Chapter 15, The Gates of the Wonder World Open, Chapter 16, Scaling Heaven Summary and Analysis

Sagan predicts that in the future there will be a nation of group of nations that will colonize new worlds and the human race will be on its way. Perhaps this planet will be Mars, the nearest planet whose surface we can see with a telescope. Sagan then describes the Martian terrain and how it apparent once had running water. Some Martian meteorites have hit the earth, giving us information about its surface. One day we might even retrieve subsurface rock and see if it has life. There is some reason to expect to find them, as Martian soil seems to contain organic material, and its moons, Phobos and Deimos, have it in rich supply.

Sagan transitions to discussing the Mars...