For Teresa Paneque (26 years old, Madrid), a Chilean astronomer and scientific communicator, the time difference between Chile and the Netherlands—the European country is six hours ahead of the South American country—accommodates her. Thus, she, a doctoral student at the University of Leiden, can complement her research on the process of planet formation with the creation of content for her social networks that have accumulated 337,000 followers on Instagram (@terepaneque) and videos that have more than 600,000 views on TikTok. His mornings and afternoons are spent studying, his nights are spent recording videos, responding to messages and giving interviews.
It is a crazy rhythm that she navigates and, by the way, enjoys: “I think it is not so healthy. I would like to have a normal rhythm, but at the same time I know that I like to do things from different areas.” She has just finished her thesis and she hopes that in September she can be a doctor. In a few months she begins her postdoctoral studies at the University of Michigan: she won the scholarship 51 Pegasi b Fellowship, being the first Chilean to be awarded it. She also offered him two others: NASA Hubble Fellowship and the Jansky Fellowship.
In Chile he has made a name for himself for his work bringing astronomy closer to people and, especially, children. In his videos you can see him, always smiling, answering questions about the mysteries of the universe: what happens in black holes, why the northern lights are those colors, the secrets of Jupiter. He has written three books in his series The universe according to Carlota (Editorial Planeta), where the protagonist, at first without much interest in knowing what happens beyond planet Earth, ventures and becomes fascinated with space. “Carlota is a girl who is an artist and does not have a passion for being an astronomer. In fact, in the first book he is someone who hates science, but things happen to him that make him learn about astronomical topics (…) We have to stop thinking that science is only for a certain type of boy or girl, for a certain type of profile that wants to be a scientist. Science is for anyone and that is what Carlota demonstrates.” She is now writing the fourth book in her saga which she hopes to publish in October. “I have always said that Carlota is what I am most proud of,” says the author who has sold more than 25,000 copies.
Due to her activism, in November 2023 she became the first woman to be UNICEF ambassador in Chile. Together with the organization he recently launched Astronomical Alphabet, a children’s book that explains space concepts. The Chilean Government has also set its eyes on her: she will be one of the 40 people who will accompany President Gabriel Boric on his tour of Europe in July, where he will visit the European Southern Observatory (ESO) in Germany, where Paneque spent four years of his Ph.D. “Seeing that so many of the guests come from the world of academia, it is clear that there is a scientific-technological focus and an interest in the development of science in the country,” she says.
The researcher’s public appearance came due to an event that is considered unfortunate for astronomers: she was not able to travel to northern Chile to see the 2019 solar eclipse in the front row. The media urgently needed specialists in television studios and radio to comment on the astronomical phenomenon. She was studying her master’s degree at the University of Chile when she was offered an interview. There she began what she calls “a series of waves,” which have not stopped to this day. “On the day of the eclipse I left my house at six in the morning and returned at one in the morning the next day, in interviews all day. People liked listening to me and I decided to open a social media account.” She created the Instagram account at the end of 2019 and in the middle of the pandemic she already had 20,000 followers. At the end of 2020 they contacted her to write Carlota’s first book. In between, she went to Europe to study for her doctorate. In 2021 she wanted to try TikTok and her content went viral. A multitude of appearances in the Chilean press followed. One wave after another wave.
Becoming a leader in the area, she says, she takes it, above all, with a lot of responsibility: “I don’t believe in this concept that I am a influencer of astronomy (…) I do this because I have a political vision of what it means to democratize the sciences, of the importance of guaranteeing access to education, to critical thinking, that people question themselves, that they can respond your questions. Social networks are a small stepping stone for which I take responsibility,” comments the astronomer.
Although she points out that she is not yet part of the history of Chilean astronomy because she has not finished her training, she is proud to belong to this field in the South American country, with so many renowned figures such as José Maza, María Teresa Ruiz and Mario Hamuy: “Chile is a deeply astronomical country and astronomy is a very privileged science within Chile. We have made good use of that 10% of the observation capacity of the centers in the north of the country. In addition, we have developed not only research, but also dissemination projects, connection with the environment.” He says he sees this group expanding from a small group of scientists dedicated to this area: “60 years ago the European Southern Observatory (ESO) began its relationship with Chile and began the construction of macro observatories in the north of our country (… .) The access that our natural conditions allow us has allowed this Chilean astronomy society to grow,” says Paneque. She also says she is proud of the path back home that many Chilean astronomers are making: “It is nice how Chilean researchers return to the country because they feel that it is a place where they can develop their science.”
She emphasizes the importance of having female role models: “You enter and grow in this world feeling that only the best are going to be successful and the successful are going to be men.” And he emphasizes the value of these role models being flesh and blood: “My idol in science is not Marie Curie, I think she is great, but she has nothing in common with me, neither in her history nor in her research. But my teachers, who I can talk to and work with, are the ones who inspire me. When we do not have figures of women to draw inspiration from in a realistic way, we construct that image of superwoman super unattainable.”
The sciences come in his blood. His father, of Cuban nationality, is a biochemist and his mother, Chilean, is a pharmaceutical chemist. While they were studying postgraduate studies in Spain, Teresa was born, along with her two younger brothers, current players on the Chilean national roller hockey team. Until the age of nine she lived in Scotland, from where she was able to experience a successful educational system: “I was able to realize that public education works and that taxes and reinvestment in education make societies grow. I want that for Chile, that there is no difference because of the place where you were born and the opportunities you are going to have.” When the family returned to Chile, the astronomer felt out of place and she only wanted to return to Europe. Now, she declares herself a lover of Chile and hopes that after five years in the United States she can settle in the South American country and continue her studies of the planets from here: “I not only return to Chile because it is my country, but because I can do my science worldwide from Chile.”
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