Read today's Portuguese stories delivered to your email The Batalha Monastery will open its doors in the first quarter of 2025 to a programme dedicated to promoting medieval music workshops and the creation of a community choir The Batalha Medieval Music Days (DMMB) will take place over seven Saturdays, between 1 February and 15 March, and will be produced by CordaSonora and the Quimeras & Gárgulas Association musician and one of the artistic directors of the initiative the DMMB will have a “very community-oriented character” with the main action being the formation of the choir “It will be open to everyone so that anyone can learn to sing Iberian medieval music” the choir will perform at the Batalha Monastery This is one of several activities with free entry The only one with a paid entry fee is the guitar workshop because the participants will build a psaltery from scratch in the image of one of the instruments featured in the statues of one of the porticos of the Batalha Monastery the DMMB aims to “democratise knowledge” about medieval music so that this music does not belong only to a few because it is not: it is music that speaks about the ‘you’ and the ‘me’ After the Leiria Medieval Music Cycle in 2024 CordaSonora is expanding its action in Batalha with the aim of “developing a medieval music community” “We want knowledge of the authentic music of the Iberian Peninsula to belong to the people It is a music that is in our roots and that needs to be recovered more it needs to be in people’s voices and heads” We appreciate that not everyone can afford to pay for our services but if you are able to we ask you to support The Portugal News by making a contribution – no matter how small You can change how much you give or cancel your contributions at any time Send us your comments or opinion on this article Reaching over 400,000 people a week with news about Portugal The World Heritage Centre is at the forefront of the international community’s efforts to protect and preserve World Heritage partnerships for conservation Ensuring that World Heritage sites sustain their outstanding universal value is an increasingly challenging mission in today’s complex world where sites are vulnerable to the effects of uncontrolled urban development Our Partners Donate Take advantage of the search to browse through the World Heritage Centre information. The Monastery of the Dominicans of Batalha was built to commemorate the victory of the Portuguese over the Castilians at the battle of Aljubarrota in 1385. It was to be the Portuguese monarchy's main building project for the next two centuries. Here a highly original, national Gothic style evolved, profoundly influenced by Manueline art, as demonstrated by its masterpiece, the Royal Cloister. Édifié pour commémorer la victoire des Portugais sur les Castillans à la bataille d'Aljubarrota en 1385, le monastère des dominicains de Batalha fut pendant deux siècles le grand chantier de la monarchie portugaise où se développa un style gothique national original, profondément influencé par l'art manuélin, comme le montre le cloître royal, véritable chef-d'œuvre. شكّل دير الرهبان الدومينيكيين في بطليوس الذي شيّد احتفاء بذكرى انتصار البرتغاليين على القشطاليين في معركة الجبروت عام 1385 ورشة كبرى أقامتها المملكة البرتغالية على مدى قرنين وتطور فيها طراز قوطي وطني فريد شديد التأثر بالفن المانويلي، كما يظهر في الرواق الملكي الذي يُعتبر تحفة حقيقية. 这座多明各会的巴塔利亚修道院是为了纪念1385年葡萄牙王国在阿尔儒巴罗塔战役中战胜卡斯提尔王国而建立的。在后来的两个多世纪中，葡萄牙王室一直把修建这座修道院当作最重要的建设工程之一。巴塔利亚修道院展示出了高度原创和有葡萄牙特色的哥特式风格，整个建筑明显受到曼奴埃尔式风格的深刻影响，这一点从皇家修道院这一建筑杰作中可以很清楚地看出来。 Доминиканский монастырь Баталья был сооружен в память о победе португальцев над кастильцами в 1385 г. в сражении при Алжубаррота. Ему суждено было стать главным объектом строительства португальских королей в следующие два столетия. Здесь проявилась весьма специфичная национальная разновидность готики, возникшая под сильным влиянием стиля мануэлино, что демонстрирует такой шедевр как Королевский клостер. El monasterio dominico de Batalha fue erigido para conmemorar la victoria de los portugueses sobre los castellanos en la batalla de Aljubarrota (1385). Su construcción, que fue la principal empresa arquitectónica de los monarcas portugueses durante dos siglos, dio nacimiento a un estilo gótico nacional hondamente influido por el arte manuelino, como puede apreciarse en el claustro real, auténtica obra maestra de la arquitectura. Constructed in fulfilment of a vow by King João to commemorate the victory over the Castilians at Aljubarrota (15 August 1385), the Dominican Monastery of Batalha, in the centre of Portugal, is one of the masterpieces of Gothic art. The greater part of the monumental complex dates from the reign of João I (1385-1433), when the church (finished in 1416), the royal cloister, the chapter-house, and the funeral chapel of the founder were constructed. The main entrance of the church is through the porch on the west facade. On both sides of this portal are sculptures of the twelve apostles standing on consoles. In the centre is a high relief statue of Christ in Majesty surrounded by the Evangelists, framed by six covings decorated with sculptures of biblical kings and queens, prophets and angels holding musical instruments from the Middle Ages. This great profusion of sculptures is completed by the crowning of the Virgin Mary. Criterion (i): The Dominican Monastery of Batalha is one of the absolute masterpieces of Gothic art. Criterion (ii): The Monastery of Batalha was, for more than two centuries, an important workshop of the Portuguese monarchy. The most characteristic features of a national art were determined here, both during the Gothic and the Renaissance periods. Within the boundaries of the 0,98 ha property are located all the necessary elements to express the Outstanding Universal Value of the Monastery of Batalha. To reduce the traffic in the old main road (EN1) which crossed the site’s buffer zone, a new road (A14) was built outside the property and a curtain of trees was planted to reduce possible pollution impacts on the monument. Ecclesiastical authorities have contributed to the preservation and enhancement of this property, by using the church for religious ceremonies. Since 9 April 1921, the Chapter House has a permanent guard of honour and is lit by a lamp symbolizing the homeland flame in homage to the Unknown Soldier protected by the mutilated “Christ of the Trenches”. The Monastery of Batalha was classified as a national monument by a Decree published in the government Journal no. 14 of 17 January 1907. Furthermore, there is a responsible management policy that has focused on environmental solutions and on maintaining open dialogue and building partnerships with, among others, the municipality so as to overcome the negative effects of undue use of the monument’s surrounding area. Similarly, according to Decree no. 309 of 23 October 2009, buffer zones are considered special protection zones benefitting from adequate restrictions for the protection and enhancement of cultural properties. To preserve the authenticity and integrity of the whole monumental complex within a work plan involving the local community is the key management goal. It also takes into account UNESCO’s recommendations in the State of Conservation Report from 1990, namely conservation measures that have been taken to solve the problem of distortion of the lead work and broken panes in the stained-glass windows. All the interventions that have been implemented or are foreseen comply with current legislation, as well as with strict technical and scientific criteria. There is a special focus on the treatment and rehabilitation of the area surrounding the monument, as these works will be ensured by local organisations involving both the municipality and the local community. Management of this complex is ensured by the decentralized services of the Directorate General for Cultural Heritage (DGPC), the central administration department responsible for cultural heritage. Conservation, enhancement and safeguarding measures are ensured by DGPC that is responsible for drawing up an annual programme and implementing it so as to secure the future of the monument. Furthermore, an interpretation centre has been established. Today visitors have access to more areas and to new information that will ensure a better and more integrated knowledge of the World Heritage property. Meta Platforms CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, took the stand overnight at a high-stakes trial in Washington. The case is over US antitrust enforcers' claims that the company spent billions of dollars to acquire Instagram and WhatsApp to fend off Facebook competitors. The Federal Trade Commission is seeking to force Meta to restructure or sell Instagram and WhatsApp. Mark Zuckerberg, chief executive officer of Meta Platforms Inc., during the Meta Connect event in Menlo Park, California, US, on Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2024(Getty: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg) Published: 14h agoSun 4 May 2025 at 10:45pm Published: 14h agoSun 4 May 2025 at 10:30pm Published: 15h agoSun 4 May 2025 at 10:00pm Download the ABC listen app to text and call your favourite live radio This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page News professor of astronomy and astrophysics at UC Santa Cruz has been elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences one of the nation’s oldest and most prestigious honorary societies Batalha was among more than 200 new members of the academy announced this week including former first lady Michelle Obama and NPR science correspondent (and UCSC alumnus) Joe Palca Batalha joins 23 other UCSC faculty who are fellows of the academy the American Academy of Arts and Sciences honors exceptional scholars and innovators and engages them in sharing knowledge and addressing challenges facing the world Batalha is an eminent planetary astronomer who served in multiple science leadership roles for NASA’s highly successful Kepler Mission which discovered over 2,700 exoplanets and another 2,000 candidates awaiting confirmation in astrophysics at UC Santa Cruz in 1997 and received the campus’s Alumni Achievement Award in 2018 The Kepler Mission launched in 2009 to determine the frequency of Earth-size planets in the habitable zones of sun-like stars and she contributed to many different aspects of the science from studying the stars themselves to detecting and understanding the planets they harbor she was named to Time magazine’s list of the “100 most influential people in the world.” Batalha joined the astronomy faculty at UC Santa Cruz in fall 2018 Her research focuses on exploring the diversity of planets in our galaxy She is also bringing multiple disciplines of study together to explore the broader question of planetary habitability the Academy upholds the ideals of research and scholarship and the relentless pursuit of knowledge in all its forms,” said academy president David Oxtoby Academy members include those who discover and advance knowledge and those who apply knowledge to the problems of society Elected members join with other experts in cross-disciplinary efforts to produce reflective and pragmatic studies that inform public policy and advance the public good The new class will be inducted at a ceremony in October 2019 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. A complete listing of the 238th class of new members is available at www.amacad.org/newly-elected-members Get San José Spotlight headlines delivered to your inbox When he’s not instructing students at Evergreen Valley College physics and astronomy professor Celso Batalha is working with a much younger set — teaching children as young as elementary school-aged that no matter what their background Batalha came to the Evergreen campus in 2003 just as the San Jose community college opened its observatory where he worked as a professional astronomer He moved to this country to better accommodate his wife One was getting his students