54 ASTRONOMY • DECEMBER 2019

Opening awards

and music

The fifth Starmus Festival

took place June 24–29, 2019, in

Zurich, Switzerland. The event

opened with a bang: an amazing

orchestral music show coupled

with the awarding of this year’s

Stephen Hawking Medals for

Science Communication.

The awards went to Elon

Musk, for his visionary leader-

ship of space exploration and

associated outreach; celebrated

musician Brian Eno, for his

efforts with science populariza-

tion; and Todd Miller, director of

the magnificent new documen-

tary film Apollo 11. Additionally,

Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin

received a lifetime achievement

award. Eno, Miller, and Aldrin

were on hand; Musk joined via

video link from the Kennedy

Space Center, where he was

about to launch a Falcon Heavy

rocket.

The introductory ceremony

featured talks by Israelian and by

the president of Armenia, physi-

cist Armen Sarkissian, who

offered to host the festival in

Armenia someday. Tony Fadell,

venture capitalist, inventor of the

iPod, and co-inventor of the

iPhone, spoke about the impor-

tance of science in society. Carlos

Moedas, Portuguese engineer,

economist, and politician, also

weighed in later in the festival.

The renowned composer

Hans Zimmer led the 21st

Century Symphony Orchestra in

a stirring series of anthems —

titled “Once Upon a Time on the

Moon” — throughout the eve-

ning. Musicians involved with

the show included master of the

keyboards Rick Wakeman and

the guitar virtuoso Steve Vai.

Astronaut Chris Hadfield per-

formed a tribute to David Bowie

with his rendition of “Space

Oddity.”

Caltech’s Kip Thorne joined

the orchestra to narrate a musi-

cal treatment ref lecting on the

nature of black holes. May then

joined the festivities to hammer

out, with the orchestra and his

friends, renditions of the Queen

songs “’39,” “Who Wants to Live

Forever,” — in a tribute to the

departed Stephen Hawking —

and, as a closer, “We Are the

Champions.”

F

ew things in life are unique; that word gets

overused ad infinitum. But the Starmus Festival,

the international science gathering that has now

taken place five times, really is like no other

event out there. The brainchild of astrophysicist

Garik Israelian and astronomer and Queen

guitarist Brian May, the event brings together

astronauts, scientists, Nobel Prize winners,

musicians, and artists from all over the globe.

Starmus was founded when May returned to school to

finish his astrophysics doctorate, and one of his advisers was

Israelian. Together, they decided: Why not put together a

celebration of the things they loved — science and music?

Thus, Starmus — stars plus music — was born.

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