Piers Sellers, Before the Flood

Piers Sellers, former astronaut and climate change scientist, passed away on December 23, 2016, from pancreatic cancer at the age of 61. Before his death, though, he recorded this short video message, reaching out to the global community as a scientist concerned about these changes and their largest cause: humanity.

Throughout his career, Sellers focused on characterizing and understanding changes in the Earth’s climate system. He was particularly interested in interactions between the Earth’s biosphere — its life — and the atmosphere.

In his message, Sellers describes Earth as a “beautiful planet” and speaks about how the planet and the life it supports have evolved “to fit each other perfectly.” However, humanity’s clear and measurable impact on the climate has the potential to wreak “potentially disastrous” results. He calls for groups such as scientists, policymakers, and industrialists to work together towards the common goal of maintaining the Earth as “a planet that can continue to support life — including all of us.” astronomy.com