involved with research Research projects outside of course curricula are typically unheard of at the community college level but the professor managed to recruit a few students that the students who did take an interest were not the type that truly needed him or the college to succeed Batalha was interested in tapping into a population not often seen in science he wanted to bring a STEM-based education to the African-American and Latino populations who represent only a respective 6 and 7 percent of the total population earning PhDs in physics and astronomy in this country Batalha said lower-income students need to be introduced to the sciences at a younger age in order to be comfortable with the concepts and physics has a math language they can’t control,” Batalha said and the kids are not aware of the opportunities out there.” with the help of community activist Daniel Reyes Batalha was able to recruit eight low-income students from San Jose schools and secure enough funding to provide each of the students with a $500 scholarship Batalha is up to 18 students who are divided over three courses The weekly classes run online to help accommodate the different schedules and locations of its participants the students and their families also got together once a month with the instructors for pizza and to discuss projects Batalha says he would love to take the students on field trips Batalha has help teaching the classes in the program and former Evergreen student and UC Santa Cruz graduate Andres Duarte teaches a course on astrophotography a discipline devoted to photographic images of celestial bodies Duarte makes use of a NASA program that allows the user to take pictures of different celestial bodies and manipulate the images to highlight the object’s features Batalha is teaching the elementary school students about the different phases of the moon The $500 scholarship is awarded at the end of the year in exchange for 80 percent attendance The money is devoted to the students’ education “Some of (the students) haven’t seen that much money yet,” Batalha said And they get motivated and (so do) their parents The engagement of the parents is remarkable.” The ultimate goal is to create a pipeline beginning in elementary school and ending at the community college The professor says they need to raise $1 million over a five-year period to provide up to $10,000 scholarships to low-income The goal is to graduate and transfer 34 students over this period the program needs to raise $100,000 this year for next year’s scholarships and to hire a fundraiser and a data analyst Batalha says he hopes to see the program grow to incorporate 70 children in the K-12 program Herbert Hoover Middle School student Emmanuel Lopez who has been with the program since it began in 2018 says he has really enjoyed learning a more specialized science The 13-year-old wants to study engineering in college and says he is fortunate to have the opportunity to study something outside the realm of his regular education I could also study more about advanced science and astronomy,” Lopez said “I can learn about different stuff that I have not learned before.” describes Batalha as a dynamic teacher who likes to collaborate with other faculty and is always putting students first “He is constantly looking for opportunities for students to be supported,” Herrera said “His support for the students has been one of the most dedicated I’ve seen in our team at the college.” Contact Carina Woudenberg at [email protected] or follow @carinaew on Twitter This story has been updated to include information on where to donate to the program and how to sign up Join our mailing list to receive the latest news and updates from our team Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value" Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_2" ).setAttribute( "value" You must be logged in to post a comment San José Spotlight is an award-winning nonprofit newsroom dedicated to fearless journalism that disrupts the status quo holds power to account and paves the way for change We’re changing the face of local journalism by building a community-supported newsroom that ignites civic engagement educates residents and strengthens our democracy 408.206.5327[email protected] Submit a News TipSubscribe to our newsletters San José Spotlight is a project of the San José News Bureau a 501(c)(3) charitable organization | Tax ID: 82-5355128 ' + scriptOptions._localizedStrings.webview_notification_text + ' " + scriptOptions._localizedStrings.redirect_overlay_title + " " + scriptOptions._localizedStrings.redirect_overlay_text + " has been selected as the recipient of the 2018 UC Santa Cruz Alumni Achievement Award the highest honor bestowed on a graduate of the campus The award will be presented at the Founders Celebration on Saturday Batalha will also be joining the faculty of UCSC’s Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics this fall “I worked and lived here as a student and raised my children in UCSC’s Family Student Housing I’m very excited to be coming back in this new role with two decades of experience under my belt ready to give back to the academic community,” Batalha said professor and chair of astronomy and astrophysics said Batalha is among the top planetary astronomers of her generation “There is no question that Natalie is an outstanding scientist the kind of leader who comes along once in a generation and her charisma here at UC Santa Cruz,” he said “She will be a game changer for our campus.” Batalha served as the science lead for NASA’s highly successful Kepler Mission which discovered more than 2,500 exoplanets Batalha earned a bachelor’s degree in physics at UC Berkeley and received her doctoral degree from UC Santa Cruz in 1997 After a post-doctoral fellowship in Brazil taking a position at San Jose State University as a professor of astronomy and astrophysics and joining the exoplanet discovery team at NASA Ames Research Center led by space scientist William Borucki then an emerging technology for finding exoplanets He led the planning for and became principal investigator of the Kepler Mission launched in 2009 to determine the frequency of Earth-size planets in the habitable zones of sun-like stars Batalha was involved with the Kepler Mission from the proposal stage and contributed to many different aspects of the science As her leadership role in the mission grew After ten years at San Jose State University she moved to the Astrophysics Branch of the Space Sciences Division of NASA Ames Research Center to fully dedicate her time to the Kepler Mission Batalha led Kepler’s first efforts to generate high-reliability catalogs of planet detections She also led the analysis that yielded the discovery in 2011 of Kepler-10b the mission’s first confirmation of a rocky planet outside our solar system she was awarded a NASA Public Service Medal for her vision in communicating Kepler science to the public and for outstanding leadership in coordinating the Kepler Science Team She has also received the Lecar Prize from the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics and the Smithsonian Ingenuity Award for the Physical Sciences Batalha joined the leadership team of a new NASA initiative dedicated to the search for evidence of life beyond the solar system NASA’s Nexus for Exoplanet System Science (NExSS) brings teams from multiple disciplines together to understand the diversity of worlds Kepler has demonstrated that Earth-size planets abound in the galaxy NExSS contributes to NASA’s efforts to understand which are most likely to harbor life Batalha will explore the diversity of planets in the galaxy using space-based telescopes like the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) and the upcoming James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) as well as UC’s ground-based telescopes like those at the W Keck Observatory and the future Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) She will also bring multiple disciplines of study together to explore the broader question of planetary habitability Batalha noted that UC Santa Cruz has a world-class astronomy department that includes renowned theoreticians modeling the formation and biological sciences critical for understanding the limits of planetary habitability and the propensity for life in the galaxy,” she said adding that she hopes to see all of these perspectives gathered around the same table “Kepler catalyzed the search for evidence of life beyond the solar system UCSC can play a significant role in making that vision a reality,” Batalha said she bounded down the stairs and announced to her startled mother that she’d decided to become a philosopher that declaration would land Batalha on Time magazine’s list of the 100 most influential people on Earth But the ranking would not be for her philosophical musings is one of the world’s foremost planet hunters a Marco Polo of the universe whose team has discovered approximately 4,000 new planets some of which may turn out to be capable of supporting life But the need to answer the great philosophical questions about who we are was—and still is—at the heart of what Batalha does and amid talk of transit photometry and spectroscopic methods she’ll speak about how human survivability depends on empathy and how empathy is deepened by knowledge She’ll describe how the cells in our bodies were manufactured in the core of stars which and talk about the poignancy of the moment she walked out of the redwoods at UC Santa Cruz after a day of studying lifeless planets and was overwhelmed with the idea of the fragility of our existence Batalha is at the forefront of a rapidly growing field of knowledge that a UC Santa Cruz astronomer described as “one wild ride.” The building that houses Batalha’s office at NASA’s Ames Research Center is flanked by a cracked asphalt road called Pioneer Avenue But that’s about the only nod to the game-changing work that is going on inside The concrete structure is a warren of small offices and long fluorescent-lit hallways with Batalha’s workspace no different than any other despite the fact she is lead scientist for one of NASA’s most significant projects: to find Earth-sized planets that may lead us to an answer of whether we are alone in the universe Batalha came to science in a roundabout way Her teenage pronouncement that she would become a philosopher arrived after she became disillusioned with the Catholic religion she’d studied and read the 1970 novella The book seeded the idea in her that the way to enlightenment was through the pursuit of knowledge “When I saw the universe could be represented through numbers and equations If we can uncover the secrets of the universe through numbers then what limits are there to what we can learn?” she hadn’t planned to be become a scientist That event happened at a summer internship at the Wyoming Infrared Observatory her faculty advisor handed her a bunch of data concerning a star called HL-Tau and a surrounding disc from which “I was given a puzzle to solve,” Batalha says “Putting the pieces together was challenging but fun there was immense gratification when it was solved and you could see the big picture I got to see something that no other human had ever seen before.” By the time Batalha took her last final exam at UC Berkeley and decided to go to graduate school she was pregnant with her and her husband’s first child What would follow was years of child-rearing—she has four children—mixed with the demands of research and her husband’s own astrophysics career Raising a family while studying the stars was not easy Even though her professors at UC Santa Cruz were accommodating and summers spent with her children instead of doing research UC Santa Cruz Professor of Astronomy Steve Vogt who built a planet-hunting spectrometer that was mounted on the 10-meter Keck-I telescope in Hawaii Given only a small window of time to use the powerful instrument to Doppler-image stars Batalha figured out which stars were amenable to being imaged