This seminal work is reproduced here for a whole new generation to enjoy. In Sagan's typically lucid and lyrical style, he discusses many topics from astrophysics and solar system science, to colonization, terraforming and the search for extraterrestrials. Sagan conveys his own excitement and wonder, and relates the revelations of astronomy to the most profound human problems and concerns: issues that are just as valid today as they were thirty years ago. New to this edition are Freeman Dyson's comments on Sagan's vision and the importance of the work, Ann Druyan's assessment of Sagan's cultural significance as a champion of science, and David Morrison's discussion of the advances made since 1973 and what became of Sagan's predictions. Who knows what wonders this third millennium will reveal, but one thing is certain: Carl Sagan played a unique role in preparing us for them.

    Was the mysterious 30-megaton blast that flattened a Siberian forest in 1908 actually caused by a small black hole? Does matter drawn into a black hole reappear out the 'other side' as anti-matter, a sort of mirror-image of the universe as we know it? Could back holes explain the 'Big Bang'? Does their existence raise the possibility that matter can move faster than the speed of light? The noted scientist and science fiction author explores the exciting implications of black holes, taking the reader on an engaging tour from the atom's innermost core to the outermost reaches of the universe.

    Far from the drabness of scientific textbooks, here is a mind bending trip into the world as it is-and as it might have been. What would life on earth be like if we didn't have a moon?Why don't we follow the clear logic of a seasonal calender? Must we computerize the world because we have grown too lazy to run it in any other way? Scientist or non scientist, layman or specialist, asimov invites you to join him on a trip back into the past and forward into the future.

    Emphasizing physical concepts, it provides the student with a series of astrophysical sketches, concluding with a synthesis of all the subjects discussed, sketching the history of the universe from its beginning to the formation of the sun and the planets.