Mars

Previously on Mars.

We have to perform a caesarian immediately.

No, I'm not ready.

What's wrong with her? What's wrong with my baby?

You need to tell us where the water is.

You're one crazy bitch, you know that?

I came here to find life, to study life, but not at the expense of it.

Lukrum should be stopped, but they can't be.

The resolution to impose sanctions against Lukrum Industries has not passed.

I need you to sever the energy transfer to Lukrum Colony.

I got a crew that's about to suffocate because your lunatic number two

decided to cut power to my camp.

That power was supplying the entire camp, and cutting them off compromised their grid.

We nearly lost their colony, and everyone in it.

Confine him to his quarters.

And that's why I'm leaving.

I need to be somewhere where I can fulfill my purpose.

We both know that place is Lukrum.

We have nothing to show for it.

Not water, not Joon, and now I'm losing you too.

It's hard to be patient.

It's not in our nature.

The solar mirror project is at 22% completion.

And although temperatures have risen slightly,

Visual evidence of a success hasn't been seen.

No water on the surface, not a cloud in the sky.

Still, we couldn't have gotten even this far without our partners.

Though it appears they now have a partnership of their own.

As they did with Russia.

Lukrum has brokered an independent deal with the Chinese.

To build them a colony on Mars.

All of this has left IMSF vulnerable to powerful business interests.

But while the struggle for control continues on Earth.

No one can really control what happens on Mars.

The planet has a way of making sure actions have consequences.

Both physical.

And emotional.

But humans are nothing, if not determined.

And while some may question our presence here at all, we are here.

And our numbers are growing.

She's using less supplemental oxygen.

Yes.

Though lung development is hard to measure with certainty,

particularly in this situation.

But her basic reflexes are good.

And she's gained weight.

We can't be sure how well she can breathe and eat on her own just yet.

I hate that she's on a ventilator, that she has to be kept sedated.

I haven't even held her.

How much longer does she need to stay like this?

I appreciate this is difficult, but given the unknowns,

I think it's best if she remains within a controlled environment

for as long as possible.

It's already been two months.

Are you saying six more, a year, forever?

Don't you understand, we cannot take any chances.

She's still too fragile.

I've tried, perhaps too hard, to prove that I wasn't just a scientist.

I let my ego get in the way.

Perhaps my fear.

And it's made me complicit in what's happened.

I should have seen it coming.

Again, I didn't.

Losing the sanction vote has left me powerless here.

Leslie, I know how hard it is to lead as a woman,

as a person of conscience, as someone who's grieving.

But Joon knew what she was doing when she picked you to succeed her,

and I have complete faith in you.

To turn this thing around, and put us on the right side of history.

What is it going to take before we change our ways?

Is it going to take something awful, some crisis?

We tend to respond to crises, but people also take long term views.

Sometimes we don't need to be woken up by disaster.

Sometimes we look ahead to the future.

1500 feet is our target altitude.

We want to be above or below the clouds, but not in them.

Okay, yeah, that sounds good.

Flying along for hours at a time over sea ice,

seeing the big changes that really are happening.

That's where I get the sense of the Earth's fragility.

I think the planet is in peril, and we are being careless in some ways.

That's 10,000 in the clear.

Gotcha.

NASA's Operation Icebridge is the largest aerial survey ever conducted

of the Earth's polar ice.

My desk is a seat in an airplane, and my office window is the view out

on the North Pole.

The ultimate goal is to inform both the US public and the world about the changing state

of the planet.

We are ready for the launch.

We think of NASA as this organization that sends us out to the moon and beyond,

but actually most of NASA's budget is spent on making Earth a more survivable place

for human beings.

NASA's not just flying into space these days.

They're flying over the oil disaster.

Above the Earth, a dozen NASA satellites

are tracking global warming as we speak.

It is absolutely critical that we understand Earth's environment because

this is the only place that we have to live.

Information is survivability, and NASA keeps everybody alive on Earth.

In ways that people can't even imagine.

The changes that we've in the seen in the Arctic have actually outpaced the most

grim of the model predictions, and it's going to lead to a great number of changes that

we as a species are going to have to deal with.

What is the worst case scenario?

They're worried that we're going to have to suffer before we improve the way we do things.

I think there's no shortage of sort of shocking events that should be acting

as that wake-up call.

Under a state of emergency.

200,000 gallons leaking a day.

Fracking.

Well water full of methane gas.

And it's not for lack of shocks that change hasn't happened.

Why would we imagine that in going to Mars that narrative wouldn't repeat once again?

Keep an eye on that heat exchanger.

- Is it jammed again? - Yeah, there's no moving it.

Shep, what are you guys doing out there?

Trying everything we can to get this thing going again, but it's not looking good.

We need to crank up the RPM, we're getting nowhere.

Push it to 50 if you have to.

Affirmative, sir.

We've gone less than a centimeter in over an hour.

Shall I increase downforce to 70 kilograms?

Did that work last time?

No. That's not going to help.

That bit is trapped again.

Damn it!

Lukrum is making deals left and right, but they can't build a thing if we can't

deliver the resources to build it with.

Well, I guess we can kiss our bonuses goodbye.

We're not going to get through this shelf before the end of the year,

so do you want to change locations before we kill another bit?

No, not when every report says water is just a few meters down.

I'm not drilling another hole.

This is it.

And we're getting water today.

Old school.

Explosives.

It's still hard to believe such a minor mutation could behave this way.

It's fascinating, really.

Yes.

But not worth the price we paid, allowing us to study it.

You couldn't have known.

Cameron said it presented identically.

The environments weren't identical.

And I could have insisted on different protocols.

I should have.

Marta.

Lukrum's within hours of reaching liquid water.

Of course.

Of course they'd be the ones to get to it first.

The idea of a second genesis and all it could unlock for science,

it means nothing to them.

The reason I know it's happening is because Kurt reached out.

He's invited you to go collect samples.

Careful guys.

Don't want anyone to get hurt, just want to get what we're after.

Walking it in slowly, sir.

Alright, let's get it lowered and get it done.

Initiating final prep before detonation.

Take it all the way down.

Keep an eye on that heat exchange.

Are you okay with what he's doing?

Yeah, I mean, I have to be.

- Do you? - Jen, he's our boss.

I know, I just, I don't think he's thought it all the way through.

We do this sort of thing on Earth all the time, but we don't know how...

Stop. Talking.

What are you saying, that we're not friends, that I can't talk to you about

something that's bothering me, like detonating explosives.

We're getting find water, follow orders.

That's what we're going to do.

You hear we're making the deadline?

Yeah, with a little help.

You know, why don't you to add some boosters, too.

Make sure we get this in one shot.

Yes, sir.

Can I get your bag for you?

Marta, come on up front.

Glad you could make it.

I appreciate you having me.

Though I must say I didn't expect the invite.

Well, we know how much this water thing means to you science types.

To be honest, it wasn't my idea.

You have a fan back home.

Your daughter?

Name's Chelsea, and she wants to be a microbiologist when she grows up.

Go figure, huh?

Incoming call from Lukrum Colony, Robert Foucault.

Long time.

How are you, my friend?

I should be asking you.

How's the baby?

Same.

Which is good enough for now.

Nice outfit.

Yeah, I'm still getting used to it.

Listen, how do you feel about the use of controlled explosives

at a depth of around 300 meters?

I'm not sure.