The Science Behind 'The Martian' - Staying Warm on Mars

Set in the not-too-distant future, “The Martian” is the story of an astronaut stranded on Mars who has to rely on his own wit and ingenuity to survive the planet’s hostile conditions.

If Mark Watney’s mission were real, Oak Ridge National Laboratory would be playing a vital role in his survival, as it would be the sole source of the Plutonium-238 needed for the RTG, as well as the fuel’s containment material in the form of iridium clad vent sets.

All photos and clips of "The Martian" are courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox.

[vincentrusso]

I believe "space heater" would have been more apt terminology than "small campfire"....

[amyreed]

The discoveries in science that are happening right here in East Tennessee at Oak Ridge National Laboratory are incredible. If you like this video on the science behind the movie "The Martian, " then search on YouTube for "Science and Technology at Oak Ridge National Laboratory" to see a quirky whiteboard video that gives a great overview of more of the work going on at the lab.

[ClagwellsGarage]

Would an RTG such as the one in the movie be normally shielded enough to stop dangerous levels of beta and gamma radiation from negatively affecting Mark?

[perfection]

So that was accurate then. Excellent video!

[llgoldstein]

How much electricity can one of these produce? Could you use it to power, say, a mars vehicle or an automobile?

[KneelBBacon]

The Voyager space probes are powered by RTGs and the probes are still transmitting useful information to Earth, despite being launched 40 years ago. You can't use solar panels on the probes because the Sun, at its current distance is no brighter than any other star.

In the book, Watney's RTG generates about 1500 watts of waste heat and 100 watts of usable power. He mostly wants it for the waste heat it radiates. By keeping the RTG in the rover's cabin with him, he can stay warm without having to use the rovers electric heaters (which would drastically cut into the rovers battery life and limit its range).

[perfection]

For me “the Martian” has become one of my “classic movies” I’ll be enjoying 40 years from now!