in a short amount of time and how it could be done she was sitting in the office of Gibor Basri a professor of astrophysics at UC Berkeley and a member of her doctoral thesis committee when she noticed a report on his desk from a NASA Ames scientist about a new way to detect Earth-sized planets circling other stars it measured the brightness of a star and then looked for dimmings that would indicate the presence of an Earth-sized planet as it orbited the star who had been studying magnetic activity and sunspots on young stars wondered how the method could distinguish between sunspots and planets and promptly wrote the scientist a letter she was working with the NASA Ames team on that question a plan to launch a space telescope called Kepler She also won a teaching position at San Jose State University about the same time Batalha gets up and begins to sketch a wave of disordered dots on her office whiteboard describing the moment she and other Kepler scientists realized they’d accomplished what they set out to do “The brightness measurements looked like beads on a string,” she says drawing a line of more distinct dots through the chaotic scattering to mark the spot where a star’s light dimmed Even more “beautiful” was the team’s discovery in 2015 of an Earth-sized planet orbiting a star in what is known as the “Goldilocks Zone,” the sweet spot where a planet is just the right distance from its star so that liquid water might pool on the surface Two to three dozen similar planets have now been discovered Batalha says she hopes there is but it may be up to her eldest daughter an astrophysicist who is also studying exoplanets Batalha lays out upcoming NASA undertakings: a project to help characterize the atmosphere of the most promising planets and another space-based telescope that can look at the surface structure of these planets to determine if they might be habitable The purpose of the congressional hearing was to receive expert testimony on the initial science and scientific findings of the JWST as well as plans for future scientific investigations UC Santa Cruz astronomers are involved in projects within each of the four main science themes JWST is studying (first stars and galaxies Batalha is leading a large international team who are studying planets around other stars (exoplanets) one of the most exciting areas in which JWST is expected to open new territory Batalha described to the subcommittee how the JWST is ushering in a new era of exoplanet science She noted that this progress is largely due to the characterization of exoplanet atmospheres as enabled by JWST technology In a groundbreaking discovery earlier this year, Batalha and her team found unambiguous evidence of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere of an exoplanet The discovery demonstrated the power of the JWST to deliver unprecedented observations of exoplanet atmospheres In research that was released today, Batalha and her team used the JWST to observe a Saturn-mass planet called WASP-39b which orbits very close to a sun-like star about 700 light-years from Earth They were able to identify multiple chemical species in the planet’s atmosphere a molecule produced from chemical reactions triggered by high-energy light from the planet’s host star Batalha explained that this type of chemistry is fundamental for life on Earth to thrive Spectrometers aboard the JWST allow scientists to measure the amount of light blocked at each wavelength building up a “spectrum” that reveals the chemical makeup of a planet’s atmosphere some of the starlight passes through the planet’s atmosphere on its way to Earth’s telescopes The atoms and molecules in the atmosphere absorb the starlight at distinct wavelengths effectively blocking slightly different fractions of light from reaching a telescope This method of studying planetary atmospheres is called transmission spectroscopy and it has been employed by the Hubble Space Telescope and large ground-based telescopes on a small number of planets The JWST is extending the capability and increasing the sensitivity of this method by collecting more light in a stable environment across a broader range of (infrared) wavelengths When asked about what she’s most excited to learn from the JWST Batalha noted that the most common type of planet scientists know about is a type of planet that is not found in our solar system: an “intermediate” between rocky Scientists do not yet understand their nature or whether such planets can host life but the JWST will be able to characterize and shed more light on this class of planets Batalha concluded that transmission spectra which “contain so many clues about the nature of the universe,” are “extremely compelling and I’m really looking forward to seeing more spectra so we can understand the diversity of all of the worlds that are out there.” The James Webb Space Telescope is an international program led by NASA with its partners the European Space Agency and the Canadian Space Agency and is operated by the Space Telescope Science Institute Sophia Chen is a freelance science journalist in Columbus This week, Nature is highlighting a package of five papers analysing the James Webb Space Telescope’s (JWST’s) observations of WASP-39b that Natalie Batalha and her daughter Natasha contributed to as part of the JWST Early Release Science programme Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-023-00580-6 This interview has been edited for length and clarity How we call out the infuriating mistakes we spot in school science textbooks My fight to unlock cannabis and psychedelic drugs for use in medical research Searching for dark photons in the Sun’s atmosphere AI scientist ‘team’ joins the search for extraterrestrial life ‘Tatooine’-like planet orbits two stars ― but at a weird angle Vertical structure of an exoplanet’s atmospheric jet stream Hydrogen escaping from a pair of exoplanets smaller than Neptune UNIL is a leading international teaching and research institution with over 5,000 employees and 17,000 students split between its Dorigny campus Department of Energy and Environmental Materials and advance cancer research in a leading translational institute Olivia Newton-John Cancer Research Institute We are seeking a tenure-track associate professor to promote interdisciplinary research in nanoprobe life sciences or related interdisciplinary field • Studying the development and metabolism of lymph nodes through melanoma metastasis Leibniz-Institut für Analytische Wissenschaften – ISAS – e.V Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science Natalie Batalha, a NASA scientist who earned her Ph.D. in astrophysics at UC Santa Cruz, has been named to Time magazine’s annual list of the “100 most influential people in the world.” Batalha leads the science investigation effort for NASA’s Kepler Mission searching for Earth-size planets beyond our solar system Kepler aims to find out how common planets are in the “habitable zones” of other stars where temperatures could allow liquid water to pool on the surface of the planet without freezing or evaporating Working at NASA’s Ames Research Center in Mountain View Batalha has been a leading figure of the mission since she joined the team in 1999 and very happy to see her get recognition for all the great work she’s done at NASA as part of the Kepler mission professor emeritus of astronomy and astrophysics who was Batalha’s adviser when she was a graduate student at UC Santa Cruz Batalha is one of three planet hunters featured on Time’s list The others are Guillem Anglada-Escudé of Queen Mary University of London who has been a frequent collaborator with Vogt on recent planet discoveries; and Michaël Gillon of the University of Liège in Belgium “You’d be hard-pressed to find two nicer and more capable people in the field.” Batalha is the first woman at NASA to receive the Time 100 designation. UCSC alumna Kathryn Sullivan was named to the list in 2014 “I’m honored to be part of the Time 100 and feel strongly that recognition belongs to the entire team of scientists and engineers who opened our eyes to the large number of potentially habitable worlds that populate the galaxy,” Batalha said in a NASA statement “Searching for potentially habitable worlds makes one appreciate just how precious living worlds are I hope that the discoveries from the Kepler spacecraft inspire people to learn more about other planets make us love this one all the more.” Batalha earned her bachelor’s degree in physics at UC Berkeley She was a professor of physics and astronomy at San Jose State University for ten years before joining NASA Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter, The Cal Connection. Natalie Batalha’s worst enemy is the clock. Installed around the corner from her office at NASA Ames Research Center, a looming LED display is counting the days, hours, minutes and seconds until the launch of the Kepler Mission: NASA’s first attempt to find habitable Earth-like planets in our galaxy. “It’s terrible,” says Batalha ’89, who has been working on the mission for eight years. “It recently rolled over from 300 to 299, and I could just feel my blood pressure rising.” Thinking that she might work as a mediator between business and science, Batalha enrolled in a physics class and was “terrible” at it, she says. But as her professor explained the mathematics behind the formation of rainbows in oil puddles, she was “blown away,” she recalls. “It was like a religious experience for me—that the universe is so ordered. That’s profound, right?” “Natalie was one of the few people to realize that the original target region chosen for the Kepler Mission was a mistake,” says David Latham, a mission co-investigator and senior astronomer at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory. In 2008, California ran a profile of Natali Batalha ’89, Kepler mission scientist at NASA’s Ames Research Center. So when NASA announced Thursday that it had discovered a slew of new worlds among the stars, including Kepler-62f, the most Earth-like planet yet, we called her up to fill us in on this latest development. [Image […] NASA astronaut Woody Hoburg Ph.D. ’13 on life in space and why returning humans to the Moon matters. Berkeley will launch two satellites to study Mars in a new era of space exploration. © 2025 Cal Alumni Association. All Rights Reserved. CAA is a self-funded nonprofit organization that relies on donations to provide programs and services that support students, alumni, and the university. Check out where the movie was filmed and what to expect Sarah Rand•Mar 20 Damsel is a Netflix film that seemingly became an instant hit explores a feminist twist on the damsel in distress narrative The main character Elodie (Millie Bobby Brown) marries a charming prince to save her kingdom in true fairytale fashion But Elodie’s story takes a sharp turn as her prince (played by Nick Robinson) and his family sacrifice her to a dragon Elodie’s fantastical world is complete with striking castles, a grand kingdom, extensive caves and magic. While much of the fantasy elements were created with special effects, many features are from real life places. To create the extravagant settings many sets were built to add a feeling of realism For travelers that want to immerse themselves in the world of Damsel Check out all there is to know about the European film locations that were a part of the 2024 film Batalha is a town in Portugal that is well known for its impressive religious buildings and natural attractions It has such significant sites that some are even categorized as UNESCO World Heritage Sites This is an underrated destination with gothic architecture The town is among the hills of the Leiria District and made a great filming location for the film Damsel The western Portugal town is home to sites that helped authenticate the kingdom of the film. For example, the Castle of Batalha (Capillas Imperfectas) was utilized. This film location helped create a more dynamic depiction of the kingdom’s castle. Batalha was mostly used as an exterior film location. Other spots used for the film include the famous Batalha Monastery Some fans may notice exterior shots of this location in the film Caves are a significant element in the plot line of Damsel served as inspiration for the extensive journey Elodie embarks on in the film Things to Do: There are plenty of culturally immersive experiences for travelers to enjoy in Batalha The most popular things to do include viewing the Batalha Monastery Sensory Ecopark of Pia do Urso and Sé de Leiria.  