Philip Plait
Encyclopedia
Philip Cary Plait is an American
astronomer
and skeptic who runs the website BadAstronomy.com. He formerly worked at the physics
and astronomy
department at Sonoma State University
. In early 2007, he resigned from his job to write Death from the Skies
. On August 4, 2008, he became President of the James Randi Educational Foundation
. He served in that position until January 1, 2010, when he was succeeded by noted skeptic D. J. Grothe.
area. He received his Ph.D.
in astronomy from the University of Virginia
in 1994 with a thesis on SN 1987A
, which he studied with the Supernova Intensive Study (SINS). He first worked with the COBE satellite and then with the STIS
on the Hubble Space Telescope
for five years. He currently resides in Boulder, Colorado
and writes full time, but often hosts special events and serves as an adviser and commentator in several capacities, including events focusing on skepticism
.
from 2000 to 2007. Prior to that, during the 1990s, he was part of the Hubble Space Telescope
team at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
, working largely on the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph
.
Phil Plait has been featured on TV and on such websites as Space.com
. He has also appeared on two Penn & Teller: Bullshit! episodes. On season 3 he argued against the Apollo moon landing hoax accusations
and on season 7 against astrology
. His work has also appeared in the Encyclopedia Britannica Yearbook of Science and the Future and Astronomy
magazine. He has a regular column in Night Sky magazine (an offshoot of Sky and Telescope
) called "Straight Talk", which has appeared since the magazine's first issue.
Plait is also a frequent guest on the SETI Institute
's weekly science radio show Are We Alone?
hosted by Seth Shostak
and Molly Bentley. He can be heard on many Are We Alone? installments debunking junk science
and waxing poetic on the sublime
nature of the universe
.
His first book, Bad Astronomy
: Misconceptions and Misuses Revealed, from Astrology to the Moon Landing "Hoax" (Wiley, 2002), deals with much the same subject matter as his website. His second book, Death from the Skies
, details multiple ways astronomical events could wipe out life on Earth and was released in October 2008. Bad Astronomy
was the first in a science book series on myths and misconceptions that includes Bad Medicine (Wiley, 2003).
In March 2008, Plait had an asteroid
named after him by the late astronomer Jeff Medkeff
. Asteroid 2000 WG11 was renamed 165347 Philplait
.
dedicated to clearing up public misconceptions about astronomy and space science in movies
, the news, print, and on the Internet
. Plait also debunks several pseudoscientific theories
related to space and astronomy, such as Planet X
, Richard Hoagland's theories, and most famously, the moon landing "hoax". In March 2006, Science
magazine's NetWatch feature lauded the Bad Astronomy website, praising in particular the Bad Astronomy Blog
which Plait began in March 2005. This blog was also a finalist for the 2006 Weblog Award (the "Bloggie"), in the "best topical weblog" category since the Bloggies, like many blog awards, do not have a specific science category. Plait used to write the occasional science article for The Huffington Post
. However he claims that he was "embarrassed" by this and now criticizes them for their stance on anti-vaccination and New Age
antiscience
.
On January 28, 2007, a new segment of the blog called Q & BA was announced. The feature consists of a video log
where questions sent by the blog's readers are answered. New videos were originally posted every Monday, but because of time management issues, Plait decided to temporarily stop making new videos.
In early September 2005, the Bad Astronomy message boards were merged with the Universe Today
message boards to form a more robust, combined site, titled BAUT forum, standing for the "Bad Astronomy and Universe Today Message Board."
On July 1, 2008, the Bad Astronomy blog became integrated with Discover Magazine.
Plait is interviewed on the Monster Talk podcast, with Blake Smith, Karen Stollznow
, and Ben Radford. Plait talks Martian bacteria, Godzilla
, and about the movie Five Million Years to Earth.
released a short video on YouTube
of an upcoming television series called Phil Plait's Bad Universe. Plait later announced it was a three-part documentary series first airing in the United States August 29, 2010. Throughout the series, Phil is often heard using his favorite catchphrase, "Holy Haleakala!"
