In his latest movie, “The Martian”, Matt Damon plays an astronaut abandoned in space.
Fir this film, NASA collaborated with 20th Century Fox Entertainment, providing guidance on technical consultants and production design. The film combines factual and fictional narratives about Mars. The action takes place in the 2030s, in a period when astronauts frequently traveled to Mars and live on its surface to explore it. “The Martian” is set up to open October 2.
Matt Damon in a science film
In the NASA video, Matt Damon says “Sending people to Mars and returning them safely is the challenge of a generation. Journey to Mars will forever change our history books, rewriting what we know about the red planet and expanding the human presence deeper into the solar system.”
When it comes to science, it takes a little Hollywood magic to conquer the public’s attention.
A journey on Mars begins on International Space Station. At the moment, Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko and American astronaut Scott Kelly are studying the effect of long periods without gravity on the human body.
On International Space Station, thanks to the Environmental Control and Life Support System of coffee, sweat or urine goes to waste. This system can recycle water from various sources. On the station for fresh-food production is used a system known as Veggie. Using blue, red and green light, this system helps plants to grow in small bags.
A trip to Mars could take 500 days or even longer, so it better be a smooth ride. “The Martian” takes place 20 years in the future, but NASA is working in many technologies that will appear in this film. Matt Damon’s character, astronaut Mark Watney, is spending some time in the habitation model, called “the Hab”. Future astronauts who will travel in Mars will need “the Hab” to survive.
In the film, Mark Watney is left behind by his team with limited supplies because they thought he is dead. Watney spends most of his Martian days in a space suit in order to protect himself from dust, cold atmosphere and lack of breathable air.