Where to Eat: Steakhouse Chefe Arthur, Enigma and Restaurante Burro Velho are some of the top places to eat around Batalha.  Where to Stay: Casa de Outeiro and Hotel Lis Batalha are two of the top accommodations available to travelers in Batalha.  Serra da Estrela is a national park in Portugal. It is also the largest protected area of the country, so its natural landscape is unique. The park’s mountain range is a great feature that attracts tourists from all over the world. In fact, Serra da Estrela is the highest mountain range on the mainland of Portugal mountain climbing opportunities and even a unique snow sports tourism industry at this location It is one of the only places in the area that gets enough snow for activities like skiing The sprawling lands made for a perfect backdrop to depict Elodie’s home kingdom.  The snowy peaks of Serra da Estrela set the scene for the main character The bitter weather conditions draw a comparison between Elodie’s upbringing and hopeful transition to a different life This location is shown mostly as the audience is introduced to Elodie Another film location of the Serra da Estrela mountain range is the Nossa Senhora da Boa This is the mountain sanctuary that helped create the dragon’s lair entrance in the movie Serra da Estrela was not heavily included in the majority of filming But the destination plays an integral part in creating the fantasy world.  Things to Do: Travelers can visit Covão Dos Conchos, Torre, Covão D’Ametade and Lagoa Comprida while in the Serra da Estrela area.  Where to Eat: Lenda Viriato, Restaurante As Thermas Lda and Restaurante O Cortiço are some of the top local options to eat at Where to Stay: The Luna Hotel Serra da Estrela, Pousada Serra da Estrela and Hotel Vila Galé Serra da Estrela are some of the highest rated accommodations in the area.  The destination is certainly worth exploring since it has a unique history The town is even considered to be a living museum to those that are fortunate to explore it Tomar has links to the Knights Templar and the 15th century voyages of discovery Much of the rich history of Portugal contributes to its intricate architectural style Travelers will notice this is true of the numerous convents and castles.  This small town plays a big role in the filming of Damsel The colorful destination is full of rivers It sets the scene as Elodie is ushered into her new life with a warm welcome The wealthy kingdom of Aurea has fertile land viewers understand that the prosperity of the kingdom has a hefty cost Travelers can explore this town on day tours Fans of the film can rest assured that visiting this beautiful destination will be worth the trip And their visit will not require them to be a human sacrifice Things to Do: Travelers should be sure to visit the many impressive landmarks of Tomar the Convent of Christ and Museu de Fosforos Where to Eat: Some of the top restaurants in Tomar are Flor de Sal Restaurante Sabores Ao Rubro and Taverna Antiqua.  Where to Stay: The Thomar Boutique Hotel, Hotel dos Templários and Estalagem Santa Iria Hotel & Spa are some of the highest rated accommodations near Tomar.  Sortelha is a stunning ancient town in Portugal It is an urban area with well preserved architectural sites so its buildings remind travelers of medieval times This makes Sortelha a great destination for nature lovers interested in biking It is also a very serene destination since it is not an incredibly crowded tourist destination This mountain town is very close to the area that helped paint a grand (and realistic) picture for the journey Elodie takes Sortelha’s vast mountains were included in Damsel They were mostly featured during the scene where Elodie is led to the dragon’s lair Things to Do: Many travelers enjoy hiking local mountains so they can overlook Sortelha. But the Sortelha Historic Center, Sabugal Castle and Castelo de Belmonte are a few of the places that tourists should explore while in Sortelha.  Where to Eat: Restaurante da Pousada Covento de Belmonte, Restaurante O Brasao and Restaurante Robalo are some of the top rated culinary experiences in the Sortalha area.  Where to Stay: Travelers that visit Sortelha are in for a treat, since the mountain views are stunning. O Cantinho Da Ana and Casas da Lagariça are both cozy and centrally located accommodations for travelers.  England has a deep connection and history with nobility Many of the remnants of regality are still standing today so England has plenty of historic sites This preserved history and culture made for the perfect backdrop for the movies’ regal characters the castle that belongs to Elodie’s family is a real place The filming location that brought Elodie’s world to life is the Raby Castle in County Durham This castle was originally a viking settlement and was built in the 14th century It is still to this day one of England’s finest (intact) medieval castles Travelers can visit it since the estate welcomes tourism On the 200 acre property travelers can shop The Plotter’s Forest is an adventure playground that is popular with families Travelers that prefer a more laid back approach to their castle exploration can book a guided tour These tours highlight the rich history of the castle Admission to sites like Raby Castle and The Plotter’s Forest require tickets travelers should book ahead of time for a smooth visit.  Things to Do: At Deer Park travelers can observe the thriving wildlife. The castle’s grounds are home to Red and Fallow Deer that give birth to fawns between May and July. Travelers can also view art and furniture from the 17th to 20th century while exploring the castle the inner city of Durham and Egglestone Abbey Where to Eat: The Yurt Cafe is an on-property option that offers small bites and afternoon tea. The Country Tea Shop & Restaurant and The Black Horse are the most popular spots nearby Raby Castle.  Where to Stay: Headlam Hall Hotel & Rural Retreat, Redworth Hall Hotel and the Premier Inn Bishop Auckland Hotel are the best accommodations. These accommodations are all very close to Raby Castle and have great reviews.  The Troubadour Meridian Water Studios was a very important filming location for the movie The north London studio served as the home for many built sets The production space has three studios that span around 65,000 square feet It came in handy for the Damsel film because of its flexible spaces where many sets could be constructed Fake rocks were utilized in this space to create more realistic cave scenes Visual effects were also used to bring the dragon’s dwelling to life Post-gothic castle interiors were built in this space so that the filming and production team had a more controlled environment for some shots While this studio is located in a bustling metropolis But travelers can explore Troubadour Theatres This venue offers a modern space to watch the latest in entertainment and is located in the heart of Wembley Park The space has become somewhat of a cultural hub It offers a social bar space and Studio Five (an on-site restaurant) There are also plenty of things to do nearby since The Troubadour spaces are centrally located Things to Do: There is plenty for travelers to do around London Most travelers that visit the area near Troubadour studios watch a show at the Troubadour Theater Broadway shows and musical performances are mostly shown at the theater The nearby Wembley Park is also popular for its shops Where to Eat: Studio Five Restaurant, Boxpark Wembley and the London Designer Outlet offer a variety of culinary experiences for travelers.  Where to Stay: The Hilton London Wembley Hotel, Troubadour Hotel and Wembley International Hotel are the most central places to stay to have access to the theater and park.  a free daily newsletter that features the best of travel and guides to the cities you love from a new point of view — yours you agree to our terms of service and privacy policy Queen Elizabeth Once Stepped In To Prevent Snoop Dogg From Being Banned From The UK United Airlines Flight Attendant's Armrest Announcement Sparks Social Media Frenzy ‘Basketball Wives’ Star Mehgan James Speaks Out About Popular Bahamas Island With Flesh-Eating Bacteria After Friend Loses Leg Chaos Erupts After Ethiopian Airlines Passenger Forced To Give Up Seat For Minister is taking a step towards opening its doors to international travelers discovering these dishes is recognizing that the rice you're eating in Louisiana has a cousin in Lagos Maryland is closing after this year's operating season A California woman has filed a federal lawsuit against American Airlines claiming she was sexually assaulted during an overnight flight The newly rebranded Oita Hello Kitty Airport officially opened in April as part of the festivities surrounding the World Expo in Osaka The NASA Astrobiology Program has awarded a five-year $5 million grant to an interdisciplinary consortium led by the University of California to trace the volatile elements that form the atmospheres of planets establishing a scientific foundation for detecting the signatures of life on other worlds Natalie Batalha, professor of astronomy and astrophysics at UC Santa Cruz, will lead the consortium, one of eight new research teams selected by NASA to inaugurate its Interdisciplinary Consortia for Astrobiology Research (ICAR) program the consortium includes researchers at the University of Hawaii at Manoa “We want to understand the physical processes that impact planetary atmospheres,” Batalha said “We must understand those physical processes and their effects in the absence of life so that we will be able to recognize the signs of life when we see them.” Batalha served as the project scientist for NASA’s highly successful Kepler Mission, which discovered more than 2,500 exoplanets. A recent analysis of Kepler data suggests there are at least 300 million potentially habitable worlds in our galaxy that a planet in the “habitable zone” of its star (where liquid water could pool on the planet’s surface) is not guaranteed to be a truly habitable environment “One of the takeaways from the Kepler Mission is that the diversity of exoplanets in the galaxy far exceeds the diversity of our own solar system,” she said “If we want to understand the diversity of rocky we have to study the physical processes that sculpt the atmospheres of all planets—even those not amenable to life as we know it.” that means “following the volatiles,” tracing the path of the volatile elements like carbon and oxygen that make up a planet’s atmosphere That path goes from star-forming clouds into protoplanetary disks where volatile elements can move between the surface The launch of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) in 2021 will usher in a new era of exoplanet exploration and the characterization of exoplanet atmospheres The consortium will develop the tools needed to interpret observations of exoplanet atmospheres made by JWST and the latest generation of ground-based telescopes The researchers will address four fundamental science questions: What is the inventory of volatiles in planetary building blocks What are a planet’s external sources and sinks of volatiles (in other words where do they come from and where do they go) How are volatiles distributed between a planet’s interior And what can atmospheric observations tell us about the volatile inventories and chemistries of exoplanets Researchers at the University of Hawaii led by Eric Gaidos will investigate the formation of planets and their volatile content using