|
The Last Push (2012)
Astronaut Forrest...
you give us hope. And your great accomplishment... will be edged in the history of mankind. You're not alone. People from all over the world are keeping their eyes on you. So please, don't lose your hope and faith. We'll be praying for you... and your safe journey home. What is it that inspires mankind to take great risk? Why is it that throughout history... humans have been driven to explore distant uncharted places... despite the possibility of no return? In the case of Europa, the icy, mysterious moon of Jupiter... that inspiration came in the form of photographs. Photographs that revealed life. These ghostly images gave the entire human race unrepentant knowledge... that life as we know it is not an isolated event... reserved merely for Earth. But rather a miracle that is pervasive throughout the cosmos. And for the first time since the 1970's... humankind, once again, sought to set foot on a distant world. Hey, kids. Um, I want to know, how do you go to the bathroom in space? I'll answer this one. Check this out. We have a small... Actually, there is a little bit of gravity on the ship... so, so going to the bathroom... in space is a lot like going to the bathroom on Earth. Well, I think the kids would enjoy how number one works. Next question. In the days after NASA retired the space shuttle program... and since the abandonment of the International Space Station... the world has had to turn to private enterprise... when it comes to getting man back into space. The most influential name in space exploration has been... without a doubt, Walter Moffitt. Whales on Europa. Yes... every time I see these latest pictures... man, it gives chills down my spine. Which brings me to my next question... of pictures. Mm-hm. We have dozens and dozens of pictures. Lots of pictures. NASA is preparing a submersible rover to dive under the ice. NASA and its rover... My name is Gavin Hayden. Why aren't you wearing any spacesuits? The space suits, or EVAs... are used for extra-vehicular activities... so, that would be outside the ship. But I suppose they could be used in an emergency. About two hours worth of life support. Charlie, it takes NASA a year just to pass gas. They have quadruple redundancy in everything they do... in their engineering chain, and you name it. I have respect for NASA, but by the time their rover... gets there, our boys will be on their way home. To accomplish the 13-year mission to explore the distant world... astronauts Nathan Miller and Michael Forrest are placed into a deep sleep for six years... as their space craft races from planet to planet... before speeding off to Europa. There they will spend one year in a state-of-the-art facility... studying the newly discovered species of alien giants... before finally returning home. My name's Emily. Um, aren't you going to Venus, 'cause that's the wrong way? That is actually a very astute question. Um, it has to do with the orbital ellipses of the planets... and a very concerted effort on the part of the scientists, as well as ourselves... to increase the speed of the ship using not only the earth's gravitational pull... but Venus as well. Yeah, so what I think my colleague is trying to say... it's all about going fast. So what we're gonna do is spin around Venus to pick up speed... then slingshot from Venus to Earth. As we get even more speedage, we're off to Jupiter. Faster than ever. Sounds cool, huh? Isn't the redundancy exactly what is needed here for safety? There are those who criticize you who say that you rushed this mission. This is not meant to be a disclaimer... but everybody knows how I feel, you know, that I'm very protective of my men. Columbus went around the world. Magellan sailed around the whole planet. We got guys going to the moon. They rushed them to the moon. And that was for a reason. We need somebody there. We need somebody to put their foot in the dust of the moon. Like many brave explorers before them... the two-men crew of Life One... entrust their lives to their tiny vessel and to each other... for a chance to witness the extraordinary. It has been called the most dangerous whale watching expedition in history. When you see the planet... what does it look like outside the window? It looks like stars. We have heard that this mission has cost you personally... 