origin
Carl Sagan was born in Brooklyn, New York City, on November 9, 1934. His father was a simple worker from Ukraine, and his mother was a housewife. He had one sister named Carol. His family was Reform Jews and lived in a modest home. His father was not religious, unlike his mother, who regularly visited the temple. He was very fond of her, and she saw him as the dream she had not achieved when she was young, which made her love him madly.
Carl learned two ways of thinking from his parents, with whom he was very close despite their differences. The turning point in his life and growth was when his parents visited the New York World's Fair, which sparked his interest in some of the exhibits there. Carl wrote a book called Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors, in which the impact of his childhood memories is clearly seen.
Sagan witnessed one of the most important events at this famous fair: the burial of a time capsule in Flushing Meadows, which was one of the things that excited him as he was growing up. He also wrote a book called The Demon-Haunted World, which includes some of his memories from the period of World War II, although his mother was trying to keep him away from its events.
Carl took his first solo trip when he was five years old, to the public library, where he was obsessed with gaining knowledge. When he was seven, he also went on a trip with his friend to the American Museum of Natural History, and the three-dimensional images there amazed him. His parents encouraged him to be more interested in science, and through what Carl read, he developed his passion for other planets, focusing his efforts on uncovering the secrets of the planets in his early years.
Carl attended middle school, and when he was fourteen, he and his family moved to New Jersey, where his father's new job was. He went to high school there, became president of the chemistry club, and set up his own laboratory in his home. He was more interested in astronomy, which made him consider making it a permanent part of his career.
education
Before graduating from high school, he wrote an essay for a competition in which he discussed how Earth's contact with other planets could affect humans, warning that it might be harmful or disastrous. His essay won first place, and he was nicknamed "the outstanding" among his classmates. Carl graduated early to attend the University of Chicago at the age of sixteen.
During his undergraduate studies, Carl worked in the laboratory of geneticist H. J. Muller, contributed to writing a thesis on the origins of life with physical chemist Harold Urey, and joined an astronomical society called Ryerson.
Carl earned a Bachelor of Arts degree with both special and general honors, as well as a Bachelor of Science degree in physics. He then continued his graduate studies at the university to earn a Master of Science in physics and a doctorate in astronomy and astrophysics, through his thesis titled Physical Studies of the Planets.
Carl worked with astronomer Gerard Kuiper, who was the chairman of the International Astronomical Union, and they shared similar interests. He also worked on some secret projects for the US Air Force and for NASA. Additionally, he tried to secure a scholarship at the University of California, Berkeley, and was successful.
Career, research, and scientific accomplishments
Early in his university years, Carl published an article called "The Atmosphere of Venus." This article prompted astronomers at Harvard University to invite him to give a seminar there. They then offered him a position as a lecturer, but he asked to be an assistant professor. That’s what happened, and he positively influenced many people through his lectures and research.
At that time, Carl was a planetary science consultant for the Rand Corporation and also worked at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory.
Carl was denied a permanent academic position at Harvard because he was a polymath rather than a well-known expert in a specific, narrow field. So when he was contacted by a new scientist at Cornell University in New York, he immediately agreed to move there and join the faculty. He continued his work there for about thirty years until his death.
Carl was promoted to full professor at Cornell and took on the role of director at its Planetary Studies Laboratory.
The American space program conducted by NASA included Carl, who worked as a consultant and handled tasks such as organizing scientific experiments for space and sending physical messages with missions—messages that other civilizations could use to learn about our civilization, like the Voyager Golden Record, for example.
Carl did not specialize in a specific field or study, but excelled in communication between sciences. Among his scientific achievements was the discovery of high temperatures on the surface of Venus, which was later confirmed by missions that reached there. He also hypothesized that Saturn's moon Titan had liquids on its surface and that Jupiter's moon Europa had liquids below its surface, both of which were later verified.
He made many assumptions about Mars, Jupiter, and Venus, and discussed global warming and its impacts on Earth in the future. He also predicted the existence of life on some planets where the climate suggested it might be possible. Additionally, he received the Public Welfare Medal from the National Academy of Sciences.
Carl co-wrote the Cosmos series, one of the most watched series in history, which was turned into a book of the same name. He also authored the best-selling book The Dragons of Eden, for which he won the Pulitzer Prize for Literature, along with many other works he presented, such as the famous film Contact, which gained him great recognition among the public, and became a scientific and cultural icon that remains unmatched.
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