Carl sagan last words

How did carl sagan die
Where did carl sagan live
What did carl sagan do for a living

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American Scientist

This Article From Issue

January-February 2000

Volume 88, Number 1

Carl Sagan: A Life. Keay Davidson. 512 pp. John Wiley and Sons, 1999. $30.

Carl Sagan: A Life in the Cosmos. William Poundstone. 449 pp. Henry Holt, 1999. $30.

Carl Sagan had an enormous impact on planetary science and science popularization. His successes and excesses will likely be debated for many years. Three years after Sagan's untimely death from cancer, we have two fine biographies to remind us of his achievements.

Both books contain the full sweep of Sagan's impact as a scientist and popularizer; the differences between them are in style and emphasis. William Poundstone's Carl Sagan: A Life in the Cosmos is stronger on the central scientific issues in Sagan’s career. For example, Poundstone gives an excellent description of the debates where Sagan stood at center stage: the evidence of life elsewhere in the solar system and the effects of nuclear war on global climate. Keay Davidson's Carl Sagan: A Life is richer in anecdotes and quotes. Davidson’s discussion of Sa

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Carl Sagan: The People’s Astronomer

Chapter 4

David Morrison

NASA, Ames Research Center

INTRODUCTION

Carl Sagan was the world’s best known scientist in the late 20th century, serving as our guide to the planets during the golden age of solar system exploration. He was both a visionary and a committed defender of rational scientific thinking. For a time, he transcended the usual categories of academics to become a true celebrity. His life illustrates both the advantages (wealth, fame, access to the seats of power) and burdens (loss of privacy, stress, criticism from academic colleagues) this status implies.

Sagan was propelled on his academic and public careers by a wealth of talent, a large share of good luck, and an intensely focused drive to succeed. His lifelong quest was to understand the universe, especially our planetary system, and to communicate the thrill of scientific discovery to others. A natural teacher, he loved to explain things and never made a questioner feel stupid for asking. Although Sagan had broad

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Carl Sagan

American scientist and science communicator (1934–1996)

For other uses, see Carl Sagan (disambiguation).

Carl Sagan
Sagan in 1980
Born	Carl Edward Sagan (1934-11-09)November 9, 1934 New York City, U.S.
Died	December 20, 1996(1996-12-20) (aged 62) Seattle, Washington, U.S.
Resting place	Lake View Cemetery
Education	University of Chicago (BA, BS, MS, PhD)
Known for
Spouses	Lynn Margulis (m. 1957; div. 1965) Linda Salzman (m. 1968; div. 1981) Ann Druyan (m. 1981)
Children	5, including Dorion, Nick, and Sasha
Awards
Scientific career
Fields
Institutions
Thesis	Physical studies of planets (1960)
Doctoral advisor	Gerard Kuiper
Doctoral students

Carl Edward Sagan (; SAY-gən; November 9, 1934 – December 20, 1996) was an American astronomer, planetary scientist and science communicator. His best known scientif