Goldilocks

Sir, there's something you need to see.

The asteroid must have decayed from a near-Jovian Trojan orbit,

which is why we haven't been able to see it until now.

Looks like it passed too close to Jupiter on its last go-around

and was redirected into the inner solar system.

It appears to be coming in on an elliptical Mars-crossing orbit.

Looks like it's about 1.1 kilometers in diameter. Not huge as these things go.

And based on our orbital analysis of its moon,

the density of the asteroid is seven grams per cubic centimeter.

- Means it's full of metal, for sure. - A special analysis tells us

this asteroid likely contains a colossal amount of--

Iridium? Very rare on Earth. And we already control most of it.

Not this much.

A conservative guess is 70,000 metric tons.

Our estimates indicate there's more iridium in 2003LC

than has been mined in the entire history of Earth.

Iridium is going for about 294 a gram.

Based on current mass estimates, that's worth upwards of--

...twenty trillion dollars and nicknamed

the Goldilocks asteroid.

If it is able to be harnessed and its iridium mined in Mars orbit,

economists predict it will lead to another technological revolution here on Earth.

President Korzhenko has expressed skepticism

that the asteroid is in fact made of iridium at all,

insisting that the USSR remains the only reliable supplier.

Let me remind you

what happened after NASA's last great discovery, Helium-3.

Job cuts, protests, domestic terrorism.

...traveling through space at tens of thousands of miles per hour.

And the window to capture it is closing quickly.

In approximately six months,

the asteroid's new trajectory will send it out of reach for good.

Commander Poole.

Commander.

What time is it?

It's nearly 1:00 a.m., ma'am.

But I thought it best to wake you.

What's happened?

Something incredible.

This asteroid, it's an amazing discovery.

It is going to improve life on Earth immeasurably.

But if we fail to secure this valuable resource for the American people,

it'll not only be a black mark on my administration, but on this country.

I assure you, Mr. President, we are doing everything we can

to bring this one home for all of us.

Good. I have faith in you, Eli.

Especially with how you handled the Zakharova situation this past spring.

I'll let you and Ron hash out the details. Keep me posted.

Ron, I think you and I--

So, how soon can we announce the plan to harness the asteroid?

- I'm sorry? - I don't need to remind you that

the president is headed for a tough reelection battle.

And the more the American people know about what Goldilocks will do for them,

the better his standing will get.

Well, I hear you, Ron. I do. But we have to be very delicate here.

I'm already drowning in calls

from the other M-7 nations wanting a bigger piece of this pie.

Not to mention, the Soviets feel threatened

because iridium happens to be one of their biggest exports.

We're on the same page here, Eli.

The last thing we want to do is antagonize our partners.

Good. Because the only way we're gonna get this thing is if we all work together.

This can't be seen as just an American--

You just focus on getting Mars whatever it needs to get that asteroid.

We'll handle the rest.

Goldilocks is heading toward us and hauling ass.

So, we need to design and launch this capture mission inside the next ten weeks,

or else she gets away.

That means pedal to the metal for everybody.

And all personal matters are gonna have to take a back seat.

Dimitri, how many more wranglers do you think you'll need to corral this thing?

Still waiting on protocols, but at least ten more.

Gonna have to ramp up microgravity certification for many of my people.

All right.

If we're to have a hope in hell of pulling this off, I strongly suggest that

we curtail all but essential operations and start stockpiling argon.

Are you suggesting that we slow down training operations?

Well, absolutely.

Rushing around with our hands flapping in the breeze,

hoping we can wing it, is not going to get this done.

Well, rushing around with our hands flapping wasn't what I was proposing, Ed.

Well, it sure sounded like it to me.

- Can I speak with you for a minute? - Well, of course.

Let's just get one thing straight.

That attitude of yours, it ain't gonna fly.

What, I'm supposed to rubber-stamp any harebrained idea of yours

that washes over the transom?

This is not about harebrained ideas, Ed.

Then what is it about?

Let's just get this out in the open. All right?

Ever since I sent Svetlana Zakharova back Earthside,

you've been fighting me tooth and nail.

I say "left," you say "right."

It has slowed operations on Happy Valley to a crawl these past few months.

