What is the Rich Purnell maneuver?
The Rich Purnell Maneuver was a trajectory course for the Hermes proposed and calculated by astrodynamicist Rich Purnell. Using the Earth’s gravity as a slingshot, it sent the Hermes back to Mars to save Mark Watney before returning home to Earth once more.
What are Watney’s last five meals saved for?
Watney figures out exactly how much canvas he’ll need to cut form the Hab and sets aside five meal packs for special occasions: the day he leaves for Schiaparelli, the journey’s halfway point, the day he arrives, a reward for handling an emergency, and another for the day he launches.
On what Sol did Watney receive his first message from the Ares 3 crew?
Sol 6 log
The Martian opens with the Sol 6 log entry of astronaut Mark Watney, who is the resident botanist and engineer on NASA’s Ares 3 mission to Mars. Watney explains that, while the crew was supposed to spend a month on Mars, they were forced to abort the mission early.
How many sols of food does Mark Watney have?
Watney needs 1,500 calories every day. He has 400 sols’ supply of food already.
What does Mark Watney dip his potato in?
crushed Vicodin
Sparking a chemical reaction to produce water, Watney blasts himself across the room. Running out of ketchup to leaven the taste of his home-grown, life-sustaining potatoes, he dips them in crushed Vicodin.
How long is a sol in The Martian?
24 hours, 39 minutes and 35 seconds
How long is a day and year on Mars? Mars is a planet with a very similar daily cycle to the Earth. Its sidereal day is 24 hours, 37 minutes and 22 seconds, and its solar day 24 hours, 39 minutes and 35 seconds. A Martian day (referred to as “sol”) is therefore approximately 40 minutes longer than a day on Earth.
How was Watney discovered to be alive on Mars?
In the film version, they discover that he is still alive by noticing two things on the satellite imagery: The Rover has been moved from where it was parked originally (prior to the evacuation) The solar panels had been cleaned.
What food did Mark Watney have?
potatoes
According to The Martian, Watney is on Mars for 540 days, however, around 60 of those days was spent eating dried food sent for the original mission. This means that for 480 days, Watney ate only potatoes.
What does Watney have to remove from the Mav?
Watney has to remove 5000 kg of weight from the MAV to make it light enough to reach Hermes’ orbit.
Why did the crew have to leave Mars. In The Martian?
The crew is forced to leave him thinking he died due to rupture in his space suit. However Mark survives and now has to find ingenious ways to make it till the next scheduled Mars mission fours years later with the remaining meagre supplies.
What is Sol mean in The Martian?
Mars solar day
A Mars solar day has a mean period of 24 hours 39 minutes 35.244 seconds, and is customarily referred to as a “sol” in order to distinguish this from the roughly 3% shorter solar day on Earth.
Could Mark Watney grow more potatoes?
When Airlock 1 breached, causing a gaping hole in The Hab, the potatoes were freeze dried and the bacteria in the soil assumed dead. Because of this Mark was unable to grow any more potatoes and could only eat the ones he still had with him.