In his day to day he masterfully combines his scientific work at the head of the National Astronomical Observatory with dissemination through astronomical articles and opinion tribunes that he has published weekly in the newspaper ELMUNDO for 15 years, through his Chronicles of the Cosmos and his Appointments with Heaven. This Thursday, the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) and the BBVA Foundation have recognized Rafael Bachiller with one of their Scientific Communication Awards, the most prestigious in Spain in this category.
As highlighted by the Jury, the director of the National Astronomical Observatory and the Royal Observatory of Madrid has dedicated a good part of his career to the dissemination of knowledge, "not only of his own field of specialization, but of scientific culture in general".
Bachiller has won the Prize in the category of researchers, an award shared with researchers from the Geological and Mining Institute (IGME-CSIC) who focused on informing society about the volcanic eruption on La Palma.
The prestigious collaborator of El Mundo, specialized in the formation of solar-type stars, has published more than 350 scientific articles in specialized journals of reference, a scientific work that combines with the dissemination because he has always defended that the dissemination of knowledge to society is "an obligation of the scientific world". In addition to his contribution to this newspaper, he has given hundreds of lectures and has made interventions in numerous radio and television programs.
He is also a prolific author of books designed for the general public such as Astronomy. From Galileo to space telescopes and The Improbable Universe, which has contributed to it being "an exemplary reference for the dissemination of knowledge to society", as highlighted by the jury.
Other winners
In the category of journalists, the prize has been awarded to SINC, the scientific news agency of the Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology (FECYT), for "an exceptional trajectory of 15 years" in which they have managed to "reach mass audiences" with quality scientific journalism, capable of combining "the most reliable sources with attractive narratives accessible to the general public". as highlighted by the jury.
Finally, the two CSIC-BBVA Foundation Grants for Scientific Communication have been awarded to young science journalists Jon Gurutz Arranz and Iole Ferrara, who will have the opportunity to carry out training itineraries to learn first-hand about cutting-edge research carried out in CSIC centers.
More than 100 nominations have been submitted to both the Awards and the Grants in this second edition.
The two Awards are each endowed with 40,000 euros and the two Grants, with 35,000 euros, and are part of the Program to Promote Scientific Communication launched in 2021 "to recognize and encourage the work of journalists and communicators who report in a rigorous and attractive way on the advances of science, as well as improving training in this decisive field for the scientific culture of society".
According to the criteria of The Trust Project
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