Carl Sagan
Carl Sagan was an American astronomer, planetary scientist, and science communicator. He is best known for the television series Cosmos, which brought the astronomy to millions of the viewers.
Early Life and Education
Sagan was born in 1934 in Brooklyn, New York. His parents were Jewish immigrants from the Eastern Europe.
He studied at the University of Chicago and took his doctorate in astronomy and astrophysics in 1960. He was a graduate student of the physicist and the astronomer.
He taught at Harvard University and later at Cornell University. He became the director of the Laboratory for the Planetary Studies.
The Scientific Work
Sagan contributed to the study of the planetary atmospheres and the greenhouse effect. He showed that the high temperature of Venus was caused by the greenhouse effect.
He worked on the missions of the Mariner and the Viking and the Voyager spacecraft. He designed the plaques and the records that carried the messages to the extraterrestrial.
He studied the origin of the life and the possibility of the extraterrestrial life. He founded the field of the exobiology.
He warned of the danger of the nuclear winter in the 1980s. The study showed that the nuclear war would cause the global cooling.
The Science Communication
Sagan presented the television series Cosmos in 1980. The series was watched by more than five hundred million people in the sixty countries.
He wrote the book Cosmos that accompanied the series. The book became the bestseller and was translated into many languages.
He wrote the novels Contact and the other books. The novel Contact was made into the film.
He founded the Planetary Society to promote the space exploration. The society is the largest of the space advocacy organisations.
The Legacy
Sagan received the Pulitzer Prize for the book The Dragons of Eden. He received the honours from the scientific and the public institutions.
He appeared on the television programmes and the public lectures. He was one of the most famous of the scientists of his time.
He died in 1996 in Seattle. The asteroid and the institute are named in his honour.
He is remembered as the great populariser of the science. His message of the wonder and the responsibility continues to inspire.
The Scientific Research
Sagan contributed to the study of the planetary atmospheres. He showed that the high temperature of Venus was caused by the greenhouse effect.
He worked on the missions of the Mariner and the Viking and the Voyager spacecraft. He designed the plaques and the records that carried the messages.
He studied the origin of the life and the possibility of the extraterrestrial life. He founded the field of the exobiology.
The Cosmos Series
Sagan presented the television series Cosmos in 1980. The series was watched by more than five hundred million people.
He wrote the book Cosmos that accompanied the series. The book became the bestseller and was translated into many languages.
He founded the Planetary Society to promote the space exploration. He was one of the most famous of the scientists of his time.
The Public Role
Sagan appeared on the television programmes and the public lectures. He was one of the most famous of the scientists of his time.
He advocated for the space exploration and the search for the extraterrestrial life. He warned of the danger of the nuclear winter.
He received the Pulitzer Prize for the book The Dragons of Eden. He received the honours from the scientific institutions.
The Legacy and the Memory
Sagan died in 1996 in Seattle. The asteroid and the institute are named in his honour.
He is remembered as the great populariser of the science. The Cosmos series introduced the astronomy to millions of the viewers.
His message of the wonder and the responsibility continues to inspire. He is one of the most influential of the science communicators.
The Scientific Career
Sagan studied at the University of Chicago and took his doctorate in 1960. He taught at Harvard and later at Cornell University.
He became the director of the Laboratory for the Planetary Studies. He worked on the missions of the Mariner and the Viking spacecraft.
He studied the origin of the life and the possibility of the extraterrestrial life. He founded the field of the exobiology.
The Personal Life
Sagan married three times and had five children. His wife Ann Druyan collaborated with him on the Cosmos series.
He was a gifted speaker and a popular lecturer. He was one of the most famous of the scientists of his time.
He died in 1996 in Seattle. The asteroid and the institute are named in his honour.
See also
- Astronomy
- Cosmos
- Exobiology
- Science communication