astronomical observations of protoplanetary disks and young planets laboratory experiments that simulate conditions in the interiors of planetesimals and growing planets and analysis of meteorites and samples returned from asteroids Meredith MacGregor at the University of Colorado will lead analysis of circumstellar disk observations using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) combined with other ground-based observatories She will also coordinate multi-wavelength observing campaigns to explore the properties of and mechanisms behind stellar flaring in order to better understand how these events can damage planetary atmospheres over time Ian Crossfield at the University of Kansas will lead isotopic abundance analyses of exoplanets He will also consult and assist with the planning and analysis of Hubble Space Telescope and JWST spectroscopy of nearby exoplanets Thomas Greene is leading the effort at NASA Ames Research Center to provide guaranteed-time JWST observations of exoplanet atmospheres and model their chemical abundances “Our team has a broad range of expertise and unparalleled access to the telescopes and facilities needed to carry out this research and meet the challenge of not just finding life on other worlds but having confidence that we can identify signatures of life when we see them,” Batalha said the team includes faculty in two departments Astronomy & Astrophysics and Earth & Planetary Sciences (EPS) professor of astronomy and astrophysics and director of the Other Worlds Laboratory will conduct theoretical and modeling work on exoplanet structure and atmospheres; Ruth Murray-Clay the Gunderson Professor of Theoretical Astrophysics will conduct a wide array of theoretical work including the physics of disk structure and evolution and the processes of atmospheric mass loss will model planetesimal volatile acquisition and retention; Myriam Telus will study meteorite outgassing and cosmochemistry; and Xi Zhang will model exoplanet atmospheres and help interpret exoplanet spectra in the context of cloud physics associate professor of astronomy and astrophysics assistant professor of astronomy and astrophysics Batalha, who leads UCSC’s interdisciplinary Astrobiology Initiative said the NASA ICAR award is a testament to the strength of UCSC’s faculty in this area of research “I came to UC Santa Cruz knowing that the pieces were in place already for a strong astrobiology program This funding allows us build on that foundation and means that astrobiology at UCSC can flourish,” she said The UCSC Office of Research provided seed funding for the Astrobiology Initiative Emma StoneThere was a time when Pluto—which NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft at last explored in 2015 a mission I led—was considered the last planet Perhaps later in this century or in the next we will even develop the technology to visit them The founder of Azeite Batalha is working to promote olive oil production in Rio Grande do Sul and consumption across Brazil The Campanha Gaúcha region in Brazil is known for pro­duc­ing high-qual­ity wine and extra vir­gin olive oil with Azeite Batalha being one of the top olive oil pro­duc­ers in the area The com­pa­ny’s ded­i­ca­tion to qual­ity has earned them inter­na­tional recog­ni­tion and numer­ous awards lead­ing to increased inter­est in olive oil con­sump­tion in Brazil and the imple­men­ta­tion of edu­ca­tional ini­tia­tives to pro­mote the prod­uct Batalha is tak­ing proac­tive steps to address cli­mate change con­cerns by focus­ing on sus­tain­abil­ity and adapt­ing to poten­tial chal­lenges in the future One of the most sig­nif­i­cant Brazilian regions for high-qual­ity wine pro­duc­tion is also home to some of the best extra vir­gin olive oil in the world Campanha Gaúcha is located in Rio Grande do Sul Brazil’s south­ern­most state and its largest olive oil pro­ducer by a sig­nif­i­cant mar­gin Azeite Batalha is among Brazil’s top pro­duc­ers grow­ing olive trees on more than 500 hectares on the 31st par­al­lel “[It’s] a con­fir­ma­tion that we are on the right track which is why we sub­mit our extra vir­gin olive oils to the experts,” owner Luiz Eduardo Batalha told Olive Oil Times “We feel very proud that our olive oils are rec­og­nized as among the best in the world And that is even more rel­e­vant in Brazil which does not have a long tra­di­tion of olive grow­ing cul­ture,” he added we have col­lected more than 40 inter­na­tional awards.” Batalha noted that these awards have served as an inde­pen­dent con­fir­ma­tion of their high-qual­ity work and also improved the company’s pro­file among its cus­tomers Batalha had a long track record as a busi­ness­man with var­i­ous tourism man­u­fac­tur­ing and agri­cul­ture ven­tures the Batalha fam­ily bought its first farm in the state of São Paulo to start a cof­fee plan­ta­tion They later started to breed Mangalarga horses and exported them to Europe and the United States Batalha decided to try his hand at tourism he founded a con­struc­tion and allot­ment busi­ness and then launched a suc­cess­ful cat­tle ranch­ing enter­prise in Minas Gerais and Mato Grosso “We have been in the agri­cul­ture busi­ness for five decades but only began to grow olive trees in Pinheiro Machado in 2010,” Batalha said Pinheiro is one of the old­est set­tle­ments on the south­ern edge of Campanha Gaúcha It is known for its hilly land­scape and tem­per­ate oceanic cli­mate with aver­age tem­per­a­tures between 7 ºC and 28 ºC “This area is known to have one of the best Brazilian ter­roirs and is renowned for its vines,” Batalha said we found a per­fect cli­mate and soil to grow olive trees.” Batalha invested in mod­ern machin­ery in his quest for qual­ity and founded state-of-the-art olive oil mills “We imported the equip­ment from Pieralisi which is con­sid­ered among the best in the world,” he said Batalha added that he founded two sep­a­rate farms to reduce the time between har­vest and trans­for­ma­tion we have been able to pro­mote olive tree cul­ti­va­tion in the region while also guar­an­tee­ing other local farm­ers could count on a high-qual­ity mill to trans­form their olives,” he said “We are very focused on the devel­op­ing oppor­tu­ni­ties for the region,” Batalha added ​“We can count on a great rela­tion­ship with the other farm­ers and some ongo­ing insti­tu­tional part­ner­ships with the [state-owned] Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa) and some uni­ver­si­ties whose researchers con­duct tests and analy­ses in our olive groves.” we were respon­si­ble for pro­cess­ing approx­i­mately half of the olive oil pro­duced in Brazil,” he con­tin­ued Brazil pro­duced an esti­mated 140 tons of olive oil with 90 tons pro­duced in Rio Grande do Sul Batalha’s farm com­prises approx­i­mately 140,000 olive trees “We con­stantly visit the groves and keep an eye on the trees’ needs in terms of soil qual­ity, spray­ing, prun­ing spac­ing and all other farm­ing aspects that might affect the trees,” Batalha said Most of the olive trees are rel­a­tively young yields are expected to increase in the future Batalha added that pro­duc­tion vol­umes increase as he becomes a bet­ter olive farmer and learns more about the trees “We expect 2023 to be our pro­duc­tion record year,” he said ​“We have 11-year-old olive trees pro­duc­ing up to 120 kilo­grams of olives.” The aver­age processed olive oil yield in recent years for Azeite Batalha has been 12 per­cent “Olive yields vary sig­nif­i­cantly depend­ing on the cul­ti­var,” he said ​“As our focus is extra vir­gin olive oil qual­ity we see a pro­gres­sive improve­ment due to bet­ter har­vest­ing tech­niques equip­ment set­tings and knowl­edge and train­ing of our employ­ees.” we always carry out pre­ven­tive main­te­nance and clean­ing of all our machines and equip­ment,” Batalha added ​“We have a qual­ity tech­ni­cian ded­i­cated to ana­lyz­ing and main­tain­ing the olive oil pro­cess­ing stor­age and pack­ag­ing facil­i­ties in per­fect con­di­tion.” Every cul­ti­var is har­vested accord­ing to its spe­cific needs and the result­ing olive oil is stored in vari­ety-spe­cific stain­less steel tanks “It is an ongo­ing process,” Batalha added ​“It will take some time for Brazilians to cor­rectly dif­fer­en­ti­ate good and bad olive.” we have been pro­mot­ing many tast­ings at the points of sale and we are soon going to launch an olive oil blog on our web­site,” he con­tin­ued ​“We also pro­mote vis­its from groups to our olive groves mills where we orga­nize work­shops on the olive oil pro­duc­tion process and offer tast­ings.” While the impacts of cli­mate change are among his con­cerns the Brazilian farmer said his farm is well-placed to adapt since the trees are very young “If we con­tinue to dete­ri­o­rate our envi­ron­ment and our olive trees will end up suf­fer­ing from those changes,” he said Batalha decided to face the chal­lenges posed by cli­mate change by cre­at­ing a new forestry project to pro­duce wood pel­lets for use as bio­mass fuel “We have to focus on things we can con­trol,” he said our biggest chal­lenge is to keep the trees healthy and pro­ceed with har­vest­ing oper­a­tions as quickly as pos­si­ble bet­ter our equip­ment and upgrad­ing our tech­niques,” Batalha con­cluded More articles on:  , , Renowned Olive Oil Sommelier Program Returns to New York The five-day program teaches quality assessment Harvest in Greece Runs Into Early Problems The ongoing drought battering southern Greece threatens to reduce this year's expected olive oil yield of around 240,000 tons Study Suggests Stink Bug Caused Mysterious Fruit Drop in Italy The brown marmorated stink bug has been identified in Italian and Greek olive groves Increasing evidence now links its presence to an early fruit drop in northern Italy Climate Chaos Wreaks Havoc on Chilean Harvest High winter temperatures in the north and relentless rain in central Chile combined to create a perfect storm for olive growers resulting in the lowest production levels in a decade Olive Farmers Flee Southern Lebanon as Conflict Escalates Israel’s escalating air strikes and ground invasion have forced one million people to flee southern Lebanon many leaving olive-laden trees unharvested The Many Values in Recovering Abandoned Olive Groves in Tuscany Andrea Pagliai and Gionni Pruneti produce extra virgin olive oil from recovered trees to benefit communities and the environment New Process Increases Sustainability, Phenolic Profile of Olive Leaf Extracts A novel approach does not use harmful chemicals and creates an extract with potential uses in olive oil production and food packaging How Farmers in Peru and Chile Work Together to Stop the Fruit Fly Twin towns Tacna and Arica share family ties and trade dynamics but face challenges with a recent fruit fly outbreak Efforts are being made to prevent further damage and protect olive producers astronomers have found unambiguous evidence of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere of an exoplanet (a planet outside our solar system) The discovery, accepted for publication in Nature and posted online August 24 demonstrates the power of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) to deliver unprecedented observations of exoplanet atmospheres leads the team of astronomers that made the detection using JWST to observe a Saturn-mass planet called WASP-39b which orbits very close to a sun-like star about 700 light-years from Earth “Previous observations of this planet with Hubble and Spitzer had given us tantalizing hints that carbon dioxide could be present,” Batalha said “The data from JWST showed an unequivocal carbon dioxide feature that was so prominent it was practically shouting at us.” Carbon dioxide is an important component of the atmospheres of planets in our solar system found on rocky planets like Mars and Venus as well as gas giants like Jupiter and Saturn it is important both as a gas they are likely to be able to detect on small rocky planets and as an indicator of the overall abundance of heavy elements in the