Ever since the concept of other worlds was put forward in the fifth century BC, scientists have struggled to answer that eternal question: Are we alone? Aimov here covers many fascinating aspects in his analysis of the universe - interstellar flight, the origin of life, messages to outer space, space exploration, the solar system - and gradually reaches his conclusion that are as convincing as they are fantastic.
Paperback, 316 pages
English language
Published May 10, 1981 by Pan.
it's essentially a long exploration of the drake equation. being from 1979, the science is a bit out of date—for example, there were no confirmed exoplanets at the time. it seems to mostly hold up, though (to me, someone who is Very Not an astrophysicist).
