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Picture of Kelsey Johnson holding astronomy books
Kelsey Johnson
Faculty Research Council
Job Title
Professor of Astronomy
Bio

Kelsey Johnson is a member of the Faculty Research Council at the Contemplative Sciences Center. She is a professor at the University of Virginia and founding director of the award-winning Dark Skies Bright Kids program. She has won numerous awards for her research, teaching, and promotion of science literacy. Her TED talk on the importance of dark skies has more than 2 million views, and her writing has appeared in nationwide publications, including the New York Times, Scientific American, and Washington Post. Her children’s book Constellations for Kids in consistently in the top 10 children’s astronomy books. Johnson is the past-president of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific, and president-elect of the American Astronomical Society. She earned her BA in physics from Carleton College, and her MS and PhD in astrophysics from the University of Colorado.