atmospheres of giant planets “Carbon dioxide is actually a very sensitive measuring stick—the best one we have—for heavy elements in giant planet atmospheres, so the fact that we can see it so clearly is really great,” said coauthor Jonathan Fortney, professor of astronomy and astrophysics at UCSC and director of the Other Worlds Laboratory Stars and gas giant planets are made primarily of the lightest elements but the abundance of heavier elements—what astronomers call “metallicity”—is a critical factor in planet formation “The ability to determine the amount of heavy elements in a planet is critical to understanding how it formed and we’ll be able to use this carbon dioxide measuring stick for a whole bunch of exoplanets to build up a comprehensive understanding of giant planet composition,” he said Batalha’s team observed WASP-39b as part of a JWST Early Release Science program to study transiting exoplanets A transiting planet passes in front of its star as viewed from Earth enabling astronomers to analyze the starlight that passes through the planet’s atmosphere where gases like carbon dioxide absorb certain wavelengths of light Using the Near Infrared Spectrograph (NIRSpec) on JWST the team obtained a high-resolution “transmission spectrum” showing the light transmitted through WASP-39b’s atmosphere separated into its component wavelengths Batalha said the data yielded “exquisite light curves” and showed that the NIRSpec instrument is exceeding expectations for transmission spectroscopy This bodes well for observations of small rocky planets which are expected to have carbon dioxide in their atmospheres (when they have atmospheres) but won’t give as strong a signal as a giant planet like WASP-39b “This detection will serve as a useful benchmark of what we can do to detect carbon dioxide on terrestrial planets going forward,” Batalha said “It’s the most likely atmospheric gas we’ll detect with JWST in terrestrial-size exoplanet atmospheres.” the researchers detected another interesting feature in the spectrum of WASP-39b that they have not yet identified “It’s a mystery feature for now,” Batalha said we focused on a narrow range of infrared colors—this is only a preview of the features we expect to see in the full spectrum.” Fortney noted that WASP-39b appears to have a similar composition to Saturn Saturn’s metallicity is 10 times that of the sun and WASP-39b also seems to be enriched in heavy elements by about 10 times relative to the sun and we would love to know if all Saturn-mass planets have the same metallicity,” he said “It was exciting to see this in another system because we didn’t know what to expect when we went from the planets in our solar system to the atmospheres of exoplanets.” WASP-39b is more than 20 times closer to its star than Earth is to the sun Although it is about the same mass as Saturn it is less dense and about 50 percent larger probably due to heating from being so close to its host star Previous observations showed it to have relatively clear skies making it a good target for transmission spectroscopy When the first data from JWST were released in July the UCSC exoplanet researchers were hosting 45 visiting astronomers for the Other Worlds Laboratory’s annual Exoplanet Summer Program “We were all huddled around the laptop getting our first look at the spectrum and marveling at it,” Batalha said seeing something for the first time that no other human has seen before—that’s what science is all about.” the JWST Transiting Exoplanet Community Early Release Science Team includes Xi Zhang associate professor of Earth and planetary sciences at UCSC postdoctoral fellows Aarynn Carter and Kazumasa Ohno alumnus Zafar Rustamkulov (now a graduate student at Johns Hopkins University) and former postdoctoral fellow Natasha Batalha (now at NASA Ames) as well as a long list of coauthors around the world If there is life elsewhere in the universe Natalie Batalha could be the one to lead us to it Natalie uses powerful space telescopes to peer into the cosmos and detect planets outside of our solar system Some of these so-called exoplanets could have just the right ingredients to support life Batalha was also involved in the recent launch of the James Webb Space Telescope a powerful new tool in her cosmic hunt for life-sustaining planets And she's the co-organizer of the Universe in Verse a public event at UC Santa Cruz on April 16th that marries science and poetry what do you find most fascinating about your search for planets outside of our solar system Natalie Batalha (NB): It took 13.7 billion years to give rise to the complexity that manifests itself as you and I and these beautiful redwood trees The rise of complexity is quite a miraculous thing in the universe and where complexity arises is naturally on the surfaces of exoplanets which is actually astounding in and of itself the leftover afterthought of star formation They're the crumbs on the floor that mom didn't sweep under the rug And yet that's where the complexity arises JO: The James Webb telescope successfully launched on December 21st of last year How did that feel and how's it felt to witness its slow deployment over the last few months NB: The James Webb Space Telescope is so big that you cannot fit it into a rocket fairing as one monolithic mirror and it's folded up origami style into the fairing of the rocket So that not only had to be unfolded after it launched but each of those mirrors had to be meticulously aligned so that they all focus the light to the same point We have beautifully sharp images coming from the James Webb Space Telescope So there are two programs out of 13 that are to observe exoplanets and they're both actually being led out of UC Santa Cruz JO: How will James Webb help with your search for exoplanets NB: The James Webb Space Telescope can be thought of as the successor to Hubble which allows us to see farther or see fainter into the universe so we'll be able to push boundaries and learn more than we could with Hubble passes directly between our telescope and the disk of the star some of the starlight is going to filter through the edge through the atmosphere on its way to our telescope spread it out into a rainbow in order to examine the energy at every single color we see the chemical fingerprints of the molecules that were in that atmosphere That allows us to know if there are greenhouse gases or if the planet is hydrogen rich or could even potentially have surface liquid water Those are the kinds of things that we want to learn about these planets JO: So you're organizing this event on April 16th at the UCSC Quarry Amphitheater called the Universe in Verse it is yet another vehicle for communicating the wonder of science I have the privilege of thinking about that every day and I try my best to communicate that sense of awe and wonder to the public "they should have sent a poet." I'm not a poet the people that are coming to share their stories and read poems are some of my favorite people on the planet right now so we hope to cap off the evening with some wonderful observations of the cosmos that should inspire people on their way back home Natalie Batalha is a professor of astrophysics at the University of California UC Santa Cruz is one of KAZU’s many supporters Porto has always been a city closely linked to art. In fact, it was in Invicta that the first film in Portugal directed by a Portuguese was filmed many of these venues have closed and fallen into disrepair it’s important to remember their past as well as those that still keep their doors open today This is one of Porto’s most emblematic cinemas and one of the few that is still open today but at that time it was called Salão Jardim da Trindade the building was rehabilitated and an audience and cinema balcony were created it has been given a new lease of life and is currently distinguished by its non-mainstream offer 📍Rua do Almada 412 It’s impossible not to notice it when you pass Praça da Batalha The name was changed in 1947 with a refurbishment and the cinema now has two auditoriums a victim of the decline that affected the whole city but without a project to enable its lasting rehabilitation At the end of 2019, a refurbishment project began for the cinema, and it reopened its doors at the end of 2022 under the name Batalha Centro de Cinema 📍Praça da Batalha 47 The Rivoli Municipal Theater has always been and was renovated and adapted for cinema in 1923 As was the case with many of the city’s cultural venues in 1989 the Porto City Council bought the building to restore it as a cultural venue for the people of Porto Today, after renovations, the theater has two auditoriums, a café-concert hall, a rehearsal room and an artists’ foyer. It hosts all kinds of shows, including movies. It is, for example, home to the city’s biggest film festival, Fantasporto This building opened in 1839 as the Café Águia D’ouro and it was only in 1908 that it became a movie theater This was a historic movie theater and one of the most important in the city Sound cinema was inaugurated here in 1930 with the film All That Jazz with Al Jolson which retains its characteristic façade from the 30s 📍Praça da Batalha 35 opened its doors in 1912 under the name Olympia Kinema Teatro It was a house that appealed to elegance and charm having been created by the same architect responsible for the Café Majestic the Olympia as a cinema space didn’t survive 📍Rua Passos Manuel 131 the Teatro Carlos Alberto has always been a venue for various forms of artistic expression and in the 1970s it was dedicated almost exclusively to showing films both in terms of programming and architecture and in 2003 it was returned to the city as a renovated space with a diverse cultural offer along with the São João National Theatre and the São Bento da Vitória Monastery This movie theater opened in the late 1940s and quickly became a reference in the city it couldn’t withstand the crisis and closed down in the 90s These are some of the main cinemas in Porto Also well-known and with a history were Cinema Júlio Deniz Three extraordinary planet-hunters have been recognized by TIME Magazine as this year's top 100 most influential people: Natalie Batalha from NASA's Ames Research Center in California's Silicon Valley; Michael Gillon from the University of Liège in Belgium; and Guillem Anglada-Escudé from the Queen Mary University in London "It is truly exciting to see these planet-hunters among the other movers and the shakers of the world," said Paul Hertz Astrophysics division director at NASA Headquarters in Washington "These scientists have transformed the world's understanding of our place in the universe and NASA congratulates them for their well-deserved recognition." NASA's search for distant worlds continues with the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) launching in 2018 which will find new planets the same way Kepler does but right in the stellar backyard of our solar system and peer into possible atmospheres of distant worlds to look for chemical hints of life manages the Spitzer Space Telescope mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate NASA's Kepler mission is managed by NASA's Ames Research Center in the Silicon Valley http://time.com/collection/2017-time-100/4742707/natalie-batalha-guillem-anglada-escude-michael-gillon/ elandau@nasa.gov NASA’s Newest Space Telescope Recognized at New York Stock Exchange JPL Life. NASA Wins 6 Webby Awards, 6 Webby People’s Voice Awards Stars and Galaxies. NASA’s SPHEREx Team To Ring New York Stock Exchange Bell Stars and Galaxies. NASA Webb’s Autopsy of Planet Swallowed by Star Yields Surprise JPL Life. NASA Receives 10 Nominations for the 29th Annual Webby Awards JPL Life. University High Triumphs at JPL-Hosted Ocean Sciences Bowl JPL Life. Students Dive Into Robotics at Competition Supported by NASA JPL JPL Life. University High Knows the Answers at NASA JPL Regional Science Bowl JPL Life. NASA JPL Prepping for Full Year of Launches, Mission Milestones JPL Life. NASA Scientists, Engineers Receive