Spacecraft missions to nearby Planets
The Library of ancient Alexandria
The human brain
Egyptian Hieroglyphics
The origin of life
The death of the Sun
The evolution of galaxies
The origins of matter, suns and worlds
COSMOS
The story of fifteen billion years of cosmic evolution transforming matter and life into
consciousness, of how science and civilization grew up together, and of the forces and
individuals who helped shape modern science. A story told with Carl Sagan’s remarkable
ability to make scientific ideas both comprehensible and exciting, based on his acclaimed
television series.
, For Ann Druyan
In the vastness of space and the immensity of time,
it is my joy to share
a planet and an epoch with Annie
,Carl Sagan was the Director of the Laboratory for Planetary studies and David Duncan
Professor of Astronomy and Space Sciences at Cornell University. He played a leading role
in the Mariner, Viking and Voyager expeditions to the planets, for which he received the
NASA medals for Exceptional Scientific Achievement and for Distinguished Public
Service, and the international astronautics prize, the Prix Galabert.
He served as Chairman of the Division for Planetary Sciences of the American
Astronomical Society, as Chairman of the Astronomy Section of the American Association
for the Advancement of Science, and as President of the Planetology Section of the
American Geophysical Union. For twelve years, he was Editor-in-Chief of Icarus, the
leading professional journal devoted to planetary research. In addition to four hundred
published scientific and popular articles, Dr Sagan was the author, co-author or editor of
more than a dozen books, including Intelligent Life in the Universe, The Cosmic
Connection, The Dragons of Eden, Murmurs of Earth, Broca’s Brain and the bestselling
science fiction novel, Contact.
He was a recipient of the Joseph Priestly Award ‘for distinguished contributions to the
welfare of mankind’, and the Pulitzer Prize for literature.
Carl Sagan died in December 1996.
, CARL SAGAN
Cosmos
CONTENTS
Introduction
1 The Shores of the Cosmic Ocean
2 One Voice in the Cosmic Fugue
3 The Harmony of Worlds
4 Heaven and Hell
5 Blues for a Red Planet
6 Travelers’ Tales
7 The Backbone of Night
8 Travels in Space and Time
9 The Lives of the Stars
10 The Edge of Forever
11 The Persistence of Memory
12 Encyclopaedia Galactica
13 Who Speaks for Earth?
Appendix 1: Reductio ad Absurdum and the Square Root of Two
Appendix 2: The Five Pythagorean Solids
The Library of ancient Alexandria
The human brain
Egyptian Hieroglyphics
The origin of life
The death of the Sun
The evolution of galaxies
The origins of matter, suns and worlds
COSMOS
The story of fifteen billion years of cosmic evolution transforming matter and life into
consciousness, of how science and civilization grew up together, and of the forces and
individuals who helped shape modern science. A story told with Carl Sagan’s remarkable
ability to make scientific ideas both comprehensible and exciting, based on his acclaimed
television series.
, For Ann Druyan
In the vastness of space and the immensity of time,
it is my joy to share
a planet and an epoch with Annie
,Carl Sagan was the Director of the Laboratory for Planetary studies and David Duncan
Professor of Astronomy and Space Sciences at Cornell University. He played a leading role
in the Mariner, Viking and Voyager expeditions to the planets, for which he received the
NASA medals for Exceptional Scientific Achievement and for Distinguished Public
Service, and the international astronautics prize, the Prix Galabert.
He served as Chairman of the Division for Planetary Sciences of the American
Astronomical Society, as Chairman of the Astronomy Section of the American Association
for the Advancement of Science, and as President of the Planetology Section of the
American Geophysical Union. For twelve years, he was Editor-in-Chief of Icarus, the
leading professional journal devoted to planetary research. In addition to four hundred
published scientific and popular articles, Dr Sagan was the author, co-author or editor of
more than a dozen books, including Intelligent Life in the Universe, The Cosmic
Connection, The Dragons of Eden, Murmurs of Earth, Broca’s Brain and the bestselling
science fiction novel, Contact.
He was a recipient of the Joseph Priestly Award ‘for distinguished contributions to the
welfare of mankind’, and the Pulitzer Prize for literature.
Carl Sagan died in December 1996.
, CARL SAGAN
Cosmos
CONTENTS
Introduction
1 The Shores of the Cosmic Ocean
2 One Voice in the Cosmic Fugue
3 The Harmony of Worlds
4 Heaven and Hell
5 Blues for a Red Planet
6 Travelers’ Tales
7 The Backbone of Night
8 Travels in Space and Time
9 The Lives of the Stars
10 The Edge of Forever
11 The Persistence of Memory
12 Encyclopaedia Galactica
13 Who Speaks for Earth?
Appendix 1: Reductio ad Absurdum and the Square Root of Two
Appendix 2: The Five Pythagorean Solids
