Robinson Crusoe on Mars

Listen, Mona. This banana paste is meant for your survival only.

Besides, I just gave you some.

'Mac, gonna break your heart 'when you have to eject your buddy in a capsule.'

I'm not. We'll make our remaining orbits and start back.

- Mona stays with us. - 'You're the skipper, Colonel.'

We've got enough animal data, haven't we, Mona?

'Steve and Diane sent that one to you.'

- What do you think? - I'm thinking. Look at that.

Whoo! Mars is burning up.

Boy, I'm glad Mona doesn't have to go down into that fire swamp.

Yeah. Hey, what will I fix for dinner?

How about some turkey with mashed potatoes, gravy added?

I like mine in paste form. You know, in a tube.

I think the diner can fix it that way.

There's always beefsteak and French fried onions also in a squeeze tube.

We had that for breakfast, you know.

'Unidentified flying mass. Dead ahead.'

Meteor.

Massive.

Collision course.

Distance interval, 28 seconds.

- Fire main retros. - Firing main retros.

Which way?

- Fire upper retros. - Firing upper retros.

We're in a descending orbit.

'Decaying fast, my friend.'

Mars' gravity is taking over, pulling us down. Calling NASA. Calling NASA.

Colonel Dan McReady, commanding Mars Gravity Probe 1.

Forced out of orbital velocity to avoid collision with planetoid

and into tighter orbit of Mars.

The gravity of the planet is pulling us toward it.

Gotta blast back into orbital velocity.

- 'Use all our fuel.' - That problem we can lick later.

'Gravity pull has risen to 9.30.'

I see. Well, blast again, delta velocity.

Delta "V" okay.

That's our fuel.

'NASA Earth Satellite to Mars Gravity Probe 1.

'Do not dissemble space vehicle

'until all other procedures have been tried.'

Prepare to eject. Emergency procedure.

Ready, Mac. So long and good luck.

Okay, Kit. I'll see you when we join up.

- 'Blast off when you're ready.' - I'm ready.

So long. Be seeing you.

Hello, Mac. How do you read me? Over.

Come on, old buddy. This is Kit. How do you read me? Over.

Hey!

Hey!

This is Commander Christopher Draper,

the Navy of the United States of America, planet Earth.

Former co-pilot Mars Gravity Probe 1.

On our third orbit of this planet,

we took evasive action to avoid collision with a meteor

and were forced into dangerous gravitational pull of Mars.

We were forced to abandon ship.

As of now, the vehicle frame is still orbiting Mars.

Seems to have established gravitational balance.

We ejected capsule without incident.

Colonel Dan McReady ejecting after I did.

I'll set out to look for him tomorrow.

From all indications, he should be on the other side

of a high range of rocky peaks to the west.

Now, my two most difficult problems are air and water.

I have, with what's left in my tank and one reserve cylinder,

enough oxygen for, oh, about 60 hours,

depending, of course, on how much I exert myself.

My first discovery was that the air on Mars

is far too thin to support human life.

As to water, by severe rationing, I can get by for about 15 days.

Course, once my air gives out, water won't matter.

First positive survival point...

...I found a yellow rock.

It's as burnable as some of our poorer grades of coal.

Heat's uneven, but it should make the Martian nights endurable.

I feel a little bit like Columbus,

set down in a strange new land,

full of new wonders, new discoveries.

It's a challenge, all right.

A challenge to my training.

Sometimes challenges can get mighty big.

But I'm gonna stay alive, believe me.

That's for the morale officer.

Well, I've licked the heat and shelter problem.

Breathing, that's a different story.

Moving about, exerting myself, I've found that I can breathe the air of Mars

for about, oh, 12 to 15 minutes,

before I need to take air from my tank for a booster.

Lying down, asleep, inactive,

I can get by for an hour before taking a booster.

In this way, with some discomfort, I can conserve my oxygen supply.

At the most optimistic appraisal,

...I have 50 or so hours of life left.

God willing.

The problem is sleeping.

If I don't wake up in time to renew my air supply, it's hearts and flowers.

I've got to make some kind of alarm device, safeguard myself.

Tomorrow, and morning's only a couple of hours away,

I'm gonna rejoin Mac.

Good old Mac.

I bet he's got these problems licked.

Mac! Mac!

Mac! Hey, Mac!

Mac! Hey, Mac!

Hey, Mac! Mac!

Mac?

'Now our song. To Dan, from Elinor, with love.'

Mona!

Come on now. Let's not start a war.

Well, obviously, you don't need that.

Boy... do I need these.

Here. Let's open up those sleeves, huh?

That a little more comfortable, huh?

That's all there is, baby.

Here. Here.

Take the rest of it.

Take the rest of it. Yeah.

That's it.

Mine too.

No more rationing.

You'll have a full belly.

Won't be for long.

This is signature...

Mars Gravity Probe 1.

Colonel Dan McReady dead.

M-M-Me too soon.

No more oxygen.

Over and out.

Thank you.

Well, you can scratch signature.

I've found an answer that's saved my life temporarily.

These yellow stones that burn like coal.

I've been wondering about this a lot.

Where do they get the oxygen to burn?

It must be similar to solid rocket fuel with its own built-in oxygen.

Heat and flame release it and it's breathable.

I've gotta find some way to store it.

As far as life on this planet,

I've seen no sign of any other living thing anywhere.

Yet.

Hi, baby.

Oh, yeah. What have you got there, huh? Come here.

That's it. Are you thirsty?

There you go. There you go.

What's the matter? You wouldn't drink last night either.

Programme "A". Descend.

Veer left!

Veer right!

'Mona the monkey spends most of her days off somewhere.

'Where she goes I have no idea.

'Thank God she doesn't seem to need or want water.

'I've offered it to her every day.

'I'm on strict rationing myself and even then I'll be out of water in a few days.

'Well, I've now been on Mars for two weeks.

'I've tried on several occasions

'to talk down the wreck of our space vehicle, the Elinor M.

'I can't break it out of Mars' gravity grip.

'It answers electronically, but the jets don't fire.

'No fuel left. So there it is.

'A supermarket that flies through my sky.

'And it might as well be in East Overshoe.'

You can say that again, brother.

What's your pleasure?

I think we'll make the early show.

Just keep your elbows off the table.

Here you are. Have some of that.

Are you hungry?

Good. You like that? That's right.

That's right.

All right. Once more.

Huh?

Don't eat too much. You know we're on iron rations. Want some? Here.

Ouch!

You're almost human at that! Biting the hand that feeds you!

'Instructional videotape number six.'

Good old Woodward.

You used to be about as interesting as a common brick.

Now, Professor, I'm glad to have you aboard.

'This second phase of survival, finding water,

'will deal with locating water on another planet.

'Since no one has landed on another planet...'

Oh, is that so?

'...we have to proceed with hypothetical knowledge from our studies on Earth.'

I can give you a tip from here on Mars.

'Water is where you find it.

'Like gold.

'The thing is to know where to find it.

'And you must make sure it's potable.

'Don't drink seawater.'

- No seas here. - 'Seawater's too salty. So's urine.

'Rain and snow

'become groundwater and sink in under the ground.'

No rain. No snow.

'On some dry, desert planets,

'it may be possible to crush rocks

'and extract latent water from them.'

Good night, Professor. Thanks for the heart-to-heart.

No.

No!

Mona, get away from that water can.