Phil Plait facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Phil Plait
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Phil Plait at The Amazing Meeting on January 20, 2007
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Phillip Cary Plait
September 30, 1964 Washington, D.C., U.S.
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| 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) is an American astronomer and science writer. He is famous for his blog and books, where he is known as The Bad Astronomer. He uses this name to correct common mistakes and myths about space.
Plait worked with the Hubble Space Telescope team and helped the public learn about NASA missions. He has written three books: Bad Astronomy, Death from the Skies, and Under Alien Skies. He has also appeared in science shows like How the Universe Works. From 2015 to 2016, he hosted the popular Crash Course Astronomy series on YouTube.
Contents
A Lifelong Love of Space
Plait grew up near Washington, D.C. His interest in space began when he was about five years old. His father bought a telescope and aimed it at the planet Saturn. Plait said, "One look, and that was it. I was hooked." This early experience inspired him to become an astronomer.
He went to the University of Michigan for his first degree. Later, he earned his PhD in astronomy from the University of Virginia in 1995. For his final project, he studied a famous exploded star called Supernova SN 1987A.
Working as a Scientist
Studying the Stars with Hubble
In the 1990s, Plait worked on NASA's Hubble Space Telescope team. He used a special camera called the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph to study objects in space.
One of his biggest discoveries was about Supernova 1987A. In 1995, he published his findings about a ring of gas and dust around the dead star. This helped other scientists understand more about how massive stars explode. He also helped take some of the first clear pictures of young, medium-sized stars, which gave astronomers new information about how stars are born.
Sharing Science with the World
After working as a research scientist, Plait decided to focus on teaching the public about space. He worked at Sonoma State University from 2000 to 2007, where he helped with online education for the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope and other NASA projects.
The "Bad Astronomer" Blog
In 1998, Plait started a website called Badastronomy.com. His goal was to correct bad information about astronomy he saw in movies, on the news, and online. He wrote about pseudoscience, which are ideas that sound scientific but are not based on facts. For example, he wrote articles explaining why the Apollo Moon landings were real.
In 2005, he started the Bad Astronomy blog, which became very popular. The blog moved to Discover Magazine in 2008, then to Slate magazine in 2012, and later to SyfyWire. Today, he continues to write his blog on other platforms, sharing his love for science and correcting misinformation.
Books and TV Shows
Plait has written several books that make science easy to understand.
- Bad Astronomy: Misconceptions and Misuses Revealed, from Astrology to the Moon Landing "Hoax" is about the same topics as his website.
- Death from the Skies (2008) explains how events in space, like asteroid impacts, could affect life on Earth.
He has also been a part of many TV shows and movies. He hosted a series on the Discovery Channel called Phil Plait's "Bad Universe". He has been a guest expert on How the Universe Works and was the head science writer for the Netflix show Bill Nye Saves the World. He also worked as a science advisor for the movie Arrival.
Crash Course Astronomy
From 2015 to 2016, Plait wrote and hosted 47 episodes of Crash Course Astronomy. This YouTube series explained topics like black holes, galaxies, and the Big Bang in a fun and fast-paced way. The series has been watched by millions of people and is a popular tool for learning about space.
Promoting Science and Skepticism
Plait is a well-known skeptic. This means he believes that claims should be tested with evidence before they are accepted as true. He encourages people to think critically about the world around them.
For about a year, he was the president of the James Randi Educational Foundation, an organization that promotes scientific skepticism. He often speaks at science conferences and events, where he talks about the importance of science and reason. He also uses his platform to talk about important health topics, like why vaccines are safe and necessary.
Awards and Recognition
Plait's work has earned him several awards.
- In 2007, his Bad Astronomy blog won "Best Science Blog" at the Weblog Awards.
- In 2008, an asteroid was named 165347 Philplait in his honor.
- In 2013, he received the Philip J. Klass Award for his work in promoting skepticism.
- In 2016, the American Astronomical Society gave him an award for his science journalism.
Personal Life
Plait used to live in Boulder, Colorado, with his wife, Marcella Setter, and their daughter. He has said his daughter also enjoys science and astronomy. As of 2024, he lives in a country area in Virginia.
See also
In Spanish: Phil Plait para niños
