theGrio's 100: Neil deGrasse Tyson, the nation’s expert on space

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Who is Neil deGrasse Tyson?

Neil deGrasse Tyson is an accomplished astrophysicist from the Bronx, New York.  He is currently the first occupant of the Frederick P. Rose Directorship of the Hayden Planetarium at the Rose Center for Earth and Space, part of the American Museum of Natural History in New York City.  Tyson is also a research associate for the museum’s Department of Astrophysics.

Tyson graduated high school from the Bronx High School of Science and attended Harvard University, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in Physics.  He continued his education, earning his doctorate in Astrophysics from Columbia.

With a strong interest in star and galaxy formation, Tyson uses telescopes around the world to conduct his work, as well as NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope, which orbits the Earth.

Why is he on theGrio’s 100?

Often called the “nation’s expert on space,” Tyson makes frequent television appearances on shows such as Jeopardy!, The Daily Show and The Colbert Report.  Tyson also hosts a radio show, Star Talk, which is says is for “all the people who never knew how much they’d love learning about space and science.”

From 2006 to 2011, Tyson hosted the PBS show Nova ScienceNOW.  The hour-long show uses humor and pop culture references to discuss several related current science topics.  A published author, Tyson continues to write both for the public and professionally.  Several of his books, including The Pluto Files: The Rise and Fall of America’s Favorite Planet, have become New York Times best-sellers.

What’s next for Tyson?

Tyson has several lecture dates at different universities across the U.S. lined up for 2013.  He will also to continue his work on Star Talk, which is now a podcast available on iTunes.

In addition to his current positions at the Hayden Planetarium and the Department of Astrophysics at the American Museum of Natural History, according to his personal profile, Tyson is currently working on a “21^st century reboot of Carl Sagan’s landmark television series COSMOS.”  The upcoming series is anticipated to contain 13 episodes and air in the spring of 2014 on the FOX network.

Checkout Neil deGrasse Tyson’s profile here.