 What goes wrong with the calking compound?
General Finogenov notified Major Winship that the underground blast was scheduled for the following morning. It then abated to something in excess of normal. Air currents whisked it away and plastered it against a riveted seam of the dome. It pulsed as though it were breathing and then it ruptured. "The only way you can check is to extrude it," Lt. Chandler said, "and if it does extrude, you've ruined it." The Soviet base was situated some ten miles toward sunset at the bottom of a natural fold in the surface. At that point, the best pathway angled left and made an S-shaped descent to the basin. And there's only seven of them right now. "Finogenov had a clay samovar sent up.
 It ends up being epoxy resin, which activates and starts melting.
 It ends up being epoxy resin, which activates and starts melting.  They're unsure how to read the instructions and mix it incorrectly.  It's the wrong substance. Because of the language barrier, the Russians set them off with the wrong barrel.  The barrel doesn't fit in the space they need it to.