A spaceship is preparing to land on Mars when the crew notices that one of the thrusters isnt firing. There is, as they say, a problem. But theres no use telling Houstonby the time a distress message reaches home more than 30 million miles away, either the astronauts on board will be space dust or humanity will have become an interplanetary species.
Thats the premise of National Geographics new series, Mars, which mixes documentary and speculation to tell the parallel stories of two groups: the fictional future explorers who will make that first journey, and the pioneers of todayscientists, astronauts, and strategistswho are blazing the trail. In the premier episode, for example, that white-knuckle landing scene is spliced with a look at Elon Musks SpaceX as engineers test a real retropropulsion landing system.
Every piece of tech in the show was designed to accurately reflect the current scientific vision of how well get to Marsand to avoid the gaffes that have undermined recent films and invited the wrath of astrophysicist/space ombudsman Neil deGrasse Tyson. As executive producer Ron Howard puts it, Its not sci-fi! (Indeed, President Obama has outlined a vision to send humans into Mars orbit by the mid-2030s.) Heres how Mars envisions our red future.
The Crew
The Mission
The six astronauts in Mars travel to their new home in a rocket called the Daedalus, and their ship is based on science thats more than simply plausibleits coming, and fast. This is technology that will probably be tested in the next five years, executive producer Justin Wilkes says. The spacecraft is heavily inspired by SpaceX, but it also borrows design elements from NASA, Boeing, and even the Russian space program. Other films say Lets make it look cool, production designer Sophie Becher says. We asked, Hows this going to function? Where are they going to use the bathroom?
Storage
Every item is labeled, barcoded, and stored in a payload racking system based on actual ISS storage protocol.
Controls
The onboard displays feature real data modeled on actual calculations. And dont expect Minority Report holograms. Astronauts want buttons, Wilkes says. You need redundancy.”
Support Systems
Braun says he answered design questions with real engineering: How big does the environmental control and life supportsystem need to be for x number of astronauts for y number of days? How much recycling of water and oxygen can these systems handle before they have reliability issues?
Quarters
Astronaut and show adviser Mae Jemison flagged the ship bunks’ original open-air design: You guys are looking at me while Im sleeping? Jemison says. It would drive me crazy. So the beds have privacy screens.
The Colony
Emerging director Everardo Gout (Days of Grace) shot the Mars colony in Budapest and Morocco, where the topography is so similar to the Red Planets that NASA has tested rovers there. Producers picked a specific location on Mars to replicate: the foothills of Olympus Mons, the planets tallest mountain, where underground lava tubes provide shelter and protection from cosmic radiation. (Scientists are studying Mars-like isolation in the lava tubes of Mauna Loa volcano in Hawaii.) The first Mars settlers would construct a bare-bones underground habitat in the tubes; over time, future missions would deliver additional materials, and the colony would expand, module by module. Once the original six welcome more inhabitants, this is how they would live.
Caption: Caption: The largest of Olympus Town’s domes contains a common room that doubles as rec room and cafeteria.National Geographic Channels/Robert Viglasky
Caption: Caption: A laboratory in Olympus Town.National Geographic Channels/Robert Viglasky
Caption: Caption: When you erect a colony in a subterranean lava tube on Mars, covering the ductwork and wiring isn’t a high-priority decorating job.National Geographic Channels/Robert Viglasky
Caption: Caption: The main airlock.National Geographic Channels/Robert Viglasky
Caption: Caption: A hydroponic greenhouse facility in Olympus Town will use water extracted from Mars’ atmosphere to cultivate food.National Geographic Channels/Robert Viglasky
Caption: Caption: The first Martian crops in progress.National Geographic Channels/Robert Viglasky
Pop-Up Furniture
The nearest Ikea is millions of miles away, so settlers will rely on lightweight origami-style furniture and structures. Everythings modular: inflatable beds, inflatable furniture, fold-up furniture, Becher says.
Lava Tubes
Subterranean lava tubes may offer the greatest radiation protection, so the shows fictional settlers will go underground. Its like Homo sapiens have returned to our roots as cave dwellers, Wilkes says. Here we are on a new planet, and were huddling in a cave around aproverbial fire.
Modular Housing
Building on uneven ground in unpredictable conditions without bulldozers and cranes, settlers will have to improvise. The dwelling design is inspired by Buckminster Fullers geodesic domes: lightweight, inflatable modular structures that can be connected by flexible concertina-style corridors.
Pieces of Home
After consulting with Mae Jemison, who took a brightly hued Swatch watch and some colorful earrings into space, Becher added color to the living area. No one wants to live in a place thats completely alien, Becher says. To make Mars more cozyand less Star Trekshe spruced up Olympus Town with warm tones and family mementos.
Ask an Astronaut
How show adviser Mae Jemison kept Mars real.
Mae Jemison knows what its like to do brave work in dire conditions: She was a Peace Corps medical officer in Liberia and Sierra Leone. Shes also a former astronaut who became the first African American woman in space in 1992, aboard the Endeavour. Today she runs the 100 Year Starship project to support long-term interest in space exploration, and she was an adviser for Mars. Its a good fit: She has some (very) strong opinions about how Hollywood gets space wrong.
What type of astronaut would take such a huge risk to go so very far away?
The world has changed because of going to the moon. People think its just the astronauts going up into space, but its the technology: Magnetic resonance imaging, miniaturization, GPSwe couldnt have Pokmon Go without it! Its about the mission and what were going to gain from it. These are pioneering days.
Why did you start the 100 Year Starship program?
Our tagline is Space isnt just for billionaires and astronauts. Its a place for everyone to participate. But were in this time period where our fantasyand our virtual reality havein some ways superseded what we do in reality. Our reality doesnt seem as thrilling. So how do we include more people and make it more thrilling?
How did you advise the producers and the writers for Mars?
I wanted to help support the drama and the suspense with plausible operational and physiological activities: What would happen, logistically, in a particular circumstance? So you arent saying Oh, come on now!
What do most movies get wrong about astronauts?
When actors play astronauts, they often take them off the deep end. Astronauts are driven, but theyre not crazy. Theyre passionate but practical, energetic but measured, decisive but willing tocompromise.
What else drives you crazy?
When I go to the movies, I can suspend disbelief, as long as its not egregious. But would people shout when things go to hell? No. You train so much on so many contingencies, you know how to do things. Think about it: If youre all screaming on top of each other, youre not going to be able to work it through. If you cant hear, thats a surefire way to get dead.
What else?
Interstellar did incredible work around relativistic physics, but they couldnt have given a damn about biology. On Earth, you cant grow grain and foodstuffsbut youre driving through lush countryside with trees? You cant figure out what else to eat?
And?
When you resort to stuff that physically could not happen. Not like warp drive, but more that somebody didnt take the time to think this throughlike putting a hole in the glove in The Martian. Or my ship is all busted up, so my first reaction is to beat on all the control panels and the switches? What the hell? If Im already about to die, Id hit myself in the face before Id beat on the panels!
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