LONDON, June 23, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- STARMUS VI Science and Art Festival, from 31 August to 9 September, entitled "STARMUS VI. 50 Years on Mars," will be held in Armenia and dedicated to the 50th anniversary of the first soft landing on Mars by "Mars 3" and the first orbiter "Mariner 9". "Mariner 9" took the first high-quality images of Mars while "Mars 3" brought the first rover, Prop-M, to the surface of Mars.
STARMUS was founded by astrophysicist Dr. Garik Israelian and Dr. Brian May, astrophysicist and the legendary guitarist of Queen, to create a platform that unites Nobel Prize laureates, astronauts, and the brightest minds in science, art and technology. The STARMUS Advisory Board includes Dr. Brian May, Emmanuelle Charpentier, Jill Tarter, Peter Gabriel, Richard Dawkins and Tony Fadell.
Speakers at STARMUS VI will include world-renowned astronauts, including social media-sensation Chris Hadfield; Charlie Duke (Apollo 16), the youngest man to walk on the moon; Jim Bagian, a former astronaut of Armenian descent; and Charles Bolden Jr., the former head of NASA. In addition, STARMUS will feature a wide selection of Nobel Laureate scientists such as Kip Thorne, Emmanuelle Charpentier, Donna Strickland, iPod creator Tony Fadell and physicist and science communicator Brian Greene. Musicians will include rock band Sons of Apollo; legendary keyboardist Rick Wakeman; Serj Tankian, the Armenian-American singer of System of a Down; revered jazz pianist Tigran Hamasyan and Andrey Makarevich, founder of Russia's oldest active rock band, amongst other celebrities and renowned scientists.
Stephen Hawking, one of the most influential scientists of the 20th and early 21st centuries, was a STARMUS advisory board member and became the inspiration for an ambitious award in 2016 that recognizes the merit of popular science at an international level. The Stephen Hawking Science Medal awarding ceremony is one of the key events of the Festival, aimed at promoting science to everyone. Previous winners of the medal have included Hans Zimmer, Neil deGrasse Tyson, Buzz Aldrin and Brian Eno.
Armenia was selected for its contribution to astronomy, astrophysics and space exploration. For much of the 20th century, it was home to the Soviet space programme, and to this day it remains a key location for the international community, housing The Byurakan Astrophysical Observatory and the Aragatz Station.
Garik Israelian, astrophysicist, STARMUS co-founder says: "Armenia has played an extraordinary role in the past, present and future of how we understand and explore our universe, and I'm looking forward to welcome this extraordinary range of thinkers and creatives to encounter this special place and share ideas."
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Interviews and additional images are available
For more information contact Four Culture: Starmus@fourcommunications.com
Related Images
Image 1: Dr Garik Israelian, astrophysicist and co-founder of STARMUS
Dr. Garik Israelian, astrophysicist and co-founder of STARMUS at the press conference for STARMUS VI
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