A love of the stars led to a PhD in astrophysics
Skylar Grayson is earning a PhD in astrophysics from the School of Earth and Space Exploration this May.
Editor’s note: This story is part of a series of profiles of notable spring 2026 graduates.
This May, Skylar Grayson will earn her PhD in astrophysics from Arizona State University’s School of Earth and Space Exploration.
During her time at ASU she earned several honors, including the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship, the Karin Valentine Science Communication Award, the ASU College Leaders Award, the ASU President’s Professor Award for Innovation and the Outstanding Graduate Award.
Grayson’s journey into astrophysics began in middle school, sparked by the writings of scientists like Carl Sagan.
“I read books that got me excited about how much we still had to figure out about the universe,” Grayson said.
A summer research internship at a pharmaceutical company confirmed Grayson’s goal to work in science. Her lifelong interest in astronomy led her to SESE’s astrophysics PhD program.
One of Grayson’s biggest takeaways from doctoral research was the deeply collaborative nature of modern science.
“I work closely with researchers in Japan, the UK, Germany, Canada. … Modern science is the biggest group project ever,” Grayson said.
She developed this international outlook at ASU, which she chose because it values interdisciplinary research. This focus matched well with her liberal arts background.
Grayson credited advisor Evan Scannapieco with offering an invaluable perspective on the nature of progress.
“Doing research isn’t a linear climb,” Grayson explained. “There are moments where you can get stuck or go down the wrong path for weeks or even months at a time. But then you’ll have a moment where everything starts to come together.”
Scannapieco’s guidance helped Grayson weather the difficult stretches by keeping the long arc of scientific discovery in view.
“Skylar learned quickly that the path to discovery is built from wrong turns,” said Scannapieco, a professor in the School of Earth and Space Exploration. “Her persistent, thoughtful work through detours and course corrections has allowed her to achieve remarkable things.”
Grayson shared some advice for fellow students: “Hold on to the passion that brought you to your field of study in the first place.”
Throughout the PhD program, Grayson found renewal through science communication and community outreach, with activities that rekindled enthusiasm for research during demanding stretches.
The home base for much of that work was ASU’s Interdisciplinary Science and Technology Building 4, where hallways lined with meteorites, deep-space imagery and real-time Mars data made the cosmos feel tangible every day.
“Skylar is not only an excellent scientist, but she has a rare ability to make discovery feel alive for everyone,” Scannapieco said. “It has been a real privilege to work with Skylar, and I am excited to see where her creativity, determination and talent for sharing the excitement of science take her next.”
After graduation, Grayson will relocate to Ontario, Canada, to start a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Waterloo. She will continue her astrophysics research and also serve as the department's outreach coordinator, sharing her passion for space science.
Listen: 'Coding the cosmos'
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