BOOK · 1980
Cosmos
A sweeping journey through cosmic evolution, science, life and humanity’s place in the Universe.
Publisher page ↗CARL SAGAN MONTH · BELGRADE · 2026
SAGAN FRONTIERS
Astrobiology, Exoplanets and the Search for Intelligence
Connect. Contribute. Collaborate — from Serbia into Europe and the Artemis community.
WHY CARL SAGAN?
A scientific legacy built around the biggest questions.
Sagan Frontiers takes inspiration from Carl Sagan’s way of linking rigorous planetary science with the human questions raised by exploration: Where are we? Are we alone? How do we recognize intelligence? What responsibilities follow from the cosmic perspective?
Carl Sagan was an astronomer, planetary scientist, author and science communicator whose work connected Solar System exploration, the origins and possibility of life, SETI, critical thinking and public engagement with science. His legacy at Cornell continues through research on worlds beyond the Solar System and the search for life in the universe.
VOYAGER 1 · 14 FEBRUARY 1990
The Pale Blue Dot
Earth appears as a tiny point of light in a Voyager 1 family portrait of the Solar System — an image closely associated with Sagan’s argument for a wider cosmic perspective and responsible exploration.
Explore the image at NASA ↗ Image credit: NASA/JPL-CaltechREAD · WATCH · EXPLORE
Sagan’s books and Cosmos.
Selected works that connect directly with the four public questions of Sagan Frontiers. Each card opens an external reference page.
BOOK · 1994
Pale Blue Dot
A reflection on humanity’s place in space and the future of exploration beyond Earth.
Publisher page ↗
BOOK · 1995
The Demon-Haunted World
A defence of scientific reasoning, evidence and critical thinking — especially relevant to science and society.
Publisher page ↗
TELEVISION SERIES
Cosmos: A Personal Voyage
The landmark series that brought astronomy, planetary science and the history of ideas to a global public.
Explore at Library of Congress ↗Carl Sagan and Pale Blue Dot photographs are NASA/JPL-Caltech imagery. Book-cover thumbnails are linked reference images from Open Library; cover artwork remains the property of its respective rights holders. For final institutional publication, organizers may replace any cover thumbnail if their institutional web policy requires explicit image permission.
PUBLIC MONTH
Four questions. One cosmic journey.
Each lecture takes one great Sagan question and connects it to contemporary science — from our place in the Universe to the responsibilities that follow from the cosmic perspective.
PUBLIC LECTURES · ANNOUNCEMENTS + OFFICIAL POSTERS
Each lecture announcement is paired directly with its official poster. Click a poster to open the full-size version.
20 NOV
WORLDS
COSMOS
Where are we?
What is humanity’s place in the Universe?
27 NOV
LIFE
LIFE
Are we alone?
How common might life be?
04 DEC
COSMIC PERSPECTIVE
THE PALE BLUE DOT
What do we do with what we know?
What responsibilities follow from the cosmic perspective?
10 DEC
SCIENCE & SOCIETY
A CANDLE IN THE DARK
The War of Pseudoscientists and Anti-Scientists Against Science
Science, evidence and critical thinking in society.
Shared closing question
How can Serbia connect with and contribute to European and Artemis research on worlds, life and intelligence?
FRIDAY · 11 DECEMBER 2026 · PALACE OF SCIENCE, BELGRADE
SAGAN FRONTIERS — Scientific Day
Working Programme — keynote topics, speakers and remaining programme items will be updated as invitations are confirmed.
Opening
Keynote I
Keynote II
Coffee break
Keynote III
Programme item to be confirmed
Lunch
Keynote IV
Research Session — AI, Time Domain & New Search Methods
Coffee break
Round Table — Serbia in SpaceConnecting and Contributing to European and Artemis Science
Programme item to be confirmed
Belgrade Sagan Statement of Ambition / Future Initiatives
Cocktail reception in the Gallery
11 DECEMBER 2026 · PALACE OF SCIENCE · BELGRADE
Scientific Day Registration
Participation is free of charge, but registration is required.
IMPORTANT DATES
Registration & flash-talk timeline
Flash-talk contributions will be selected by the Scientific Organising Committee from the submitted abstracts. Authors will be informed of the outcome on 30 November 2026.
