On this day – 20 December
Posted on: Fri 20 Dec 2019
On this day in 1996, the American astronomer, astrophysicist and communicator Carl Sagan died of pneumonia at the age of 62.
Sagan co-wrote and narrated the classic television series Cosmos: A Personal Voyage which has been watched by five 500 million people in more than 60 countries.
Sagan’s scientific achievements include the design of the Pioneer Plaques and the Voyager Golden Record. These designs implemented in space missions were universal messages containing information of the human race which could potentially be understood by any extra-terrestrial intelligence that might find them. In addition, Sagan discovered that the high temperatures of Venus can be attributed to the greenhouse effect, which alerts us about the consequences of global warming in our planet.
Produced by David Bucio
Image source: Kenneth C. Zirkel (CC BY 4.0)