You're my XO.

We have got to be on the same page.

Sending her back was a bad call.

It hurt morale.

It was my call to make.

We don't have to see eye to eye on this to get this thing done.

But we need to get this thing done.

This asteroid, Ed, it could change everything for people back home.

Isn't that why we're up here in the first place?

Look, I want to get this rock as much as you do.

Okay.

Then let's cut the shit and make this happen.

I'll get this round.

Four glasses, comrade.

Excuse me, Miles.

Can I put in order for these cotton shirts?

Other fabric, it give me rash.

- Sure thing. - Grazie , comrade.

Thank you.

Next time he calls me comrade, I'm going to punch him in the face.

Glass for you.

I don't like him.

He's not good enough for Samantha.

Okay, Milosh. What is next on the list?

All right, all right. Let's get back to it.

Okay, so, today's haul. I got another order from Staley for Odor-Eaters.

He will not shut up about this.

And Lee keeps asking me about updates on his wife.

We should let him know where we stand on that.

So, where do we stand?

Has your guy gotten the wife out of North Korea?

JAXA's next cargo launch to ISP is in a couple of weeks.

Unfortunately, we're not going to be able to bring her up, after all.

It's too risky, Milosh.

Low profile. Remember?

Okay, but you told him we were gonna get it done. And I told him that too.

- If he finds out that we were-- - Last thing we want is to anger him.

Korean business has been very good to us.

So, we must wait until right time to say right thing.

You mean lie to him?

You worry too much, Milosh.

Remember, Ilya knows best.

The capture mission's just the tip of the spear.

They're gonna need us to make hundreds of thousands of liters of fuel,

replacement parts...

We'll be mining that thing for decades.

They're gonna have to build Happy Valley out big time.

Thousands more workers.

Right, it's like gold rush. No? Bonuses, overtime, hazard pay...

Well, I heard that we're gonna be working round the clock.

Double shifts. Six, seven days.

And I mean, they're asking us to do this

in half of the time of what we should have.

Samantha's right. We must be careful.

But it is also an amazing opportunity, no?

Perhaps you will be assigned to the Ranger crew again.

Glass half full. That is how you say it?

Something like that.

To Goldilocks.

Eighty-four percent of voters who own cell phones

say they support a proposed state ban on the use of handheld phones while driving.

Alex, we're leaving for school in five minutes.

Okay.

Peanut butter jelly not proper lunch.

Well, Alex loves it, so...

...central to the initial race to Mars, is finally going himself.

Dev Ayesa has announced

he is finally making the journey to the red planet later this month.

Ayesa talked with reporters today...

- Shit. - ...outside his Helios offices.

I simply felt that as CEO of Helios,

with everything unfolding on Mars as it has,

that I should take a more hands-on role up there.

- What's going on? - Guess you haven't heard the news?

That might be something you wanna tell us before announcing it to the whole world.

It was a spontaneous decision.

You going to Mars was a spontaneous decision?

- Yes. - Dev, I know out there you can do

whatever you want and people kiss your ass regardless.

But in here, in these offices, we're actually trying to get shit done,

- and you throwing this kind of curveball-- - I know.

And you and your team have been killing it developing the asteroid capture plan,

but the real action is up there.

And as leader of this company, I got to go where I'm needed most.

So, if you're up there,

who's going to handle all the M-7 negotiations for Goldilocks?

No way. I'm an engineer, I'm not--

Aleida, don't worry. You'll be great.

Now, Kelly, we need to talk about robotics.

So, I guess the astrobiology program just gets shunted aside.

- Back burner yet again, right? - On the contrary.

I'm escalating the timeline.

I want your team's personnel and equipment with me when I go.

Okay. The seekers can be ready, but I doubt my expedition team will be.

I was counting on another six weeks to bring them up to speed.

I have a fix for that.

You come with us.

What?

You train your team en route.

By the time we arrive, they'll be ready to hit the ground running.

Dev, I-I hear what you're saying,

but I can't just drop everything and go to Mars with you.

Why not?

I have a son.

I-I'd have to leave him behind for what, six months, a year. Maybe longer.

You have spent 15 years on the search for life.