{"id":18503,"date":"2018-05-25T22:41:28","date_gmt":"2018-05-25T14:41:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/five-martian-miscues-to-fix-in-space-flicks\/"},"modified":"2018-05-25T22:41:28","modified_gmt":"2018-05-25T14:41:28","slug":"five-martian-miscues-to-fix-in-space-flicks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/five-martian-miscues-to-fix-in-space-flicks\/","title":{"rendered":"Five \u2018Martian\u2019 miscues to fix in space flicks"},"content":{"rendered":"
\""The
Astronaut Mark Watney (played by Matt Damon) climbs through a hatch in his pressurized rover in a scene from \u201cThe Martian.\u201d (Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp.)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

LOS ANGELES \u2014 Planetary scientist Pascal Lee could give astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson a good run for his money when it comes to truth-squadding movie depictions of space missions.<\/p>\n

For almost two decades, Lee has been working on the tools and techniques that will be needed for future Mars expeditions, as the leader of the Haughton-Mars Project on Devon Island in the Canadian Arctic. The project, funded by NASA, the SETI Institute and other institutions, provides an earthy analog to the Red Planet\u2019s bleak, cold, dry, isolated environment.<\/p>\n

Astronauts could conceivably set up shop on Mars sometime in the next decade or two, and there could be a crewed base on the moon even before that. So Lee says it\u2019s high time for Hollywood to provide a more accurate picture of how such missions would work.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe actually have not captured the look of a mission yet,\u201d he told me today at the National Space Society\u2019s International Space Development Conference in Los Angeles.<\/p>\n

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Pascal Lee tests a simulation spacesuit. (PascalLee.net \/ Photo by Kira Lorber)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Lee is particularly well-versed when it comes to the pressurized rovers that astronauts will use to get around on the moon or Mars.<\/p>\n

For several years, Lee and his colleagues have worked with NASA to test rover designs on Devon Island and more hospitable locales. He\u2019s become so familiar with the hardware that he cringes every time he sees something on the screen that wouldn\u2019t work in real life.<\/p>\n

Take \u201cThe Martian,\u201d for instance. Lee says he has nothing against the movie, which stars Matt Damon as a astronaut who\u2019s marooned on the Red Planet. But during a session at the ISDC meeting, he pointed out several features that the filmmakers might want to correct if they do a sequel:<\/p>\n

Rovers should be roundish:<\/strong> Hardware designers would be asking for trouble if they built a rover with the sharp-angled corners that are shown on the rover in \u201cThe Martian.\u201d Rounder rovers are better, because they distribute the pressure on the hull more evenly and reduce the stress on the seams. It\u2019s the same reason why propane tanks look like sausages instead of bricks. NASA\u2019s prototype Space Exploration Vehicle is much more well-rounded than Damon\u2019s dune buggy.<\/p>\n

\"Space
NASA\u2019s Space Exploration Vehicle has spacesuits mounted on its exterior. Crew members would climb into the suits through back doors in the rover. (NASA Photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Don\u2019t let all the air out:<\/strong> It\u2019s a bad idea to build the rover\u2019s doors as if you were just getting into a Hummer. Every time the door is flung open, there goes your breathable air. It\u2019s better to build in an air lock. \u201cThis way, you never flush out the oxygen,\u201d Lee says.<\/p>\n

Keep those dirty spacesuits out of my nice clean rover:<\/strong> It should be a no-no to wear the same spacesuit inside and outside the rover. The lunar surface, and the Martian surface, are notoriously dusty, dirty environments. NASA\u2019s prototype rover has the spacesuits meant for extraterrestrial activity mounted on the exterior of the rover. Crew members climb into the suit through an airlock hatch, close the air lock, and then walk away. They go through the same process in reverse when they return.<\/p>\n

Crews should skew older:<\/strong> Lee says the crews for Mars missions should consist mostly of people in their mid-50s to mid-60s, with 58-year-old NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson as the ideal. There are several reasons for that. Each crew member will have to have lived long enough to gain experience in multiple skills. \u201cWe\u2019re not talking about jacks of all trades. We\u2019re talking about aces of many trades,\u201d Lee said.<\/p>\n

Some researchers have suggested that older spacefliers would be more suited to deal with the heightened cancer risk from space radiation. And Lee said more mature astronauts would tend to be \u2026 well, more mature<\/em>. \u201cThey might have a token young person to make fun of, and carry the really heavy stuff,\u201d he joked.<\/p>\n