FOUR SCIENTIFIC PILLARS
From worlds to intelligence — and the tools that connect them.
I
Worlds
Planetary systems, Solar System exploration, planetary atmospheres, habitability, responsible exploration and the science needed for sustained activity on the Moon, Mars and beyond.
II
Life
Astrobiology, origins of life, biosignatures, extremophiles, exoplanets and space agriculture — including plants, microorganisms, water and nutrient cycles, radiation, reduced gravity and closed-loop habitats.
III
Intelligence
SETI, technosignatures, unusual astrophysical signals and communication.
IV
New Ways of Knowing
AI, astroinformatics, time-domain astronomy, machine learning, anomaly detection, Rubin/LSST, Gaia, large astronomical archives and data-enabled methods for planetary and space science.
STRATEGIC ALIGNMENT
Connecting Serbia to Europe and Artemis.
SAGAN FRONTIERS is conceived as a platform for connection rather than isolation: a place to identify credible, visible and collaborative pathways for Serbian participation in European research networks and the international scientific ecosystem developing around Artemis.
Participation through scientific contribution
Planetary and lunar research, astrobiology, space agriculture, data analysis, enabling technologies, education, open science and responsible exploration.
European and university partnerships
Joint projects, co-supervision, student and staff mobility, research visits, shared training, consortium building and access to scientific infrastructures.
Space agriculture
A bridge between sustainability, life sciences and Artemis-era exploration through food production, resource recycling, radiation, reduced gravity and closed ecological systems.
AI and data-enabled space science
Rubin/LSST, Gaia, astroinformatics, machine learning and advanced statistics as routes to global scientific contribution without requiring national launch capability.
BELGRADE SAGAN STATEMENT OF AMBITION
What can we realistically achieve by 2030?
The scientific day culminates in a forward-looking Statement of Ambition: a shared scientific direction identifying a small number of concrete goals for connection, participation and contribution.
01
European and Artemis scientific participation
02
Planetary habitability
03
Space agriculture & closed-loop habitats
04
Search for life beyond Earth
05
SETI & technosignatures
06
AI, astroinformatics & the data revolution
07
Science, society & young people
08
University partnerships & an interdisciplinary community
OVERALL ARCHITECTURE
A month of questions. A day of research. A pathway forward.
01PUBLIC MONTH
Cosmos → Life → Intelligence → The Pale Blue Dot
→
02SCIENTIFIC DAY
Research talks, scientific sessions, discussion and young researchers
→
03STRATEGIC OUTCOME
Belgrade Sagan Statement of Ambition
→
04CONNECTION
Europe + Artemis + universities + space agriculture + AI/data science
VENUE · BELGRADE
Palace of Science.
All four public lectures and the Sagan Frontiers Scientific Day will take place at the Palace of Science in central Belgrade.
Kralja Milana 11
11000 Belgrade, Serbia
44.80823° N · 20.46382° EPUBLIC MONTH20 Nov · 27 Nov · 4 Dec · 10 Dec
SCIENTIFIC DAY11 December 2026
PALACE OF SCIENCE
Kralja Milana 11 · Belgrade
SCIENTIFIC ORGANISING COMMITTEE · SOC
Scientific Organising Committee.
Bringing together expertise across astronomy, physics, astrobiology, science communication and research collaboration.
Nevena Puač
Institute of Physics Belgrade
Nikola Škoro
Institute of Physics Belgrade
Milan Ćirković
Astronomical Observatory Belgrade
Saša Dujko
Institute of Physics Belgrade
Branislav Vukotić
Astronomical Observatory Belgrade
Ivana Milić Žitnik
Astronomical Observatory Belgrade
Europlanet SerbiaNemanja Đorđević
Palace of Science
Dragoljub Dimitrijević
Faculty of Sciences and Mathematics, University of Niš
Andjelka Kovačević
Faculty of Mathematics, University of Belgrade
SECRETARIAT
Conference Secretaries
Luka Ilić
Institute of Physics Belgrade
Jovan Aleksić
Astronomical Observatory Belgrade
INSTITUTIONS
Scientific institutions.
SAGAN FRONTIERS · SERBIA 2026
Connect. Contribute. Collaborate.
A platform for scientific contribution and future collaboration — linking Serbian researchers and students more strongly to Europe and to the international Artemis scientific community.
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