'Let's all choose to make tomorrow better': Artemis II astronauts win Stephen Hawking Medal

The four astronauts of NASA's Artemis II mission have received one of science's top honors for communication: the Stephen Hawking Medal. Three of the crew — NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman and Victor Glover, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen — accepted the award on Saturday, October 17. The fourth crew member, NASA astronaut Christina Koch, was not able to attend but was also recognized. The award was presented at the opening of the Starmus VIII festival in the Canary Islands.

The Stephen Hawking Medal was created in 2016 by the famous physicist Stephen Hawking and the Starmus organization. It is given to people who work hard to make science easy to understand, exciting, and inspiring for everyone. Past winners include Apollo 11 moonwalker Buzz Aldrin, naturalist David Attenborough, primatologist Jane Goodall, and astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson. This year, filmmaker Ridley Scott was also honored, and the ceremony marked the medal's 10th anniversary.

During the Artemis II mission, the crew did much more than test NASA's Orion spacecraft on its journey around the moon. They shared live videos, gave interviews, and posted stunning photos that gave the public a real sense of what it felt like to be in space. Their efforts turned an incredibly complex mission into something that millions of people worldwide could follow and feel a part of. That spirit of sharing is exactly what the Stephen Hawking Medal is meant to celebrate.

At the ceremony, Commander Reid Wiseman spoke about what it felt like to look back at Earth from near the moon. He told the audience that from 250,000 miles away, Earth looks about the size of a thumb. 'When you're there looking through the moon, back at this tiny Earth, the only thing you feel is love, peace, hope, unity,' Wiseman said. He admitted those words still don't fully describe the feeling, but said it was overwhelming in the best way.

Wiseman ended his speech with an inspiring message for everyone listening. 'When you come home to this beautiful planet, you realise that it's in every single one of us to choose to make tomorrow better,' he said. He urged the crowd to act on that feeling, closing with the words: 'So let's all choose to make tomorrow better.' The message left a strong impression on the audience.

Starmus co-founder and rock guitarist Brian May praised the Artemis II crew before the ceremony. He said it was special to honor them the same way the festival had once honored Apollo astronauts who first traveled to the moon more than 50 years ago. The Starmus VIII festival runs from October 17 to 22 across the islands of Tenerife and La Palma in the Canary Islands. This year's theme is 'The Search for Truth,' bringing together scientists, astronauts, musicians, and artists to celebrate discovery and evidence-based thinking.