Presidential Early Career Awards Explore MoreSlice of History Image. Slice of History - Farewell to the IBM 360 Image. Roger Gibbs, Director for Engineering and Science Rebecca (Becky) Macko, Director for the Human Resources Directorate Howard Eisen, Chief Engineer Universe Newsletter Image. JPL's Suzanne Dodd Speaks at the DSN Canberra 60th Anniversary Celebration Image. Slice of History - JPL Work Informs Science Fiction Writings Image. Slice of History - Marking 60 Years Since Ranger 9’s Launch Look out for your first newsletter in your inbox soon We help you navigate a myriad of possibilities Sign up for our newsletter for the best of the city By entering your email address you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and consent to receive emails from Time Out about news Sign up for our email to enjoy your city without spending a thing (as well as some options when you’re feeling flush) Our newsletter hand-delivers the best bits to your inbox Sign up to unlock our digital magazines and also receive the latest news By entering your email address you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and consent to receive emails from Time Out about news, events, offers and partner promotions. Porto Immerse yourself in Porto’s history by bunking down in the city’s old post office Once you know this small detail about the bright red building’s past postcards in the corridors and rubber stamp wall features all make sense rewind back to the 18th century when the building lived the high life as a palace and you’ll understand the NH’s rather stately appearance the hotel designers have gone for a grey and red colour scheme to create a somewhat corporate feel and the rooms have been refurbished with practicality in mind the interior was gutted during the renovation process (bar the original stone arches in the foyer) and was fitted out with modern furnishings plus the all-important coffee machine and soft cloud-like beds For a spot of relaxation you can nip downstairs to the spa area to sweat your stress away in the (rather small) sauna and steam room the NH has it made with a restaurant that can rival some of the best in the city The Gastro Kitchen & Bar offers an à la carte menu for lunch and dinner and serves modern takes on traditional Portuguese recipes Chef Álvaro Costa was obviously paying attention in cooking class as he knows how to prep dishes with both flavour and finesse He no doubt picked up a few tricks at the Michelin star restaurants he’s worked at too If you want to get your grub and groove on you can join the hotel’s regular events such as oyster and gin nights with a live DJ (sounds like a damn fine combo Then come the next morning you can dig in to an impressive breakfast spread that doesn’t skimp on quantity and includes nice extras like juices smoothies and enough sweet treats to fill a patisserie Thanks for subscribing! Look out for your first newsletter in your inbox soon! instagramAbout us Contact us Natalie Batalha’s STEM-Talk interview was so contagious that Dawn Kernagis said it made her dream of returning to school to get a second graduate degree in astronomy “Hearing Natalie talk about her research had all of us in the STEM-Talk studio buzzing,” said Dawn Natalie is an astrophysicist and the project scientist for NASA’s Kepler Mission a space observatory launched by NASA to discover Earth-sized planets orbiting other stars She sat down with Dawn and veteran astronaut and IHMC senior research scientist Tom Jones for episode 33 of STEM-Talk As one of the original co-investigators of the Kepler Mission Natalie has been a leader in using the telescope to discover exoplanets which are planets that orbit stars other than our own sun Natalie has been involved in the Kepler Mission since the proposal stage and has helped identify more than 150,000 stars that are monitored by the telescope She holds a bachelor’s degree in physics from The University of California Berkeley and a doctoral degree in astrophysics from UC Santa Cruz She taught physics and astronomy for 10 years at San Jose State University before joining the Space Sciences Division of the NASA Ames Research Center which is located in California’s Silicon Valley Natalie received a NASA Public Service Medal for her vision in communicating Kepler’s science to the public and also for her outstanding leadership in coordinating the Kepler science team That same year Natalie also headed up the analysis that led to the discovery of Kepler 10b the first confirmed rocky planet outside our solar system She joined the leadership team of a new NASA initiative in 2015 which is dedicated to the search for evidence of life beyond our solar system Called the Nexus for Exoplanet System Science the program brings together teams from multiple disciplines to understand the diversity of worlds and which of those exoplanets are most likely to harbor life As if Dawn and the STEM-Talk gang weren’t excited enough after talking to Natalie about the search for life beyond our solar system, NASA announced about a month after our interview with Natalie that its Spitzer Space Telescope had revealed the first known system of seven Earth-sized planets around a single star. Three of these planets are firmly located in the habitable zone the area around the parent star where a rocky planet is most likely to have liquid water According to a NASA press release in February the discovery sets a new record for greatest number of habitable-zone planets found around a single star outside our solar system All of these seven planets could have liquid water – key to life as we know it – under the right atmospheric conditions but the chances are highest with the three in the habitable zone IHMC founder and director as well as the chairman of the Double Secret Selection Committee that chooses guests who appear on STEM-Talk Dawn and Ken then talk about Natalie’s background as an astrophysicist 4:35: Dawn welcomes her co-host for this episode of STEM-Talk and they begin the interview by asking Natalie how she became interested in astronomy 8:03: Natalie talks about how as an undergrad at Berkeley she met a post-doctoral researcher from Brazil who later became her husband she ended up doing her post-doctoral work in Rio de Janeiro 15:47: Dawn asks Natalie to describe the history of the Kepler mission 19:00: Tom asks Natalie to describe the difficulty of trying to detect a distant planet 21:34: Natalie describes how long the Kepler telescope has been in space and provides a summary of its findings which have oceans larger than the Pacific Ocean which is why scientists call them lava worlds 27:30: Dawn asks Natalie about the discovery of Kepler 10b which was the identification of the first rocky planet outside of our own solar system 32:30: Natalie describes how the host star that Kepler 10b orbits is almost exactly like Earth’s sun except that it’s about 8 billion to 11 billion years old as opposed to our sun which is four and a half billion years old 36:30: Dawn reads a quote that describes the discovery of Kepler 10lb as one of the most profound scientific discoveries in human history and asks Natalie to talk about that 39:00: Tom asks Natalie to provide statistics on the kinds of planets that the Kepler mission is finding 42:30: Natalie talks about planets in the Goldilocks Zone 44:35: Break that features Ken talking about STEM-Talk an educational service of the Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition a not-for-profit research lab pioneering groundbreaking technologies in that leveraging and extending human cognition 45:00: Tom comments that Kepler must have detected anomalies over the years and asks if they occur frequently and what might cause these anomalies 47:30: Natalie describes one of the most extreme examples of an anomaly which is a technique used to detect exoplanets 53:00: Natalie gives an overview of the W First Mission 59:00: Dawn asks how many scientists are involved in analyzing Kepler’s findings and how the findings are confirmed 1:00:30: Dawn asks how long the Kepler Mission will continue 1:04:30: Natalie talks about plans to follow up on the Kepler Mission once its operations shut down 1:07:00: Natalie talks about the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite which is a transit photometry mission that’s complementary to Kepler 1:10:30: Tom asks Natalie to talk about the likelihood of habitable planets throughout the Milky Way 1:12:30: Natalie says there are 10 to 20 billion potentially habitable Earth-sized planets in the galaxy 1:16:00 Dawn asks Natalie for her thoughts about the need for society to prioritize learning about possible other planets that can support life 1:20:00: Natalie talks about how the process of exploration and the act of pursuing knowledge changes us as a species and directly influences our quality of life on Earth 1;23:30: Dawn asks Natalie about Pascal Lee and the SETI Institute also known as the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence Institute 1:24:02: Tom mentions that he’s fascinated by the idea of rogue planets and asks Natalie if they’re real 1:27:00: Dawn mentions that Ken often comments how astronomers have the coolest scientific jargon 1:27:30: When Dawn asks Natalie what she does for fun outside of searching for planets Natalie talks about growing grapes and making wine with her father 1:30:00: Natalie ends the interview by encouraging young people to do what they love and to find what gives meaning to their life Subscribe to our email list and stay updated I agree to receive your eamils and accept the data privacy statement you acknowledge that the information you provided will be transferred to Brevo for processing in accordance with their terms of use Privacy Policy | FCOI Policy Your Ads Privacy ChoicesIMDb By 2023-10-15T23:56:00+01:00 Vera Egito’s The Battle (A Batalha Da Rua Maria Antonia) won best fiction feature in the Première Brasil section at the 25th Rio International Film Festival closing ceremony the ceremony showcased some of the strongest voices in Brazilian cinema the top winner received its world premiere at the festival and had not already enjoyed successful runs in international festivals like Cannes The film’s title refers to Rua Maria Antônia a street in the centre of Brazilian city São Paulo which was the stage for a famous confrontation between left- wing and right-wing university students in October 1968 during Brazil’s military dictatorship The Battle won over audiences and critics alike by recreating in 21 sequences the tension and violence experienced by teachers and students on that fateful day The film captures the passion of the students as they clashed armed with sticks Until now Egito was best known internationally for her short films such as Spread Through The Air (2007) and Bond (2008) her debut feature which screened at Miami International Film Festival The Battle marks the first time in years that a major Rio winner has been a festival discovery previous Première Brasil winners often arrive with the endorsement of international festivals as was the case with Marcelo Gomes’ Paloma and Anita Rocha da Silveira’s Medusa Paloma screened for the first time in Munich while Medusa premiered in Cannes Directors’ Fortnight André Novais Oliveira’s O Dia que te Conheci is another Brazilian film starting its journey in Rio this year focusing on a librarian who works in a neighbouring city where he will get another shot at love Several films awarded at Première Brasil this year had already been selected for international festivals winner of the best director (Lillah Halla) and best editing awards in Rio received the Cannes Critics’ Week Fipresci prize in May Toll by Carolina Markowicz was presented in San Sebastián and Toronto before winning four awards at Première Brasil: best actress (Maeve Jinkins) best supporting actress (Aline Marta Maia) and best art direction (Vicente Saldanha) The recipient of the best cinematography prize in Rio Heartless directed by Nara Normande and Tião Rio is an ideal platform to present