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
astronomer
Astronomer
An astronomer is a scientist who studies celestial bodies such as planets, stars and galaxies.Historically, astronomy was more concerned with the classification and description of phenomena in the sky, while astrophysics attempted to explain these phenomena and the differences between them using...
and skeptic who runs the website BadAstronomy.com. He formerly worked at the physics
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
and astronomy
Astronomy
Astronomy is a natural science that deals with the study of celestial objects and phenomena that originate outside the atmosphere of Earth...
department at Sonoma State University
Sonoma State University
Sonoma State University is a public, coeducational business and liberal arts college affiliated with the California State University system. The main campus is located in Rohnert Park, California, United States and lies approximately south of Santa Rosa and north of San Francisco...
. In early 2007, he resigned from his job to write Death from the Skies
Death from the Skies
Death from the Skies!: These Are The Ways The World Will End is a book by the American astronomer Phil Plait, also known as "the Bad Astronomer". The book was released in 2008 and explores the various ways in which the human race could be rendered extinct by astronomical phenomena...
. On August 4, 2008, he became President of the James Randi Educational Foundation
James Randi Educational Foundation
The James Randi Educational Foundation is a non-profit organization founded in 1996 by magician and skeptic James Randi. The JREF's mission includes educating the public and the media on the dangers of accepting unproven claims, and to support research into paranormal claims in controlled...
. He served in that position until January 1, 2010, when he was succeeded by noted skeptic D. J. Grothe.
Biography
Plait grew up in the Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
area. He received his Ph.D.
Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...
in astronomy from the University of Virginia
University of Virginia
The University of Virginia is a public research university located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, founded by Thomas Jefferson...
in 1994 with a thesis on SN 1987A
SN 1987A
SN 1987A was a supernova in the outskirts of the Tarantula Nebula in the Large Magellanic Cloud, a nearby dwarf galaxy. It occurred approximately 51.4 kiloparsecs from Earth, approximately 168,000 light-years, close enough that it was visible to the naked eye. It could be seen from the Southern...
, which he studied with the Supernova Intensive Study (SINS). He first worked with the COBE satellite and then with the STIS
Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph
The Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph is a spectrograph, also with a camera mode, installed on the Hubble Space Telescope. It operated continuously from 1997 until a power supply failure in 2004. After repairs, it began operating again in 2009...
on the Hubble Space Telescope
Hubble Space Telescope
The Hubble Space Telescope is a space telescope that was carried into orbit by a Space Shuttle in 1990 and remains in operation. A 2.4 meter aperture telescope in low Earth orbit, Hubble's four main instruments observe in the near ultraviolet, visible, and near infrared...
for five years. He currently resides in Boulder, Colorado
Boulder, Colorado
Boulder is the county seat and most populous city of Boulder County and the 11th most populous city in the U.S. state of Colorado. Boulder is located at the base of the foothills of the Rocky Mountains at an elevation of...
and writes full time, but often hosts special events and serves as an adviser and commentator in several capacities, including events focusing on skepticism
Skepticism
Skepticism has many definitions, but generally refers to any questioning attitude towards knowledge, facts, or opinions/beliefs stated as facts, or doubt regarding claims that are taken for granted elsewhere...
.
Work
Plait performed web-based public outreach for the Gamma-ray Large Area Space Telescope (renamed Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope upon launch in 2008) and other NASA-funded missions while at Sonoma State UniversitySonoma State University
Sonoma State University is a public, coeducational business and liberal arts college affiliated with the California State University system. The main campus is located in Rohnert Park, California, United States and lies approximately south of Santa Rosa and north of San Francisco...
from 2000 to 2007. Prior to that, during the 1990s, he was part of the Hubble Space Telescope
Hubble Space Telescope
The Hubble Space Telescope is a space telescope that was carried into orbit by a Space Shuttle in 1990 and remains in operation. A 2.4 meter aperture telescope in low Earth orbit, Hubble's four main instruments observe in the near ultraviolet, visible, and near infrared...
team at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Goddard Space Flight Center
The Goddard Space Flight Center is a major NASA space research laboratory established on May 1, 1959 as NASA's first space flight center. GSFC employs approximately 10,000 civil servants and contractors, and is located approximately northeast of Washington, D.C. in Greenbelt, Maryland, USA. GSFC,...
