If you were a kid growing up in the 90s, there is an excellent chance you remember learning about physics, magnets, and outer space from one particularly lanky and energetic science nerd: Bill Nye the Science Guy. Kids growing up today may remember him for a much different reason.

Bill Nye has been revealed to be one of the contestants on the next season of Dancing With The Stars. The show's inclusion of the "Science Guy" comes as a bit of a surprise, given how he has largely stayed out of the limelight since his show finished airing in 1998. For Nye, however, there's a much bigger cause at stake.

"In order for us to carry out our mission to get the world - our world - excited about and supportive of space exploration, we need to engage people everywhere. The show is watched by millions. I'll be there as your CEO of The Planetary Society and a student of Carl Sagan. Buzz Aldrin appeared on this show three years ago," writes Nye on his blog.

That's right, Bill Nye is dancing for space travel. The gesture could come in very handy as well, since NASA's space program has received significant cuts in funding and the future of space exploration is still very much undecided. Make no mistake though, this is no publicity stunt. Nye aims to win it all.

"I'll be fighting decades of bad posture, which may prove my undoing. But of course, I'm a competitive guy; I am in this to win[...] As unusual as this may seem, I believe we can broaden awareness of the Society and thereby humankind's exploration of the Cosmos one ballroom dance at a time. Here's hoping you'll tune in," said the scientist.

Bill Nye's children's science program was an icon of the 1990s. For a span of five season over one hundred episodes, Nye taught the children who would tune in all about the findings and mysteries of the scientific world. The series collected an absolutely staggering 19 Emmy's during its run.

This will mark the 17th season of the smash hit series Dancing With The Stars. Nye will be paired with dancer Tyne Stecklein, and will have a notable cast of (semi-)celebrities around him. Jersey Shore party girl Snooki, former wide receiver Keyshawn Johnson, and comedian Bill Engvall are just a few of the contestants slotted for the next season.