Martians scientifically accurate?

In “Martians” Ridley Scott’s crew Ares III goes to Mars for the expedition. Just as their vehicle is landed, a strong dust storm overcomes it, causing the crew to reach orbit. However, one crew member Mark Watt (Matt Damon) gets into the trash and remains behind, is supposedly dead. What follows from the tireless attempts of Mark, setting communication with NASA, trying to teach, damn this situation to stay alive. A reasonable balance arises between them remains scientifically authentic and makes these ideas with a high concept availableAs the perseverance of the brand only bears the fruits from its knowledge of the botanist and mechanical engineer. But how scientifically accurate “Martian?”

To quickly answer this question: it’s pretty true. Lab Reactive Movement NASA (JPL) helped highlight the scientific details of the storyWith the real data of Mars, used to display the terrain on the screen and the design of compatible cars. Mars Pathfinder, which Mark uses for survival and communication, was built and developed by JPL to provide legitimacy with the technical aspects of the survival story. Even some devices used here are real, including RTG (which works as a battery) used to stay warm because similar power systems are still used for Mars-related missions.

Given this, there are many inaccuracies here and there. This does not necessarily humiliate the experience, since the “fiction” part of the science fiction must also make a heavy lift to raise the most justified premises. “Martian” manages to do it like Repeat the frame of perseverance to the one that dares to give up expectations. There is a humor mixed with pathos, and clumsy laces of hope long, difficult journey back to the ground. In this note, let’s look at that the film is all right and not that the science involved from start to finish.

A dust storm is a catalyst for the movie, but this is a natural event that can happen on Mars? Well, the red planet’s atmosphere is much thinner than the earth, which means that the strong wind (for example, one per 100 km / h) will feel much less powerful (about 10-11 mph). If the strongest wind gusts on Mars are not powerful enough to knock down a person, he cannot pour strong sea climb (MAV). However, the dust storm is a great fictional catalyst that launches the stamp’s survival history in space.

Next, Mark synthesizes drinking water from missile fuel by dissociation (splitting molecules, forming other states of matter) into nitrogen and hydrogen. It takes hydrogen and burns it with oxygen inside the cabin to make water. This is not inaccurate, as it will work 100%, but the person located on Mars has the best and fastest way to synthesize water. You see, the water on Mars is rich in ice and permafrost, so the soil of the planet is a rich reservoir that can be used quickly for this purpose. But, of course, dissocial missile fuel is a pretty cool thing (though one of the mistakes can ruin all progress).

Now let’s talk about gravity. Mars has a third of the weight we feel on Earth, which makes people and objects weigh much less than what they do on earth. For example, if the rock weighs 100 kilograms on the ground, it will weigh about 33 kilograms (and thus it will be much easier on Mars). The Martians does not take this in account at all, because all the astronauts seem to be exhausted after climbing the stairs or went through the astronaut equipment. Although the transfer or Quite difficult on Earth, it should not burden the movement on Mars, as less gravity guarantees less tension.

If all the efforts to rescue the brand seem border with impossible, Astrodynamicist Rich Purnell (Donald Glover) offers a risky, painful plan. He believes that the launcher for re -provision should be learned with the original spacecraft, Hermes (where the crew of the brand is at this point), which will then use the gravity of the earth to the slingshot back to Mars. Despite the fact that a few things are horribly wrong, Hermes crew manages to save the brand after he punches his pressure to push himself to Lewis commander (Jessica frequently). This creates an exciting cinematic climaxBut is it practically that?

Yes, that’s! In fact, this is a real -life method used to speed up the spacecraft’s speed or redirect its way to keep papel or reduce costs. This maneuver, known as gravitational assistance, uses the relative movement (the planet’s orbit around the sun) and the planetary gravity to mimic the slingshot effect as shown in the movie. Despite the fact that this method was first used during the Soviet probe Luna 3, Michael Minovich (who worked as a trajectory analyst at JPL), in 1961 he developed a gravity assistance technique, which helped increase the speed of spacecraft down. This technology as a result became the basis for the innovative space missions Voyager.

Less details about the Martians, as the time required for Mars, are also accurate. Even the science behind the brand that can grow potatoes on the Martian land scientifically healthy because Can nurture vegetation with the soil of the planetBut it also depends on the quality of chemical and mineral content. Let’s assume that Mark is lucky in some aspects, but every other survival milestone he reaches is fully to his merit. The rest can simply lead to a firm movie force.