The most popular and international festival of art, music, astrophysics and space science, Starmus, will again turn Tenerife and La Palma into centres of international attention. Next week, from June 27th until July 2nd , with the subtitle "Beyond the Horizon, Tribute to Stephen Hawking" this third edition of the festival will pay tribute to this cosmologist and theoretical physicist, considered one of the most important scientists ever. The Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC) and the Gran Telescopio CANARIAS (GTC) will collaborate again in this initiative, whose aim is to provide an access window on science and art, with the help of the most brilliant minds in these fields, via a series of diverse lectures and other activities.
Starmus 2016 will bring together well known figures in all of these areas, among whom we can pick out 10 Nobel Laureates, including David Gross (for the discovery of asymptotic freedom), Robert Wilson (for the discovery of the cosmic microwave background radiation), Adam Riess and Brian Schmidt (for the discovery of the accelarating expansion of the universe, using supernova observations), and Elizabeth Blackburn (for discovering the telomerase enzyme).
As well as Stephen Hawking, other famous scientists and popularizers will participate, including Neil deGrasse Tyson, Richard Dawkins, Jill Tarter, Roger Penrose, and Kip Thorne. NASA scientists will talk about space missions, and legendary astronauts, such as Alexei Leonov, Chris Hadfield, and Claude Nicollier will also take part.
At the Roque de los Muchachos Observatory, in Garafía (La Palma), there will be a panel discussion “108 minutes” held in the Gran Telescopio CANARIAS, with some of the invited speakers. The 108 minutes refers to the duration of the first human space flight, by the Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin. Participants in the Festival will also visit the Teide Observatory in Tenerife.
As well as the lectures and debates art, music and science will be combined in the grand Sonic Universe concert, with actuations by Bryan May (astrophysicist and musician in the Queen group), Hans Zimmer (famous composer of film music), the Tenerife Symphony Orchestra, and Brian Eno, among others. “This is a unique festival, an invitation for all those who want to know about the great discoveries, and also world wide threats to which we are all exposed nowadays”, explains Garik Israelian, researcher at the IAC, founder and director of Starmus.
STARMUS CONTACTS
Press:
- Marisa Toro: marisa.toro [at] marlowinsight.com (marisa[dot]toro[at]marlowinsight[dot]com), +34607665625
- Marina Lewinsky: marina.lewinsky [at] marlowinsight.com (marina[dot]lewinsky[at]marlowinsight[dot]com), +34620822146
Starmus programme and more information at:
