The Martian Movie - Survival Thriller

[OmCheeto]

Glad I didn't read the book first.

ps. Just now started reading the book.

Just finished the book. 10 stars out of 10.
Now I have to go see the movie again.

 

[Trinity777]

Well, surviving was good, using crap for fertilizer...interesting. Farmer's have had that one down...forever. Intrigued, definitely; having access to other specialties ie: notebooks others left behind and finally actual communication. It was fairly well thought out, that said I am certain if it had been me I would have died in my own crap :)

 

[PapersOwl]

YES!

The problem is, should I read the book first?
My friend gave me her copy of the book this last Monday.

​

She'd been meaning to loan it to me for months.

Noooooooo! Don't read it before watching movie! Book is better but movie is also worth seeing :) So watch and then read, so you can enjoy both :)

 

[Noisy Rhysling]

Been a while since I read the book, and am just now watching the movie again, so some questions.

First: Why were the suits RED? I've done SAR work in the Navy and I'd have made the suits green or blue so they stand out against the back ground.

Second: He carefully saves the live plants when he harvests the potatoes. What would he do with those?

Third: He counts the potatoes to determine his supply. That's dumb. He should have weighed the trays and figured out how many grams of potato he could have for each ration.

Lastth: The evacuees would have left vitamin supplements behind, so he had "300 days" of vitamins as well as food. But he has scurvy at the end. Why?

 

[Noisy Rhysling]

AltHist for The Martian:

2073 CE: The first international historical mission to Mars lands near the Ares III HAB, which had been declared off limits by the Tellurian Space Agency at the request of Mark Watney's parents. They find that, as satellite pictures have shown and nobody can explain, the HAB is completely free of dust. As the team approaches they notice a vague shimmer in the air around the HAB. They stop just before touching it and start to debate what to do next. One of the team, a Watney himself, kills the arguments by just walking through the haze. His suit immediately reports Earth-like atmosphere inside. They move quickly to the HAB and enter through an airlock with both doors open.

Inside, floating in a large ball of silvery-gold liquid, Mark Watney can be seen, looking very fit but asleep. One of the academics touches the ball and a voice is heard in everyone's head, and in the language of the person hearing it.

"Here's your astronaut, safe and sound. Try to take better care of them in the future.

"And please listen to Mark when he wakes, he has so much to tell you.

"We'll be seeing you soon."

 

[Noisy Rhysling]

Question about the explosion. On Sol 21 the read-outs showed O₂ level at 20.74%

Before the explosion on Sol 37 the readouts showed 20.81% O₂

After the explosion the readouts showed 17.71% O₂, or 3.1% reduction.

So, from a non-sciency guy, was the explosion enough to burn that much O₂, and would the O₂ before the explosion be enough to Hindenburg the HAB?

Just wondering. Secondary explosions expected.

 

[Drakkith]

So, from a non-sciency guy, was the explosion enough to burn that much O2, and would the O2 before the explosion be enough to Hindenburg the HAB?

Not sure. Any idea of the volume of the HAB?

 

[Noisy Rhysling]

Not sure. Any idea of the volume of the HAB?

Mark said he had created 127 sq. m. of soil, in circular patch.. No other hard numbers. Allow 2 m. for the torus around the soil and 3 m. for overhead?

 

[Drakkith]

Well, if we go with 350 m³, that's somewhere in the ballpark. That's 350,000 liters of air. At STP, 20.81% of 350,000 liters of air is about 3250 moles of O₂. A decrease in the oxygen level of 3.1% is about 480 moles. The reaction of 2H₂+O₂ => 2H₂O releases about 570 joules of energy. That times 3,250 is 1.85 MJ, which is comparable to a pound of high-explosives.

Those numbers depend on the temperature and pressure being near STP and on my math and chemistry being correct, so they could be wrong.

 

[Noisy Rhysling]

I'm utterly sure of my math skills. They have a 100% track record. All failures.

 

[Drakkith]

I'm utterly sure of my math skills. They have a 100% track record. All failures.

By your own admission, that number may be inaccurate.

 

[phinds]

I'm utterly sure of my math skills. They have a 100% track record. All failures.

Sounds exactly like my method for cabinetry. Measure twice then screw it up anyway.

 

[jim mcnamara]

@phinds I fall flat on my face making backs of chairs. Probably why some those pieces are called splats.

 

[phinds]

@phinds I fall flat on my face making backs of chairs. Probably why some those pieces are called splats.

Jim if you enjoy wood, you should check out my site: http://www.hobbithouseinc.com/personal/woodpics/

 

[jim mcnamara]

My grandfather (from Europe) had a shop that made what they called church fixtures. As a teenager, I had to make a bow saw, several hand planes, and chisels, then use my tools to hand cut joints. All under the scrutiny 5 men in their 70's who had phenomenal skills. I learned humility first and foremost.

After a while, one of them talked my Mom into the idea of college for me. I always suspected this was a reflection on my shop skill level.

I've been to your site - yes!. Also liked the 'measure twice and screwup anyway' approach.

 

[Noisy Rhysling]

Question: The Earthbound souls, those poor dears, were aware of Mark being alive after Teddy announced it at that news conference. So, the families were communicating with the Ares, why didn't they mention this to the people they wrote? They'd be aware that the survivors were feeling terrible about having lost him.

Would self-censorship be requested?

Oh, and if you don't want to run out of ketchup, don't use it to make tomato soup.

 

[phinds]

Question: The Earthbound souls, those poor dears, were aware of Mark being alive after Teddy announced it at that news conference. So, the families were communicating with the Ares, why didn't they mention this to the people they wrote? They'd be aware that the survivors were feeling terrible about having lost him.

Would self-censorship be requested?

Oh, and if you don't want to run out of ketchup, don't use it to make tomato soup.

On reading this I was completely flummoxed and could not figure out what you were talking about and then I realized that we have comletely hijacked your recent comments in this thread and started making it a woodworking thread and you are appropriately taking it back to where it is supposed to be. Sorry.

 

[Noisy Rhysling]

No prob. I'm watching the movie for the nth time and nitpicking.

I do woodwork too, I'll have to put up some pix.

 

[phinds]

Also liked the 'measure twice and screwup anyway' approach.

I always say that as a joke but sadly for me it's not, actually. Every project becomes a challenge in hiding my mistakes.

 

[Noisy Rhysling]

Movie has officially passed into popular culture:

My cousin was doing the families annual tornado stand-down, reviewing the does and don'ts.

Dad: Do we take shelter under a highway overpass?

Daughter: Yes!

Dad: But wouldn't you get sucked out and toss about by the tornado?

Daughter: Yes, but consider this, I'd get to fly around like Ironman!

 

[Noisy Rhysling]

Question about the skyline at the beginning of the movie, before anybody says anything. It almost looks like Olympus Mons in the background? Did they try for that or is that just a natural formation at the location of the shoot?

 

[EnumaElish]

I was pleasantly surprised by the flying-under-a-canvas idea, possible because practically there's no atmosphere on Mars. The idea became mundane within 30 seconds; although my split-second reaction was "oh, what a great idea, who would've thought it?"

 

[Noisy Rhysling]

I was pleasantly surprised by the flying-under-a-canvas idea, possible because practically there's no atmosphere on Mars. The idea became mundane within 30 seconds; although my split-second reaction was "oh, what a great idea, who would've thought it?"

That's the benefit of forums like this in conjunction with a blog. Andy could field test ideas with the readers and get input from some very serious people in just about any relevant field. Including music critics. ;)

 

[Noisy Rhysling]

At 27 minutes, just after the hydrogen explosion, Mark is in a gold-foil cape and helmet. This reminds me of a half-forgotten scifi movie where the aliens were garbed similarly. Anybody have a clue what the name was for that one? It was in the same league as the gorilla-suit-with-diving-helmet monster, that's about all I can remember about it.

 

[Noisy Rhysling]

Why did they have an RTG on the surface of the planet?

 

[Drakkith]

Why did they have an RTG on the surface of the planet?

It powered a rover. I don't know which rover it was in the book/film, but the Curiosity rover currently on Mars is powered by an RTG. From here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curiosity_(rover)#Specifications

Curiosity is powered by a Multi-Mission Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator (MMRTG), designed and built by Rocketdyne and Teledyne Energy Systems under contract to the U.S. Department of Energy,[24][25] and assembled and tested by the Idaho National Laboratory.[26] Based on legacy RTG technology, it represents a more flexible and compact development step,[27] and is designed to produce 125 watts of electrical power from about 2,000 watts of thermal power at the start of the mission.[21][22] The MMRTG produces less power over time as its plutonium fuel decays: at its minimum lifetime of 14 years, electrical power output is down to 100 watts.[28][29] The power source will generate 9 MJ (2.5 kWh) each day, much more than the solar panels of the Mars Exploration Rovers, which can generate about 2.1 MJ (0.58 kWh) each day. The electrical output from the MMRTG charges two rechargeable lithium-ion batteries. This enables the power subsystem to meet peak power demands of rover activities when the demand temporarily exceeds the generator’s steady output level. Each battery has a capacity of about 42 ampere-hours.

 

[Noisy Rhysling]

No, they buried this one when they landed. "And then planted that flag so we'd never accidentally go near it again."

And Pathfinder was the lander in the movie, ran on solar panels.

 

[Drakkith]

Well, I can't tell you then. I haven't read the book, I've only seen the movie.

 

[stevendaryl]

What I found totally unrealistic is that the astronauts would be given raw potatoes for their mission, as opposed to instant mashed potato mix.

 

[Bandersnatch]

My memory of both the book and the film is already pretty shaky, but I'm pretty sure it was the RTG was for powering the base. I don't remember whether it was an alternative, emergency source to the panels, or if it was just what was used first by the automated part of the mission, and then discontinued with arrival of human crew - I'd have to find the passage the book. Similarly, I don't remember whether its purpose was at all explained in the film, but I strongly suspect they did cram in a one-line exposition like they did with everything else.

What I found totally unrealistic is that the astronauts would be given raw potatoes for their mission, as opposed to instant mashed potato mix.

These were for botany experiments, and not intended as a food source.