How Carl Sagan Predicted Today’s USA 26 Years Ago

The astronomer’s dystopian vision looks as if he had had the time machine

Carl Sagan designed the Pioneer Plaques which were placed on board the 1972 Pioneer 10 and the 1973 Pioneer 11 spacecraft in case they came across extraterrestrial life| Images by Wikimedia Commons, altered by the author

Most people know Carl Sagan for his TV series “Cosmos” where he successfully explained scientific phenomena to common people. This astronomer first worked as an associate professor at Harvard and later became a book author. He received many awards: the NASA Distinguished Public Service Medal, the Pulitzer Prize, and two Emmy awards, among others.

Sagan also set up the first messages on the spacecraft sent into space in 1972 and 1973 in case some smart ETs come across them: the Pioneer Plaque with the picture of a man and a woman, as well as the description of the location of the Earth in space. The second message was the 1977 Voyager Golden Record with different sights and sounds from our beautiful planet.

But a quarter-century after his death, we remember him for something far from scientific research — his foretelling skills.

Sagan’s quote that made all people wonder

The scientist wrote The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark (1995) where he discusses aliens and speaks in favor of science and against spirituality.