Who is Neil deGrasse Tyson?
Neil deGrasse Tyson is an American astrophysicist. Neil deGrasse Tyson is the founder of the Department of Astrophysics at the American Museum of Natural History. He is also an author, a science communicator, and a research associate.
Neil is the Frederick P. Rose Director of the Hayden Planetarium at the Rose Center for Earth and Space in New York City.
Neil is the author of the series “Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey”. This is a follow-up of the 1980 series by the renowned astrophysicist Carl Sagan- “Cosmos: A Personal Voyage”.
What are the birth facts of Neil deGrasse Tyson?
Neil deGrasse Tyson was born on October 5, 1958, in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, the U.S. His parents are Cyril deGrasse Tyson and Sunchita Maria Feliciano-Tyson.
His father Cyril deGrasse Tyson was an acclaimed sociologist. He was the Human Resource Commissioner for New York City Mayor- John Lindsay, and the first Director of Harlem Youth Opportunities Unlimited. His mother Sunchita Maria was a gerontologist for the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare,
Neil grew up in the Castle Hill neighborhood of the Bronx, and later at Riverdale with his siblings, an elder, and a younger one-Stephen Joseph Tyson and Lynn Antipas Tyson.
Neil DeGrasse Tyson-Education
Neil studied in the best public schools in the Bronx. Thereafter he continued his high school education at Bronx High. Additionally, he studied at Riverdale Kingsbridge Academy for some time. However, he went back to Bronx High School to study Science courses.
He participated in extra-curricular activities at Bronx High. He was the Captain of the wrestling team and the editor-in-chief of the Physical Science Journal.
Neil studied Physics at Harvard and also found the time to participate in dances and wrestling. In 1983, Neil finished his degree in astronomy from the University of Texas, Austin. In 1991, he completed his MPhil and Ph.D. in Astrophysics from the University of Columbia.
Neil deGrasse Tyson – Professional Career
Tyson’s research is focused on his observations in cosmology, stellar evolution, galactic astronomy, bulges, and stellar formation. In the course of his professional career, he held numerous positions at these prestigious institutions. Such institutions include the University of Maryland, Princeton University, the American Museum of Natural History, and the Hayden Planetarium.
Career Progression Timeline
1994 Tyson joined the Hayden Planetarium as a staff scientist
1995 Acting Director of the Hayden Planetarium
1996 Appointed Director of the Hayden Planetarium
Author of Books
He has penned several books which include:
2008 Merlin’s Tour of the Universe
1994 Universe Down to Earth
1998 Just Visiting This Planet
2000 One Universe: At Home in the Cosmos
2002 City of Stars: A New Yorker’s Guide to the Cosmos
2003 My Favorite Universe
2004 Origins: Fourteen Billion Years of Cosmic Evolution, with Donald Goldsmith
2007 Death by Black Hole: And Other Cosmic Quandaries
2009 The Pluto Files: The Rise and Fall of America’s Favorite Planet
2012 Space Chronicles: Facing the Ultimate Frontier
2016 Welcome to the Universe: An Astrophysical Tour, with Michael A. Strauss and J. Richard Gott
2017 Astrophysics for People in a Hurry
2018 Accessory to War: The Unspoken Alliance Between Astrophysics and the Military, with Avis Lang
2019 Letters from an Astrophysicist
During his course of work, Neil required funds for international research that was dear to his heart. He approached Professor R. Michael Rich who obtained funds from NASA and the ARCS Foundation to support Tyson’s doctoral research. This fund enabled Tyson to attend international meetings in Italy, Switzerland, Chile, and South Africa and complete his research.
Neil deGrasse Tyson –Awards and honors and net worth
2001 Medal of Excellence, Columbia University, New York City
2004, NASA Distinguished Public Service Medal for the Moon, Mars and Beyond Commission
2005 Science Writing Award
2007, Klopsteg Memorial Award
2009 Douglas S. Morrow Public Outreach Award from the Space Foundation
2009 Isaac Asimov Award from the American Humanist Association
2015 Public Welfare Medal- U.S National Academy of Sciences
2014 Critics’ Choice Television Award for Best Reality Show Host
2014 Dunlap Prize
2015 Public Welfare Medal from the National Academy of Sciences
2015 Cosmos Award, Planetary Society
2017, Stephen Hawking Science Medal
2017 Hubbard Medal, National Geographic Society
2017 Stephen Hawking Medal for Science Communication, Starmus
2017 Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album nomination for Astrophysics for People in a Hurry
Honors
2000 Sexiest Astrophysicist Alive, People Magazine
2001 asteroid named 13123 Tyson, renamed from Asteroid 1994KA by the International Astronomical Union
2001 The Tech 100, Crain’s Magazine voted Neil as one of the 100 most influential leaders in technology
2004 Fifty-Most Important African-Americans in Research Science
2007 Harvard 100 Most Influential, Harvard Alumni Magazine, Cambridge, Massachusetts
2008 Discover Magazine’s “The 10 Most Influential People in Science”
Honorary Doctorates
1997 City University of New York
2000 Dominican College
2001 University of Richmond
2002 Bloomfield College
2003 Northeastern University
2004 College of Staten Island
2006 Pace University
2007 Williams College
2008 University of Pennsylvania
2010 Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
2011 Gettysburg College
2012 Mount Holyoke College
2017 Baruch College
2018 Yale University
His net worth is estimated to be $6 Million as of 2022.
Is Neil deGrasse Tyson involved in any rumors and controversies?
In 2009, Katelyn Allers, a professor at Bucknell University alleged that Tyson touched her inappropriately at a 2009 American Astronomical Society gathering.
Thereafter, an anonymous woman alleged that Tyson made inappropriate comments to her during a 2010 holiday party at the American Museum of Natural History.
Then in November and December of 2018, Thchiya Amet El Maat accused Neil of inappropriate behavior. She accused Tyson of drugging and raping her and her sister in 1984 when they were students at UT Austin.
Ashley Watson, Tyson’s assistant on Cosmos alleged that in 2018, Tyson made inappropriate advances. She resigned from the position days later. These allegations spurred the National Geographic Channel into action. They started investigating the charges made by all the accusers.
The National Geographic Channel announced on January 3, 2019, that they were putting further episodes of StarTalk on hiatus. This would allow” the investigation to occur unimpeded”. Then on March 15, 2019, both National Geographic and Fox announced that the investigations were over. The networks further affirmed that both StarTalk and Cosmos would resume and that Neil deGrasse Tyson would keep his job as director of the Hayden Planetarium.
Neil deGrasse Tyson -Height, Weight
Neil has black hair and black eyes. His height is 6 ft. 2 and his weight is 107 Kg.
Neil deGrasse Tyson -Social Media
Neil is active on social media such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram accounts. He has 5.2 M followers on Facebook, he has more than 14.5 million followers on Twitter, and he has over 1.5 million followers on Instagram accounts.
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