The stunning sequel to Cosmos that explores humanity's ultimate frontier.
In his landmark book Cosmos, the late astronomer Carl Sagan cast his gaze over the magnificent mystery of the universe and made it accessible to millions. Now, in Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space, Sagan completes his revolutionary journey through space and time.
Future generations will look back on our epoch as the time when the human race finally broke into a radically new frontier—space. Sagan traces the spellbinding history of our launch into the cosmos and assesses the future that looms before us as we move out into our own solar system and on to distant galaxies beyond. The exploration and eventual settlement of other worlds, insists Sagan, is neither a fantasy nor a luxury, but rather a necessary condition for the survival of the human race.
Praise for Pale Blue Dot:
“Fascinating . . . memorable . . . revealing . . . perhaps the best of Carl Sagan’s books.”—The Washington Post Book World
“Takes readers far beyond Cosmos . . . Sagan sees humanity’s future in the stars.”—Chicago Tribune
🔭 From the Desk of Paul Bracken:
The title of this book comes from one of the most profound photographs ever taken: the 1990 Voyager 1 image of Earth as a tiny, fragile speck of light suspended in a sunbeam, viewed from 3.7 billion miles away. Whenever I am processing images of massive galaxies millions of light-years away at the observatory, I think about that pale blue dot. Sagan’s reflections on that image—and what it means for our future—will completely shift your perspective on our place in the universe. A brilliant, humbling, and essential read.
