Gary Swangin
CEO & President
BEGST founder Gary Swangin is currently the astronomer and manager of the Panther Planetarium (Paterson NJ) which is geared toward high school students. Previously, he was director of the Newark Museum Planetarium in Newark, NJ for nearly 16 years.
Gary served as an international technical consultant for Minolta, Mitsubishi, and Spitz Space systems, specializing in the development of planetariums and astronomical observatories. As a computer consultant for several Fortune 500 corporations, he specialized in Hewlett Packard and IBM server technologies.
Gary has taught astronomy and astrophysics at Rutgers University, Fairleigh Dickenson University, County College of Morris, and William Paterson University, where he also served on the science advisory board. He currently teaches astronomy and conducts STEM seminars in astronomy and electronics, at Passaic County Community College.
Mr. Swangin produced numerous science programs for radio and audio-video presentations. His radio documentary-- "Are We Alone in the Universe?", a one-hour program sponsored by the American Chemical Society (ACS) and W.R. Grace & Co., was heard by nearly ten million people worldwide and won the Ohio State Award, given for excellence in educational, informational, and public affairs broadcasting. Subsequently, the documentary was nominated for a Peabody Award.
Mr. Swangin also produced for ACS, "DNA: Architect of Life"-- a radio documentary on recombinant DNA technology and genetic engineering.
Serving as a technical consultant, Mr. Swangin has traveled throughout the United States, Europe, and Japan. He is a former fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society of England and a former member of the American Astronomical Society.
In 2017, a planetarium in Kabul, Afghanistan was named in his honor for his work in astronomical education. Already hundreds of Afghan school children have visited the Gary Swangin Planetarium. Recently asteroid 107396 was renamed 107396 SWANGIN in honor of his achievements in astronomy education.
