The journalist and writer Juan Cruz will be visiting, from 5th to 8th July, the Headquarters of the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC) in La Laguna and the Teide and Roque de los Muchachos Observatories, to participate in the multidisciplinary project “En un lugar del Universo…” aimed at celebrating the IV Centenary of the death of Miguel de Cervantes, which blends literature and astronomy.

On March 5th, Juan Cruz will arrive at the Roque de los Muchachos Observatory in Garafía (La Palma), where he will be shown, among other things the Belgian telescope MERCATOR, and the Gran Telescopio CANARIAS (GTC), which is the largest optical-infrared telescope in the world. He will also be able to participate in a workshop for night-time astronomical observation. On Thursday July 7th, he will return to Tenerife to get to know the IAC Headquarters in La Laguna, and the research, technological, teaching, and outreach projects which are carried out at the centre. He will also visit the Teide Observatory at Izaña (Tenerife), and the Museum of Science and the Cosmos, (Museums of Tenerife).

Juan Cruz is the third of a series of writers who are visiting the Observatories during 2016 as part of the celebrations of the IV centenary of the death of Cervantes. The project will also bring to the islands in the coming months recognized figures of Spanish literature who can be inspired by the Cosmos and can put their vision of astronomy into a volume of short stories whose aim will be to help fund research into Alzheimer’s disease.

Juan Cruz was born in Puerto de la Cruz (Tenerife) and studied Journalism and History at the University of La Laguna (ULL). He started his career as a journalist at 13 years old in the weekly Aire Libre. After that he worked in the local newspapers La Tarde, El Día, La Opinion de Tenerife, and La Provincia. He also founded La Gaceta de Canarias, and was correspondent for Radio Nacional de España in London. IN 1976 he was one of the founders of the daily newspaper El País, where he worked as head of the department of Culture and Opinon. He was also coordinator of the projects of the PRISA Group and Director of Communication for the Santillana Group. Later he returned to El País, where he is now assistant director. He began his career as a novelist in 1972 with Chronicle of nothing smashed into pieces. After writing some twenty books his latest The barefoot child (2015) has won several awards, among them the National Prize for Cultural Journalism (2012) by the Ministry of Education Culture and Sport. At the present time as well as his commitments as a journalist and author he is Invited Professor at the School of Journalism Universidad Autónoma de Madrid-El País.

The project “En un lugar del Universo…” is supported not only by the IAC but by the International Scientific Institutions at the Canary Island Observatories, and by the Museum of Science, of Museums of Tenerife, and supported by the Instituto Cervantes and the Severo Ochoa Programme.

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