local films to Brazilian audiences The festival exposure often helps victorious films achieve a larger domestic release and winning titles without distribution usually get acquired Best fiction featureThe Battle (Vera Egito) Special jury prizeO Dia que te Conheci (Andre Novais de Oliveira) Best actressMaeve Jinkins (Toll) and Grace Passô (O Dia que te Conheci) Best supporting actressAline Marta Maia (Toll) Best supporting actorCarlos Francisco (Estranho Caminho) Best cinematographyEvgenia Alexandrova (Heartless) Best screenplayGuto Parente (Estranho Caminho) documentaryDaniel Gonçalves (Assexybilidade) Bookmark this page to keep track of all the latest festival dates The posting on Trump’s Truth Social platform is sending shockwaves around the world US industry frantically working out possible next steps ’Thunderbolts*’ has achieved the third-biggest opening number for a US studio film in 2025 Bookmark this page and keep track of the latest film release dates in the UK & Ireland CAD $90,000 in cash and prizes presented at Friday’s ceremony in Toronto Screen International is the essential resource for the international film industry access to the Screen International archive and supplements including Stars of Tomorrow and World of Locations Site powered by Webvision Cloud Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker Nikola Tesla: I fix problems for idiots. When it comes to exoplanet discovery, Natalie Batalha was there for the beginning. A young astrophysics grad student in 1995, she happened to be attending a conference in Florence, Italy in place of her advisor when two astronomers announced the first discovery of a planet orbiting another star like our sun “An entire new subfield of astrophysics was being born,” recalls Batalha, who went on to become the project scientist for NASA’s Kepler Mission which identified the first rocky planet outside our solar system in 2011 Now an exoplanet researcher at NASA’s Ames Research Center in California Batalha has since become one of the leaders in her field The next milestone in the search for exoplanets is now upon us: the launch of the James Webb Space Telescope. As the successor to the surprisingly durable but more limited Hubble Space Telescope Webb was originally set to rocket into orbit around the sun as early as 2007 It is scheduled to finally launch this month The telescope’s infrared capabilities will allow scientists to analyze the atmosphere of faraway planets better than ever before. When light passes through the atmosphere of a planet, it takes on the “chemical fingerprint” of the elements present in that atmosphere, Batalha explained at a recent panel discussion on exoplanets at Pioneer Works in Brooklyn scientists are hoping to identify some of those fingerprints as signs of life researchers expect to spot them by picking up evidence of biological waste products in the atmosphere “I’m hopeful that living worlds are going to stick out like a sore thumb,” said Batalha who is on the Webb Telescope’s Advisory Committee The James Webb Space Telescope is set to launch this month. It will, amongst other functions, analyze the atmospheres of distant planets outside our solar system. [Credit: NASA/Chris Gunn | CC BY 2.0] which considered four concept designs for the next flagship telescope with a six-meter-diameter mirror to decrease the price tag to $11 billion Batalha wasn’t thrilled about the downsizing worrying that a smaller mirror will limit the number of exoplanets the telescope will be able to observe she called it “a decent compromise,” adding that “in your lifetime or the lifetime of your children This orbiting observatory won’t launch until the late 2040s at the earliest. In a field that must think so far in the future, Batalha has had to reckon with the knowledge that she will see very few of her many questions answered in her lifetime. “I seek solace knowing my daughter is an astrophysicist,” Batalha says. “She’s totally my upgrade.” Her daughter, Natasha Batalha leads a NASA Ames team that was awarded the largest exoplanet observation program for the Webb telescope Natalie Batalha still seeks the answers to those big questions: how we got here as if all the mysteries are knowable,” she said at the panel discussion And looking out at the coming generations — of telescopes and of scientists — at least some of them certainly will be Allison Parshall is a multimedia science journalist with a background in cognitive science Scientific American and Inverse and Scienceline She holds a bachelor’s in psychology from Georgetown University and is finishing a master’s in science health and environmental reporting from New York University ©2025 NYU Journalism Science is often portrayed as a solitary affair where discoveries are made by lone geniuses toiling in isolation an astronomer at NASA's Ames Research Center in California's Silicon Valley says solving problems with the people around her is one of the best parts of her job "Oh, man, working with people is all I do!" said Batalha, whose current research involves using NASA's James Webb Space Telescope to study exoplanets planets outside our solar system that orbit other stars Batalha's work explores hot, Jupiter-like exoplanets; smaller, rocky exoplanets more similar to Earth; and brown dwarfs mysterious objects smaller than a star but huge compared to the biggest planets A single question has driven her since she was a kid: "Does life exist beyond Earth?" "I love being part of a larger community," she said "We're working together to try to solve this question that people have been asking for centuries." the particular joy of belonging wasn't always present in Batalha's life She thinks the latter is partly why she gravitated toward the universal language of math her interests and strengths took shape around astronomy When she chose to study physics in college followed by a dual PhD in astronomy and astrobiology her parents - who are also scientists - helped fill in for the community she was otherwise lacking I watched female students drop out of my physics classes," Batalha said "The honors physics track in college was devoid of women and people of color I didn't feel I had a community in my college classes." Her mother, Natalie Batalha, is an astronomer who served as project scientist for NASA's Kepler space telescope- the mission that taught us there are more planets than stars Both her parents had already faced similar challenges in their careers and having their example to look at of people who had successfully overcome those barriers helped her push on which are both underrepresented groups in STEM," she said "but I also have a ton of privilege because my parents are in the field That gave me a dual perspective on how powerful community is." Which language would you like to use this site in A regional human rights court has come down in favour of the Sarayaku Indigenous community in the Ecuadorian Amazon in what Amnesty International has called a key victory for Indigenous Peoples The Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACHR) ruling in Sarayaku v ends a decade-long legal battle by the Sarayaku Indigenous People – backed by their lawyers Mario Melo and the Centre for Justice and International Law (CEJIL) – after a foreign oil company was allowed to encroach on their traditional lands in the early 2000s without consultation with the Sarayaku “the Sarayaku are extremely satisfied with this victory reached thanks to the efforts of our people and the help and solidarity of organizations devoted to the rights of Indigenous Peoples” explained that “this favourable ruling for the Sarayaku is the fruit of a large effort on the part of the community’s people who were key players in every step of the process For that alone this deserves to be recognized as a milestone in the ongoing struggle of Indigenous Peoples to reclaim their rights” The IACHR found that the Ecuadorian state violated the community’s right to be consulted as well as their community property rights and their cultural identity The Costa Rica-based Court also found Ecuador responsible for putting the life and physical integrity of the Sarayaku at grave risk after the oil company placed more than 1,400 kg of high-grade explosives on the Indigenous People’s territory “This sentence will have a far-reaching effect on countries across the region – it makes it crystal clear that states bear a responsibility to carry out special consultation processes before engaging in development projects affecting Indigenous Peoples and their rights,” said Fernanda Doz Costa Amnesty International’s Researcher on Economic Social and Cultural Rights in the Americas “It establishes in detail how consultation should be undertaken: in good faith through culturally appropriate procedures that are aimed at reaching consent exploration or extraction of natural resources cannot be done at the expense of an indigenous community’s means of physical or cultural survival on their own land.” when Indigenous Peoples across the Americas are being denied the right to have their voice heard in decisions that often have devastating consequences for their very survival Governments in many countries in the Americas continue to plan and construct motorways hydroelectric dams and open-pit mines both within and close to indigenous territories – without obtaining their free José Gualinga is convinced that the Sarayaku victory will have an impact in the whole region “We’ll be watching to ensure the ruling is complied with and that the territories of Indigenous Peoples in Ecuador and across the Americas are respected in the face of damaging extractive activities such as oil exploration Long live Sarayaku and the Indigenous Peoples of the continent,” he said Amnesty International welcomes Ecuador’s acceptance of State responsibility in this case – which it acknowledged last April – and that the State has already announced that it will comply with the IACHR ruling The organization is calling on Ecuador to comply with all IACHR orders – in particular when it solicits future bids for oil exploration it must first respect its duty to consult with the Sarayaku and other Indigenous Peoples whose territories could potentially be affected such consultations must be appropriate and in line with relevant international standards including those established by the IACHR in the Saramaka v “Consultations cannot simply consist in sharing decisions that have been already taken Ecuador needs to make a real effort to establish an open and honest dialogue based on mutual trust and respect and with the aim of reaching a consensus – this means not imposing anything upon Indigenous Peoples or forging ahead with projects that will substantially affect their rights,” said Doz Costa documented by Amnesty International in a recent report to use any tool in the box to discourage people from voicing their disapproval of projects that will affect their environment and lands and to discredit and attack Indigenous leaders is certainly not conducive to the good faith dialogue ordered by the Court.” The organization is urging other states in the region to take immediate and decisive action to remedy the situation of hundreds of other Indigenous Peoples who face problems similar to those of the Sarayaku This should include implementing basic measures to avoid similar human rights violations in the future including by developing legislation around consultation training national officials and opening avenues for redress no country on the continent can deny it has an obligation to carry out an appropriate and participative consultation process with Indigenous Peoples according to their own cultural practices” said Doz Costa The Sarayaku and Amnesty International have co-produced the upcoming documentary Children of the Jaguar about the community’s fight to defend their rights Together we can fight for human rights everywhere Your donation can transform the lives of millions If you are talented and passionate about human rights then Amnesty International wants to hear from you