, working largely on the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph
Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph
The Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph is a spectrograph, also with a camera mode, installed on the Hubble Space Telescope. It operated continuously from 1997 until a power supply failure in 2004. After repairs, it began operating again in 2009...
.
Phil Plait has been featured on TV and on such websites as Space.com
Space.com
Space.com is a space and astronomy news website. Its stories are often syndicated to other media outlets, including CNN, MSNBC, Yahoo!, and USA Today.Space.com was founded by former CNN anchor Lou Dobbs and Rich Zahradnik, in July 1999...
. He has also appeared on two Penn & Teller: Bullshit! episodes. On season 3 he argued against the Apollo moon landing hoax accusations
Apollo Moon Landing hoax accusations
Different Moon landing conspiracy theories claim that some or all elements of the Apollo program and the associated Moon landings were hoaxes staged by NASA and members of other organizations. Various groups and individuals have made such conspiracy claims since the end of the Apollo program in 1975...
and on season 7 against astrology
Astrology
Astrology consists of a number of belief systems which hold that there is a relationship between astronomical phenomena and events in the human world...
. His work has also appeared in the Encyclopedia Britannica Yearbook of Science and the Future and Astronomy
Astronomy (magazine)
Astronomy is a monthly American magazine about astronomy. Targeting amateur astronomers for its readers, it contains columns on sky viewing, reader-submitted astrophotographs, and articles on astronomy and astrophysics that are readable by nonscientists....
magazine. He has a regular column in Night Sky magazine (an offshoot of Sky and Telescope
Sky & Telescope
Sky & Telescope is a monthly American magazine covering all aspects of amateur astronomy, including the following:*current events in astronomy and space exploration;*events in the amateur astronomy community;...
) called "Straight Talk", which has appeared since the magazine's first issue.
Plait is also a frequent guest on the SETI Institute
SETI Institute
The SETI Institute is a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to “explore, understand and explain the origin, nature and prevalence of life in the universe”. SETI stands for the "search for extraterrestrial intelligence". One program is the use of both radio and optical telescopes to search...
's weekly science radio show Are We Alone?
Are We Alone?
Are We Alone? is the SETI Institute's weekly science radio program, hosted by Senior Astronomer Seth Shostak and Molly Bentley, the Executive producer of the radio show....
hosted by Seth Shostak
Seth Shostak
Seth Shostak is an American astronomer. He grew up in Arlington, VA and earned his physics degree from Princeton University and a Ph.D...
and Molly Bentley. He can be heard on many Are We Alone? installments debunking junk science
Junk science
Junk science is a term used in U.S. political and legal disputes that brands an advocate's claims about scientific data, research, or analyses as spurious. The term may convey a pejorative connotation that the advocate is driven by political, ideological, financial, or other unscientific...
and waxing poetic on the sublime
Sublime (philosophy)
In aesthetics, the sublime is the quality of greatness, whether physical, moral, intellectual, metaphysical, aesthetic, spiritual or artistic...
nature of the universe
Universe
The Universe is commonly defined as the totality of everything that exists, including all matter and energy, the planets, stars, galaxies, and the contents of intergalactic space. Definitions and usage vary and similar terms include the cosmos, the world and nature...
.
His first book, Bad Astronomy
Bad Astronomy
Bad Astronomy: Misconceptions and Misuses Revealed, from Astrology to the Moon Landing "Hoax" is a non-fiction book by the American astronomer Phil Plait, also known as "the Bad Astronomer"...
