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<\/figure>Science is often portrayed as a solitary affair, where discoveries are made by lone geniuses toiling in isolation. But Dr. Natasha Batalha, an astronomer at NASA\u2019s Ames Research Center in California\u2019s Silicon Valley, says solving problems with the people around her is one of the best parts of her job.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u201cOh, man, working with people is all I do!\u201d said Batalha, whose current research involves using NASA\u2019s James Webb Space Telescope<\/a> to study exoplanets, planets outside our solar system that orbit other stars.<\/p>\n Batalha\u2019s work explores hot, Jupiter-like exoplanets; smaller, rocky exoplanets more similar to Earth; and brown dwarfs<\/a>, mysterious objects smaller than a star but huge compared to the biggest planets. A single question has driven her since she was a kid: \u201cDoes life exist beyond Earth?\u201d<\/p>\n It\u2019s a lofty question, bigger than any one scientist. And that\u2019s the point.<\/p>\n \u201cI love being part of a larger community,\u201d she said, \u201cWe\u2019re working together to try to solve this question that people have been asking for centuries.\u201d<\/p>\n However, the particular joy of belonging wasn\u2019t always present in Batalha\u2019s life.<\/p>\n When she was 10, her family moved from Brazil to the U.S., where she was met with culture shock, pressure to assimilate, and a language barrier. She thinks the latter is partly why she gravitated toward the universal language of math.<\/p>\n Eventually, 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 \u2013 who are also scientists \u2013 helped fill in for the community she was otherwise lacking.<\/p>\n \u201cIn high school, I watched female students drop out of my physics classes,\u201d Batalha said. \u201cThe honors physics track in college was devoid of women and people of color. I didn\u2019t feel I had a community in my college classes.\u201d<\/p>\n Her mother,\u00a0Natalie Batalha<\/a>,\u00a0is an astronomer\u00a0who served as project scientist for NASA\u2019s\u00a0Kepler space telescope<\/a>\u2013 the mission that taught us there are\u00a0more planets than stars<\/a>.\u00a0Natasha\u2019s father is a LatinX physicist. 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.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI identify as female and LatinX, which are both underrepresented groups in STEM,\u201d she said, \u201cbut 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.\u201d<\/p>\n