or host on many TV shows and documentaries.

Awards and Special Recognition

Phil Plait has received several awards for his work in science communication:

• In 2007, his Bad Astronomy blog won "Best Science Blog" at The Weblog Awards.
• In March 2008, an asteroid was named after him! It's called 165347 Philplait.
• In 2009, Time.com listed Bad Astronomy as one of their "25 Best Blogs."
• In 2016, he received the David N. Schramm Award for High Energy Astrophysics Science Journalism. This was for his article about a supermassive black hole.

See also

In Spanish: Phil Plait para niños