An astronomer mysteriously disappears, leaving no trace. From September 16, Thomas Marsh, British scientist from La Silla Observatory, in Chile, he is being sought by the country’s authorities after the initial request of his colleagues, and then his daughter, Tabitha.
The last time he was seen, Marsh was carrying out routine scientific work. Officially, a 23-year-old student at the University of Warwick, where the astronomer also worked, was the last to see it. They had an argument, but apparently it went no further.
The name of the student is unknown and he left Chile recently, although he continues to collaborate with the authorities.
What happened to Thomas Marsh? Where is it?
The work of astronomer Thomas Marsh at the La Silla Observatory
The European Southern Observatory It has its headquarters in Germany, but due to an agreement in the 1960s it has three observatories in Chile, important for their location for the analysis of the universe.
They are in La Silla, Paranal and the Llano de Chanjnantor, notable places for astronomical observations.
La Silla, at 2,400 meters above sea level, It has 18 telescopes, five of them built by the European Southern Observatory. Scientists from various countries work on the site, examining any element in the infinite.
One of them is Marsh. The 61-year-old astrophysicist from the University of Warwick specialized in the area of gravitational waves.
Describe Marsh in his summary of the Warwick page: “I started the Astronomy and Astrophysics group at Warwick in 2003. My research interests are the accumulation and evolution of binary stars. I am also interested in the observational techniques needed to study these projects.”
The scientist continues: “My main projects in recent years have been the use and exploitation of ULTRACAM and HiPERCAM, which are high-speed multiband CCD imagers”.
The Warwick student, whose name has not been released by authorities, was the last to see him. He said that they would work on the TNN telescope, but that they had had a run-in earlier.
Marsh did not arrive.
“Having mapped a large part of the sector, the search has been focused on more obvious sectors for walking and certain indications of the passage of people through those places have been found. There are no signs that make us think that he is not alive.
— Adrian Vega, Prosecutor
“Despite the extensive and thorough search carried out by Carabineros and PDI”, say the authorities of the La Silla Observatory, “with the support of ESO personnel and the British police, sadly Marsh has yet to be found.”
ESO’s La Silla Observatory is located in a mountainous area in the northern part of the Coquimbo region.
This is the great difficulty: There are more than 3 thousand hectares of mountainous area to search for a man.
Why was the student who last saw Marsh able to leave Chile?
The mysterious student who saw Marsh for the last time left the country, according to the regional prosecutor Adrián Vega, since it is not formalized.
However, Vega indicated that “we do not rule out any possibility and the possible theories remain open.”
The student was investigated by Chilean officials, “in the event of a body burial. One of several hypotheses”, said former PDI José Miguel Vallejo, quoted by The Fourth.
Our friend and colleague Prof. Tom Marsh went missing from ESO’s La Silla Observatory last week.
In common with his family, we are desperately concerned. If you have any information please call the
police on +44 1926 415000 giving reference number
INC 153 9/18/22 UK/Warks Police pic.twitter.com/hlNJYurEo5— Warwick Astro Group (@WarwickAstro) September 22, 2022
This Tuesday, Chancellor Chris Ennew, from the University of Warwick, updated his community on the Marsh case. “A highly trained team of specialists, who have in-depth knowledge of the mountainous terrain around the observatory, are working tirelessly to locate Tom.”
“We are hopeful that Tom will be found and we will continue to do everything we can to help the teams on the ground and support the community.”
Meanwhile, the mystery continues.
Where is Thomas Marsh?