Disclaimer: The author of this Beyond bite is a Cornell graduate student affiliated with the Carl Sagan Institute. Any views and opinions expressed by persons in the event covered and by the author are theirs alone, and not necessarily endorsed by or shared by the Carl Sagan Institute, Astrobites, Cornell University, or the AAS.
Carl Sagan, for the uninitiated, was a science communicator and astronomer perhaps best known for his book and TV series Cosmos, in addition to his novel Contact, which inspired an acclaimed Zemeckis-directed film of the same name. Even after his unfortunate demise in 1996, his work has continued to inspire astrophysicists, astrobiologists, planetary scientists, engineers, artists, and numerous everyday people, this Astrobiter included. (I read Cosmos in high school for a creative writing course and it’s stuck with me ever since!)
Nearly twenty-eight years later, the passage of time has inevitably rendered a few scientific details in his writings defunct. However, his words regarding the importance of communicating science to the public and a scientifically literate populace have only become more relevant. The election of a certain Donald J. Trump and his lackeys, who have vowed to dismantle the Department of Education and roll back climate regulations, brings to mind Carl Sagan’s book The Demon-Haunted World, where he warns of a future America ruled by science-rejecting demagogues and pseudoscience-peddling pundits.
It is this context that Ann Druyan, widow of Carl Sagan, creative director for the storied Golden Record, and creator of Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey and Cosmos: Possible Worlds, reminded us of in her opening speech for the 90th would-be birthday celebration of Carl Sagan, a public lecture extravaganza hosted by the Carl Sagan Institute at Cornell University on November 9, 2024.
The Carl Sagan Institute, cheekily abbreviated CSI, is an interdisciplinary research group with a simple yet profound goal: to find life in the universe, wherever it may be. Coming from a physics and astronomy background, this Astrobiter has found CSI to be the most excitingly interdisciplinary team they’ve ever found themselves in. One can walk down the halls of the third floor of the Space Sciences Building, where the majority of CSI is hosted, and chat with astronomers working on the upcoming Habitable Worlds Observatory mission, climate scientists modeling alien atmospheres, and even biologists probing soil and microbe samples. Carl Sagan promoted this cross-field collaborative spirit that is now integral to CSI, and it was fully on display in the series of public lectures given on his birthday.
Accomplished exoplanet hunters Lisa Kaltenegger, director of CSI, and Nikole Lewis, director of graduate studies in astronomy at Cornell, connected Sagan’s passions for astrobiology and finding life in the universe to the greater search for exoplanets, which he unfortunately had not been able to witness. Besides searching for exoplanets, characterizing them is crucial to answering whether we are alone in the cold, callous cosmos. While not quite the sentient predatory gas clouds Sagan light-heartedly speculated in Cosmos, we have found a whole array of alien geographies on these faraway worlds, ranging from quartz clouds to lava-filled planets that are more like hell than heaven.
Looking a bit closer to Earth, for some comparative planetology, fellow astronomer and planetary scientist Britney Schmidt connected her work examining ice shelves in Antarctica to Europa’s 30-kilometer-thick ice shell, which may hide a water world. Similarly to what Carl Sagan would have thought, she defined Earth System Science as the study of interconnected cycles and processes supporting life on our planet, and our duty to protect it.
The next set of speakers gave a more human-oriented perspective on Carl Sagan’s work. Bruce Lewenstein, professor in Communication and Science and Technology Studies, who presented on Carl Sagan’s use of the imagination in scientific research and outreach. Unlike other prominent popular science books at the time, Cosmos centered imagination as a learning tool, which was visualized as the “Ship of the Imagination” in both the original TV show and the 2010s reboot, influencing the style of subsequent science communicators. Carl Sagan used imagination to not just teach, but compel viewers and readers to see a common humanity reflected at them by the stars. Some of these viewers who took Cosmos’ message to heart relayed their own messages afterwards, such as Jill Tarter, first director of the SETI Institute, and inspiration for the protagonist of Contact, and Bill Nye, beloved host of Bill Nye the Science Guy.
The celebration had a musical interlude featuring Charles Ive’s prescient composition, The Unanswered Question, played by Cornell’s student string orchestra, directed by Gabriela S. Gómez Estévez.
During the second half of the celebration, more scientists from a variety of fields shared their Sagan-inspired work. Among them was Mark Sarvary, lecturer in biology and science communication, who shared insights about Cornell’s highly successful science communication minor, which was inspired by Carl Sagan’s vision. It had been noted by several speakers that Sagan’s science communication efforts were not appreciated by the scientific community of his day, despite their obvious benefits. Sagan’s work has since inspired a paradigm change where scientists, just like this Astrobiter and other Astrobiters, increasingly take on science communication as part of their training.
The final set of researchers presented developments that Carl Sagan had been unable to dream of, but nonetheless would greatly appreciate as furtherances of space exploration technology and astrobiology. Among these were Josh Umansky-Castro, a PhD student in mechanical and aerospace engineering, who explained light sail and small satellite technology, which is poised to extend the distance and economical constraints of future missions, which have been a significant concern since Sagan’s time. Then there was postdoc researcher Jonas Biren, who spoke about lava worlds. Like Schmidt, Biren uses Earth as a laboratory to understand exoplanet characteristics, namely by extracting lava samples and manipulating their properties.
Elaine Petro and Buz Barstow, from mechanical and aerospace engineering and biological and environmental engineering respectively, subsequently discussed research regarding Enceladus’s ocean, and the notion of using specially-engineered microbes to probe constraints on life. Rebecca Payne, former postdoc and now visiting professor at Bates College, then spoke about her exoplanet climate modeling work, specifically concerning near the edge of the habitable zone. Ligia Coelho, a postdoc and cancer-researcher-turned-astrobiologist at CSI, discussed the life spectra catalog she has been developing to compare potential biosignatures to.
At the end, Ann Druyan closed out the lecture series by talking about her deep involvement in the creation of the Golden Record, which involved picking sounds from all over the world, even recording her own brain activity for inclusion. She wrapped up with a heartfelt video message from Sasha Sagan, Carl’s daughter, who told the audience how important it was to uphold and cherish his legacy, especially in these troubling times.
It was an amazing experience for everyone involved, and it definitely inspired this Astrobiter to continue on in their research.
Featured image credit: The Carl Sagan Institute
Edited by: Maria Vincent
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