STARMUS VIII opens in Tenerife: Artemis II crew members receive Stephen Hawking Medal

Three of the four astronauts of the Artemis II lunar mission, the first crewed mission to travel around the Moon in more than half a century, Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Jeremy Hansen, received the Stephen Hawking Medal at the opening ceremony of the STARMUS VIII festival in Tenerife on October 17.

The medal, first awarded in 2016, recognises individuals who have made significant contributions to science communication.

During the evening, festival co-founder and astrophysicist Garik Israelian recalled that the very first STARMUS festival, held in 2011, was marked by the participation of some of the world's most renowned astronauts.

“As you know, STARMUS was inspired in Canary Island, in Tenerife and La Palma. And the very first edition was inaugurated by Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, Alexey Leonov, William Anders, Charlie Duke. We could never imagined that 15 years later humanity will turn back to the moon and we will be standing here with Artemis II astronauts. So it’s very special honor and very special day in STARMUS in general,” Israelian said.

Artemis II commander Reid Wiseman, thanking the organisers for the medal, spoke about the feelings he experienced when looking back at Earth from beyond the Moon.

“If we could take each of you 400,000 km away from planet Earth, you would see Earth at the size of your thumb, and it would look tiny. What does it feel like when you’re there, looking back at this tiny Earth from the Moon? The only things you feel are love, peace, hope, and unity. Those are the right words, but that is all you feel. And then, when you return to this beautiful planet, you realize that you can choose to make tomorrow better. It’s just our choice. We can let tomorrow be as it will be, or we can make tomorrow better. That is up to each and every one of us here. So, let’s all choose to make tomorrow better,” said Wiseman, the commander of NASA’s lunar mission.

Another member of the lunar mission, Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen, shared his impressions of the journey and emphasised the importance of caring for Earth.

“You look at Earth from space, and it is just so incredible. And yet, from my human experience, I know what is going on and what is happening on Earth. I couldn’t see it from space; I could only see the tremendous gift we have as humans to be here. But I was remembering what was happening down there, and it was causing me to shake my head and ask, ‘What are we doing?’ And I know we can’t fix it with one magic switch or one mission, but I don’t despair at all because there is so much good here. And it becomes very simple: if we don’t despair and remember that, as individuals, all we can do is control our own actions, we can wake up every single day and commit to using our energy to contribute positively to the world around us. Never sell yourself short. You are having a real effect on people all around the world. Humanity does want to choose positivity, and you can be a voice for that as well,” Hansen told the audience.

It had previously been announced that the Stephen Hawking Medal would also be awarded to renowned Hollywood director Ridley Scott and British physicist and musician Brian Cox.

This year, the Stephen Hawking Junior Medal was also awarded for the first time, going to Spanish activist Valeria Corrales.

For the first time in the festival’s history, the Jane Goodall Earth Medal was also presented. While the Stephen Hawking Medal recognises contributions to science communication, the Jane Goodall Earth Medal honours individuals who work to protect the planet and biodiversity and use their voices to raise awareness of these issues.

The first recipient of the medal was STARMUS co-founder, astrophysicist and Queen guitarist Brian May, who has long been involved in environmental initiatives through his SAVE ME charity.

“I never thought when we were lovingly putting together with Jane that I could be the recipient of one. Needless to say that I feel kind of unworthy but I am thrilled to be part of her legacy. I was lucky enough to spend some time in her company and be directly inspired by the things she said and felt and acted upon. Most of my work has been done for SAVE ME, which is a charity which I founded 15 years ago with Anne Brummer. We named it SAVE ME with the idea that it would give the wild animals a voice and that’s what we’ve been doing. It has rescued a thousand of animals all around Britain over these past years and given them a second chance at life,” May said.

Christina Figueres also received the Jane Goodall Earth Medal, while the Jane Goodall Earth Junior Medal was awarded to 11-year-old Aneeshwar Kunchala.

The opening ceremony concluded with STARMUS’s traditional Symphony of the Stars concert, featuring performances by Brian May, Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli, English soprano Sarah Brightman, legendary keyboardist Rick Wakeman, the Las Palmas Symphony Orchestra and other singers and musicians.

The Armenpress coverage of the STARMUS festival is supported by Team Telecom Armenia.