Exploring Cosmic Realms: A Journey of Wonder and Discovery
Introduction
"Cosmos" is a beautifully narrated scientific book, almost to the point where one wonders if it qualifies as a science fiction epic.
Content and Summary of the Book
The book explores various scientific concepts and theories about the universe, from the origin of the cosmos to the nature of galaxies, stars, planets, and life itself. It delves into the realms of astrophysics, cosmology, biology, and more, offering a comprehensive and captivating journey through the wonders of the universe.
Impressions
The narrative style of "Cosmos" is truly enchanting, weaving together scientific knowledge with poetic language to create a mesmerizing reading experience. It not only educates but also inspires awe and wonder at the vastness and complexity of the cosmos.
Conclusion
Reading "Cosmos" is like embarking on an extraordinary voyage through space and time, expanding our minds and sparking our curiosity about the mysteries of the universe. It is a testament to the beauty of science and the human quest for understanding.
Introduction
'Cosmos' is hailed as the most widely read science book in history, transcending eras and borders to instill hope for space exploration. It feels like a literary masterpiece, with its prose so beautifully crafted that one could mistake it for fiction. From the vast realms of the universe to the pale glow of Earth, 'Cosmos' introduces us to what humanity has discovered, the processes of discovery, and what we have yet to learn, all convincingly portraying how it ultimately aims for self-understanding.
Content and Summary of the Book
This book, based on the television program 'Cosmos,' a 13-part series conceived by Carl Sagan and fellow scientists in 1976, is not just about the origins and mysteries of the universe as I initially thought. It delves into established facts rooted in various scientific disciplines, such as astronomy, alongside imagination, philosophy, and perspectives on the future, serving as a comprehensive guide for humanity.
Chapter 1: Seashore of Cosmos
Humanity has just begun its voyage from the seashore of Cosmos to the vast universe. The process of exploring the cosmos has shocked humanity, revealing that we are not the center of the world but insignificant beings on the periphery. It introduces the stellar systems such as solar systems that make up the structure of the universe, galaxies, and galactic clusters, and the efforts of early scientists and us today to uncover the universe we know.
Chapter 2: The Fugue of Cosmic Life
The universe may be teeming with life. By examining the history of life on Earth, which evolved from tiny organic molecules, and imagining life on other planets using Jupiter as an example, it reaffirms humanity's cosmic position.
Chapter 3: Harmony of Earth and Heaven
Changes in things follow certain patterns or rules. It is commonly said that all changes in things follow the laws of nature. Therefore, science is possible, and by utilizing the knowledge revealed by science, we can advance our lives.
Today, the wind continues to sweep through the western parts of South America, but we are now the only ones who listen to the whispers of the wind. This is because the men and women who thought like us and lived here for over 40,000 generations before us have disappeared somewhere.
If this world is God's creation, shouldn't we take a closer look at it?
Chapter 4: Heaven and Hell
Earth is a very small and fragile world. Exposed to threats from the universe such as asteroid collisions and minor changes in orbital paths, Earth suffers from humanity's self-destructive actions. Carl Sagan vividly shows that whether Earth becomes a paradise or a hell like Venus depends on humanity, starting with the Tunguska event caused by a comet collision, explaining the moon with numerous meteorite impacts, and Venus suffering from surface heat and pressure like hell due to its thick carbon dioxide atmosphere.
Chapter 5: Blues for the Red Planet
Throughout history, Mars has been the subject of myths and fantasies. It tells the story of the passion and efforts of those involved with Mars and introduces current Mars exploration plans. The fear of whether life exists beyond Earth and the hope that life exists have flowed through the entire history of humanity.
Chapter 6: The Stories Voyager Tells
The Voyager spacecraft explored a new world called the solar system. It tells the stories hidden within Jupiter, Saturn, and their satellites, as well as the contributions and limitations of Christian Huygens, who boldly asserted the diversity of the world and discovered Saturn's rings, during the 17th century, when the world was immersed in geocentrism and anthropocentrism.
Chapter 7: Backbone of the Night Sky
What was the Milky Way to people? How did people think about the universe? It covers the history of humanity's cosmology since standing on the Earth's surface, rejecting mythological thinking and embracing scientific thinking on the shores of the Ionian Sea 2500 years ago by Ionian scientists such as Thales, Anaximander, Hippocrates, Empedocles, Democritus, Anaxagoras, and Pythagoras.
Chapter 8: Travels in Space and Time
Can we achieve space travel? Space travel guides us into infinite cosmic space and eternal time. Space travel is not only a journey through space but also through time.
Chapter 9: The Lives and Deaths of Stars
Stars are born, grow, age, and die. Between the lives and deaths of stars, life emerged. Ninety-nine percent of the existing matter in the universe is made up of hydrogen and helium. Hydrogen is said to have been created in a big bang. All atoms except hydrogen were created inside stars.
