Earth & Space
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The 2026 Science Division Distinguished Alumni Award recipients
Gregory Reyes (Kresge ’76, biology), Larry de Ghetaldi (Merrill ’76, biology and chemistry), and Nicholas Suntzeff (Ph.D. ’80, astronomy) are recognized for careers of exceptional distinction in biomedical research, healthcare policy, and observational cosmology.
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Collaborating ecology professors earn national honors and discuss their work together
Professors of ecology and evolutionary biology Roxanne Beltran and Erika Zavaleta have been recognized individually by the Ecological Society of America. But they also partner on research that bridges ecology, inclusive education, and field-based learning
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Over 5,000 biodiversity observations across more than 1,300 species equals first place in national competition
The campus chapter of the Ecological Society of America’s flagship education program SEEDS blew away all other competing chapters around the country, thanks to Santa Cruz’s thriving natural habitats
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UC Santa Cruz receives California Department of Fish and Wildlife funding to assess health of state’s streams
A $2.2 million grant will scale a pioneering environmental DNA-based index, adding a broad biodiversity assessment tool that benefits statewide management of vital freshwater ecosystems
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Dense rainforest canopy an acoustic ‘information highway’ for predator warnings
UC Santa Cruz’s Forest Fear Lab reveals how the dense upper story of the Amazon carries the cries of frightened birds to other animals
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Professors Adina Paytan and Douglas Lin elected to National Academy of Sciences
Paytan, distinguished professor of Earth and planetary sciences, and Lin, emeritus distinguished professor of astronomy and astrophysics, were among 120 new U.S. members named on April 28
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New initiative will immerse learners worldwide in Indigenous forms of scientific inquiry, understanding
‘Shadow Indigenous Worlds’ will use an educational model pioneered at UC Santa Cruz that allows students anywhere to closely observe and converse with scientists over Zoom as they conduct research in real time
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Anna Tsing and Terrie Williams named to American Academy of Arts & Sciences
The two faculty members are among the 252 leaders in academia, the arts, industry, journalism, philanthropy, policy, research, and science elected this year
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Researchers to measure atmospheric benefits of restored San Francisco Bay wetland
UC Santa Cruz will lend expertise in monitoring tidal marsh carbon levels once a 275-acre South Bay salt pond is converted back to its natural state, as part of a larger environmental campaign by multiple partners to restore lost tidal wetlands to San Francisco Bay.
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Acclaimed astrophysicist and electric slam poet blend science and storytelling
Slam poet Jasmine Schlafke and UC Santa Cruz professor Enrico Ramirez-Ruiz blend science, poetry and storytelling to explore our deepest origins and shared humanity at the second annual Landesman Lecture on April 28.
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DESI completes largest high-resolution 3D map of universe to date
The Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) has completed its originally planned five-year mission and mapped more than 47 million galaxies and quasars, and will continue observations into 2028 and further expand the map.
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Incoming: New fellow will probe moon’s magnetic past for clues about its formation and interior
51 Pegasi b Fellow Sarah Steele will spend three years at UC Santa Cruz working with Earth and planetary scientists to advance her work to decode ancient magnetic records preserved in rocks