On April 23rd, which was a Wednesday, I embarked on the journey to attend the Starmus Festival in La Palma, part of the Canary Islands, accompanied by my friend and co-editor Michael Bakich as well as his spouse, Holley. However, things did not go according to plan. A series of hold-ups between Tucson and Dallas forced us to miss our connecting flight to Madrid. Consequently, we were compelled to postpone our departure until Friday, the 25th. th To depart and thus reached the vibrant Starmus Festival on the Canary Islands about thirty-six hours delayed.
Despite this, we revitalized ourselves and dove headfirst into the action. I took charge of hosting the Festival, presenting each speaker, as Michael supported me alongside, engaging the crowd with his well-known activities during breaks in speeches. Due to the venue’s limited capacity, our Starmus was slightly more intimate compared to previous editions—rather than having a few thousand attendees, we saw only several hundred—but every person present was captivated by lectures from renowned astronomers, space explorers who were astronauts, Nobel laureates across various scientific disciplines, along with enjoying the remarkable musical performances featured at the gathering.
Michael and I dived directly into the Saturday afternoon second session. By the time we got there, everyone had been raving about how fantastic the previous presentations were—John Mather discussing the Big Bang; Michael Mayor talking about exoplanets; Bernhard Schölkopf exploring artificial intelligence; Jane Goodall sharing insights on fostering future hope; Steven Chu addressing carbon capture; and Chris Hadfield weighing in on space debris. The list goes on. This impressive lineup covered an incredibly wide range of subjects currently occupying the thoughts of curious individuals everywhere. All thanks go to our brilliant Starmus organizers: astrophysicist Garik Israelian and astronomer—and let’s not forget his guitar skills! —Brian May. Garik couldn’t stop beaming with delight, but unfortunately, we didn’t get to see Brian this round since he wasn't feeling too well.
The talks carried on throughout Saturday afternoon. We had the space explorer Kathryn Thornton discussing rescuing satellites in space, Anousheh Ansari describing how she is dreaming big about the future of space exploration, Sara Garcia describing the potential for out-of-this-world medicine, and Juan Arsuaga talk about how we might recognize ET.
On Sunday, a distinctive event took place on La Palma. The 108-inch Round Table was held atop the observatory, home to the planet’s biggest telescope—the massive 10.4-meter Gran Telescopio Canarias. Esteemed thinkers deliberated various subjects ranging from science to society, reflecting on this crucial yet complex era within the realm of scientific investigation.
The final full day of talks was again loaded with very special moments. There was Kip Thorne, the world's leading authority on black holes, describing some of the strangest places in the universe, accompanied by his coauthor and good friend Lia Halloran, the exceptional artist who illustrated their book, The Twisted Aspect of Our Cosmos Volcanologist Marie Edmonds outlined the current understanding of volcanoes, a topic particularly significant since we were seated atop a series of volcanic islands. Matt Mountain discussed the potential to transform the globe. Nobel laureate chemist Kurt Wüthrich elucidated the presence of dark matter within the human genome. My former colleague Mario Livio shared insights into the search for extraterrestrial life.
And the final session of talks was no less spectacular. We heard from Nobel laureate Donna Strickland on laser physics. Another Nobel winner, George Smoot, described stem cell therapy automation. Our wonderful friend Jill Tarter communicated the latest thinking on the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence, her unique pioneering specialty. ESA astronaut Pablo Alvarez told us about roads the the cosmos. And another old friend, planetary scientist Jim Bell, closed out the festival with the search for life on other worlds.
Certainly! Here’s your revised version: Of course, the latter part of the Starmus title refers to music. We kicked off with a classic opening concert. The Sonic Universe Concert took place at a huge arena and drew crowds from all over the city. It showcased our friends—the main act, the Starmus All-Stars—featuring Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal, Derek Sherinian, Ash Sheehan, Tony Franklin, and Dino Jelusick, along with a special appearance by Glenn Hughes. They absolutely electrified the audience well into the evening. Those were some incredible moments indeed. On Sunday, we experienced another memorable event: a classical night featuring distinguished performers such as Montserrat Martà Caballé, Simona Todaro-Pavarotti, Luis Solana, and VÃctor Carbabajo. These performances created unforgettable recollections for everyone present.
And so Starmus La Palma came to a close. But there was more! Several weeks before La Palma, we held a small-sized Starmus Festival for the first time in the United States, in Washington, D.C., which I also hosted. Held at the prestigious Kennedy Center, the festival featured an "Earth to Space" theme and was a smashing success. Speakers at the Washington Starmus included Mario Livio, Eva Villaver, Kip Thorne and Lia Halloran, Nicole Stott, and Frank Culbertson. We had a wonderful time!
Already, ideas are bubbling for future Starmus events. After the board (and mainly Garik!) recover, we'll report on future possibilities in the coming months. Thanks to all of you who attended - I know many of you had the times of your lives, and it was a great pleasure to meet so many of you.
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