Chapter 10: The Edge of Forever
It is the epic of cosmic evolution. It leads from the big bang to galaxies, stars, planets, and eventually the emergence of life, which soon evolves into intelligent beings. When organisms with consciousness arise from matter, they can perceive their origins back to the moment of the big bang. This is the epic of the universe, and what else could it be.
Chapter 11: Travels in Hyperspace
We have accumulated immense memories in genes, brains, and libraries for a long time. It explains the principles of genetic and brain information processing and introduces the possibility of exchanging information with extraterrestrial life. It talks about our memories sent into the cosmic ocean aboard Voyager.
Chapter 12: Encyclopedia Galactica
Does extraterrestrial intelligent life really exist? Are UFOs really from outer space? It introduces the Drake equation, which estimates the possibility of extraterrestrial intelligent life, and examines humanity's efforts to find them.
Chapter 13: Who Speaks for Earth?
Now we see ourselves as miserable beings floating aimlessly in the vast ocean of the universe, filled with trillions of stars scattered here and there across countless galaxies. We live in constant conflict. We have weapons capable of destroying the Earth hundreds of times over. We contemplate how to solve this problem, prevent the threats of nuclear war and misuse of scientific technology, and ponder what path lies ahead for our future, our science, and the future of the Earth.
Reflection
Reading this book felt like satisfying my intellectual curiosity while also experiencing a beautiful epic saga. After closing the book, as I unfurled the wings of imagination, my soul felt as though it was hovering somewhere in the vast universe.
Understanding the vastness of the cosmos makes me realize how insignificant our world is. Instead of feeling belittled, it gives me the mental strength to think that the difficulties and challenges I face now are actually trivial. We are all nothing more than specks of dust in the universe. Not only humans but also the Earth we inhabit is insignificant from a cosmic perspective. Yet, we continue to live together, squabbling within.
The universe is immense. Humanity has not even conquered our own solar system, let alone ventured beyond Mars. The solar system is but a speck in the unknown territory beyond Mars. We are still debating whether Pluto belongs to the solar system or if new planets exist beyond Neptune.
Not only that, but there are billions of other solar systems revolving around stars like the Sun, forming galaxies. If there are thousands of billions of stars like the Sun, then there must be sextillions, or maybe even more, planets like Earth. And that's not the end of it. Such galaxies gather again to form billions of galaxy clusters, and then galaxy superclusters. It's beyond imagination, bordering on terrifying.
When we look at the stars in the night sky, they are not just individual stars like the Sun, but often the collective light emitted by an entire galaxy. The vastness of the universe can be gauged not only by the number of stars and planets but also by the distance. Light travels seven times around the Earth in one second. When we blink, light has already traveled around the Earth. Can you imagine that speed? Yet, we still need more than 14 hours cramped in a narrow airplane to fly to the opposite side of the Earth.
To reach the Sun at the speed of light, it takes over 8 minutes. In other words, the sunlight we see is actually the image of the Sun from over 8 minutes ago. They say we'll soon go to Mars. How long will it take to get to Mars? With our current technology, it takes about 4 years to travel by spaceship. It takes only 14 hours to fly to the US, but we have to spend 4 more years traveling. And yet, we haven't even left the solar system.
Most of the stars we see in the night sky exist thousands, millions, or even billions of light-years away. It's beyond human comprehension to travel billions of light-years at a speed of 300,000 kilometers per second, circling the Earth seven times in one second. If we were to reach that distant place, who knows if there's an end even after traveling the same distance again. What does Earth mean in the universe? Even if there were a deity who created us, would they know they created humans living on a planet called Earth? Just as we don't know about each cell that makes up our body, it's highly probable that the universe, let alone the existence of Earth itself, is unknown to us. At this point, it's confusing what the universe really is, whether this space actually exists.
The starlight we see in the night sky is from the past. Because they are thousands or millions of light-years away, it takes that much time for the light to reach Earth after it was created. Even if that star meets its demise, it will still be visible from Earth until billions of light-years have passed.
We haven't even conquered our own Earth. The term "conquer" might sound strange, but anyway, humans still don't know everything about Earth. In the jungles of Africa or the Amazon, new animals and plants are still being discovered, and if you go to the depths of the sea, it's a completely unknown world.
Conclusion
In this era of space exploration, I don't know when the secrets of the universe will be revealed. I'm not sure if humanity will be able to know before extinction. Perhaps it was meant to be unknowable from the start.
Nevertheless, we will move forward. Despite the vastness of the universe and our insignificance, we cannot afford to stand still. Curiosity and the spirit of exploration have always led us to a more advanced world. We don't know when, but humanity will venture into space. On the other hand, if we fail to conquer space, what then? There's no reason for us to not live diligently just because we're considered insignificant compared to the dust of the universe.