: Misconceptions and Misuses Revealed, from Astrology to the Moon Landing "Hoax" (Wiley, 2002), deals with much the same subject matter as his website. His second book, Death from the Skies
Death from the Skies
Death from the Skies!: These Are The Ways The World Will End is a book by the American astronomer Phil Plait, also known as "the Bad Astronomer". The book was released in 2008 and explores the various ways in which the human race could be rendered extinct by astronomical phenomena...
, details multiple ways astronomical events could wipe out life on Earth and was released in October 2008. Bad Astronomy
Bad Astronomy
Bad Astronomy: Misconceptions and Misuses Revealed, from Astrology to the Moon Landing "Hoax" is a non-fiction book by the American astronomer Phil Plait, also known as "the Bad Astronomer"...
was the first in a science book series on myths and misconceptions that includes Bad Medicine (Wiley, 2003).
In March 2008, Plait had an asteroid
Asteroid
Asteroids are a class of small Solar System bodies in orbit around the Sun. They have also been called planetoids, especially the larger ones...
named after him by the late astronomer Jeff Medkeff
Jeffrey S. Medkeff
Jeffrey S. Medkeff was born in 1968 and died on 3 August 2008. He was a prominent science writer and educator. He was also a designer of robotic telescopes, a minor philanthropist, and an advocate of personal and sexual freedom.-Early life:Medkeff was born in Akron, Ohio in 1968, and was raised in...
. Asteroid 2000 WG11 was renamed 165347 Philplait
165347 Philplait
165347 Philplait is a main belt asteroid. It was discovered by Jeff Medkeff on November 23, 2000 at Junk Bond Observatory. 165347 Philplait is named after Phil Plait, an astronomer, educator and author....
.
Badastronomy.com
Badastronomy.com is a websiteWebsite
A website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...
dedicated to clearing up public misconceptions about astronomy and space science in movies
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
, the news, print, and on the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
. Plait also debunks several pseudoscientific theories
Pseudoscience
Pseudoscience is a claim, belief, or practice which is presented as scientific, but which does not adhere to a valid scientific method, lacks supporting evidence or plausibility, cannot be reliably tested, or otherwise lacks scientific status...
related to space and astronomy, such as Planet X
Nibiru collision
The Nibiru collision is a supposed disastrous encounter between the Earth and a large planetary object which certain groups believe will take place in the early 21st century. Believers in this doomsday event usually refer to this object as Planet X or Nibiru...
, Richard Hoagland's theories, and most famously, the moon landing "hoax". In March 2006, Science
Science (journal)
Science is the academic journal of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and is one of the world's top scientific journals....
magazine's NetWatch feature lauded the Bad Astronomy website, praising in particular the Bad Astronomy Blog
Blog
A blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in...
which Plait began in March 2005. This blog was also a finalist for the 2006 Weblog Award (the "Bloggie"), in the "best topical weblog" category since the Bloggies, like many blog awards, do not have a specific science category. Plait used to write the occasional science article for The Huffington Post
The Huffington Post
The Huffington Post is an American news website and content-aggregating blog founded by Arianna Huffington, Kenneth Lerer, and Jonah Peretti, featuring liberal minded columnists and various news sources. The site offers coverage of politics, theology, media, business, entertainment, living, style,...
. However he claims that he was "embarrassed" by this and now criticizes them for their stance on anti-vaccination and New Age
New Age
The New Age movement is a Western spiritual movement that developed in the second half of the 20th century. Its central precepts have been described as "drawing on both Eastern and Western spiritual and metaphysical traditions and then infusing them with influences from self-help and motivational...
antiscience
Antiscience
Antiscience is a position that rejects science and the scientific method. People holding antiscientific views are generally skeptical that science is an objective method, as it purports to be, or that it generates universal knowledge. They also contend that scientific reductionism in particular is...
.
On January 28, 2007, a new segment of the blog called Q & BA was announced. The feature consists of a video log
Vlog
Video blogging, sometimes shortened to vlogging or vidding or vidblogging is a form of blogging for which the medium is video, and is a form of Web television. Entries often combine embedded video or a video link with supporting text, images, and other metadata. Entries can be recorded in one take...
where questions sent by the blog's readers are answered. New videos were originally posted every Monday, but because of time management issues, Plait decided to temporarily stop making new videos.
