A 2015 science fiction survival drama film directed by Ridley Scott and starring Matt Damon. The Martian, a 2011 novel by Andy Weir, served as the screenplay adapted by Drew Goddard. The film depicts an astronaut's (Matt Damon) lone struggle to survive on Mars after being left behind, and efforts to rescue him and bring him home to Earth.

All commentary on the accuracy of the movie is adapted from the 2015 Gizmodo article "Science of The Martian: the Good, the Bad, and the Fascinating" by Mika McKinnon. Bullet points are references from Library Resources

1. In the film, the gravity on Mars is 'selective', acting at Earth-strength on astronauts to keep them walking normally instead of hop-bouncing while still permitting steep, towering cliffs.
   • Geomorphology is the study of the origin and evolution of physical features on the surface of Earth and other planets.
   • The eBook Experiments in Reduced Gravity: Sediment Settling on Mars by Nikolaus Kuhn is the first book to be published that reflects experiments conducted on Martian geomorphology in reduced gravity.
2. Mars does have planet spanning dust storms with winds up to 160 kilometers per hour. However, the thinner atmosphere means those winds would have as much impact as a much milder 18 kilometer per hour wind here on Earth.
   • The Encyclopdeia of Space Science & Technology's entry on Mars it is estimated that winds must exceed about 25 to 40 meters/sec to initiate soil movement on Mars, where the atmospheric density is only about 1% of that on Earth.
3. Sunlight is dim on Mars and will require a better greenhouse than what is improvised during the movie.
   • The article "Growing fresh food on future space missions: Environmental conditions and crop management" from Scientia Horticulturae explores the optimization of light, temperature and harvesting process for space missions.
   • Then "Can Plants Grow on Mars and the Moon: A growth Experiment on Mars and Moon Soil Simulants" found that plants are able to germinate and grow on both Martian and moon soil simulant for a period of 50 days without any addition of nutrients
4. Maps and images of the surface of Mars exist - why are they sent with only a black and white sketch?
   • The USGS has printed Topographical Maps of Mars that can be requested from the Library Annex or viewed electronically
5. The Hermes Spacecraft used to taxi between Earth and Mas is enormous, gorgeous, and spacious.
   • A 1990 background paper to the US Congress titled "Affordable Spacecraft: Design and Launch Alternatives" writes that it cost roughly $130,000 - $520,000 to procure a pound of payload for a Low Earth Orbit flight and then another $3,000 to launch that 1 pound of payload.
   • Currently, NASA's "Advance Space transportation Program: Paving the Highway to Space" reports it costs $10,000 to put a pound of payload into Earth's obit - with the goal of reducing that to hundreds of dollars per pound within 25 years

McKinnon, Mika. "Science of The Martian: the Good, the Bad, and the Fascinating." Gizmodo. G/O Media, October 5, 2015. https://gizmodo.com/science-of-the-martian-the-good-the-bad-and-the-fasc-1734726471

Invented Leonard F. Shepard, et al.
Assignee: Granted to the United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Link to patent