Journey to the Dawn of Time

Will humans colonize Mars? Soon? Are we alone in the universe, or is there life beyond the stars? And where is the beginning of everything — that single, distant, infinitesimal point that propelled all of creation? Thomas Zurbuchen, Switzerland’s own son and America’s NASA research director, leads us across the Universe.

“We are at the verge of really breaking new ground,” says this tall man with sparkling eyes. “We will transform life on Earth for everyone and everywhere.” The enthusiasm is written on his face. And it is contagious.
We meet Thomas Zurbuchen under the dome of the observatory on the roof of Kirchenfeld High School in Berne, Switzerland. The astrophysicist is on a brief, holiday visit to his native country. Growing up as a pastor's son in the farming village of Heiligenschwendi in the Bernese Oberland, he left for America to, literally, reach for the stars. Since 2016, Zurbuchen has led the research missions of the United States space agency, NASA. As its science d ...