In early September 2005, the Bad Astronomy message boards were merged with the Universe Today
Universe Today
Universe Today is a non-commercial space and astronomy news site, founded in 1999 by Fraser Cain and edited by Nancy Atkinson. The news can then be discussed on the forums. The forum began on 24 July 2003, and was mainly used to discuss the Universe Today news as well as ask space-related...
message boards to form a more robust, combined site, titled BAUT forum, standing for the "Bad Astronomy and Universe Today Message Board."
On July 1, 2008, the Bad Astronomy blog became integrated with Discover Magazine.
Plait is interviewed on the Monster Talk podcast, with Blake Smith, Karen Stollznow
Karen Stollznow
Karen Stollznow is an Australian writer, linguist, podcaster and skeptic. She is a columnist for both Skeptic and Skeptical Inquirer magazines and is host on two different skeptic podcasts...
, and Ben Radford. Plait talks Martian bacteria, Godzilla
Godzilla
is a daikaijū, a Japanese movie monster, first appearing in Ishirō Honda's 1954 film Godzilla. Since then, Godzilla has gone on to become a worldwide pop culture icon starring in 28 films produced by Toho Co., Ltd. The monster has appeared in numerous other media incarnations including video games,...
, and about the movie Five Million Years to Earth.
Discovery Channel Series
On July 22, 2010, Discovery ChannelDiscovery Channel
Discovery Channel is an American satellite and cable specialty channel , founded by John Hendricks and distributed by Discovery Communications. It is a publicly traded company run by CEO David Zaslav...
released a short video on YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
of an upcoming television series called Phil Plait's Bad Universe. Plait later announced it was a three-part documentary series first airing in the United States August 29, 2010. Throughout the series, Phil is often heard using his favorite catchphrase, "Holy Haleakala!"
Recognition
- The BA blog was a co-winner of best science blog in the 2007 Weblog Awards.
- Time.comTime (magazine)Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
's 25 Best blogs 2009 - The Committee for Skeptical Inquiry lists Plait as one of their fellows.
Books
- Philip Plait (2008). Death from the SkiesDeath from the SkiesDeath from the Skies!: These Are The Ways The World Will End is a book by the American astronomer Phil Plait, also known as "the Bad Astronomer". The book was released in 2008 and explores the various ways in which the human race could be rendered extinct by astronomical phenomena...
!: These are the Ways the World Will End Viking PressViking PressViking Press is an American publishing company owned by the Penguin Group, which has owned the company since 1975. It was founded in New York City on March 1, 1925, by Harold K. Guinzburg and George S. Oppenheim...
, ISBN 9780670019977. - Philip Plait (2002). Bad AstronomyBad AstronomyBad Astronomy: Misconceptions and Misuses Revealed, from Astrology to the Moon Landing "Hoax" is a non-fiction book by the American astronomer Phil Plait, also known as "the Bad Astronomer"...
: Misconceptions and Misuses Revealed, from Astrology to the Moon Landing "Hoax". John Wiley & SonsJohn Wiley & SonsJohn Wiley & Sons, Inc., also referred to as Wiley, is a global publishing company that specializes in academic publishing and markets its products to professionals and consumers, students and instructors in higher education, and researchers and practitioners in scientific, technical, medical, and...
, ISBN 0-471-40976-6.
External links
- Bad Astronomy Website
- Bad Astronomy Blog
- Bad Astronomy and Universe Today Message Board
- Collection of Phil Plait audio files
- "Science is under attack", by Philip Plait
- NetWatch, ScienceScience (journal)Science is the academic journal of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and is one of the world's top scientific journals....
31 March 2006: Vol. 311. no. 5769, p. 1841. - Audio - Phil Plait/Pamela Gay Astronomy Cast Death From The Skies - Interview With Phil Plait
- Interview with Phil on the American Freethought Podcast
- Interview with Dr. Phil Plait on Skeptiko