50 billion dollars. It cost me a lot. But look, that's what we're here for. That's what we're working, that's the whole deal. Think about this for a minute. These boys are travelling at the speed of a .45 bullet. They're sound asleep. They're gonna go around Venus, past Earth, and then start orbiting Jupiter. What a miracle. They'll see the whales of Europa. But they'll be seeing it with their eyes. It won't be photographs from NASA. Your a man who's wealthy enough to do anything he wants to do. Why aren't you up there with those men right now? Charlie, I've done everything I've wanted to do... just about. I'm a bit long in the tooth. I would'a, could'a, should'a... but it really isn't about me. It's about future generations. Can I ask a question? How is it that you plan to spend your free time? Space pong. We actually won't have a lot of free time. Now ping pong in space... We're gonna be doing experiments 24/7. Not to mention a lifetime of study. Having to cram that into just one year, so... Yeah, but in our free time, I will be in my space suit... sitting on my porch, reading from my pocket Shakespeare... by the light of Jupiter on the horizon. Um, that sounds beautiful. Thank you. Well, I guess it's time for us to go. We have a lot of work to do before we go to sleep. Thank you for your wonderful question. Bye-bye. Thank you, kids. We'll see you guys in six years. Nathan! OMS thrusters check? OMS thrusters... check. Hey, pal, how we doing? I am doing just fine. This is Life One to Mission Control. There is a leak in the main habitation chamber. I sealed the capsule and I'm suiting up. I'll be out of communications for... until further notice. Nathan Miller is dead. Life One out. Life One, this is Mission Control. We received your emergency beacon. We're analyzing all of the data pouring in right now. As soon as we have some answers for you, we'll get back to you. Acknowledge receipt of this message. Mission Control out. Life One, this is Mission Control. We have multiple failures of the hull... in both the capsule and the habitation module. We recommend suiting up... This is Life One to Mission Control. There is a leak in the main habitation chamber. I've sealed the capsule and am suiting up. I'll be out of communications for 12 hours. That's great, you're on it. We'll keep sending more information as it comes in. Mission Control out. FORRES Life One out. This is Life One. The main habitation chamber is secure. The hibernation and reentry capsule... is... I'm sorry, I don't know who you are, um... Can you find me Ben Elliot or... Bob Jansen? Would be great. This is Life One out. Space travel is inherently dangerous. There could always be a problem. Let's say on the first leg, heading towards Venus... or on the second leg, going from Venus back to Earth... aborting the mission would be relatively simple. We'd just come home. We'd actually be asleep at the time... ...so we probably wouldn't know that there was a problem. Of course, after we make that last push around Earth and head towards Jupiter... well, there's really no going back. Life One, this is Mission Control. We have Robert Jansen to come in and talk to you face-to-face. All right, great, thanks. Michael? It's Life One. No, it's Michael, and you're Adam and I'm Bob... so let's cut the jargon. Michael, hi, it looks like the space craft... was more than likely hit by a micro-meteorite. Information is coming in and we're doing our best to process it as quickly as possible. Just know that I am here... and as I know anything, I will transmit back to you. Bob out. This is Life One. It's good to see you, Bob. Damage report. Life support is solid. And oxygen is holding, for now. The habitation module is stabilized and we're at 1.0 of earth gravity. So whatever hit us, must have not been big enough to knock us off our spin. The central fuel tank and booster engine are in the numbers. Nuclear reactor remains unbreached... and all radiation shielding is functioning well. Europa habitation ballast array and all contents including ice drill platform. Inflatable habitat and mini submersible are reading 100 percent. Looks like the only thing that we lost, actually... was the hibernation and reentry capsule. I'll do another diagnostic check and I'll be in touch. Thanks, Bob. Life One out. Life One, this is Mission Control. We have an update on the situation... but Mr. Moffitt would like to deliver this message himself. Thank you. Michael... Walter Moffit. Listen, first of all... we deeply regret the loss of Nathaniel. And there's not much you can say about a thing like this... but Mr. Jeffs has taking over for Mr. Elliot... who passed away about two years ago in a heart attack. A lot's changed since you've been gone. And on that note, we've decided to abort the mission. I'm looking forward to talking to you. Mission out. Hi, Mike, my name is Irwin and this is my family... Mila and Drew. We'd just like to thank you for being our eyes in another world. Bye! Bye! Bye. This is Life One. I have received your message and am aborting the mission to Europa. Given our current position, we will continue our present course... past Venus as scheduled and toward Earth as scheduled. At which point, we will execute a Leg 3 abort... scrapping the slingshot maneuver to Europa... from Earth. I'll make the changes necessary for our break in procedure... and preparation for reentry... and thereby an end to the mission. This is Life One out. Okay, this is all very exciting. Hey, ease up, man. Smile! It's for the kids. It's good PR, hit the button. This is Life One. It's been 24 hours since the accident. My hibernation sickness is starting to wear off. The food recycling system is up and running. We're at 100 percent. Obviously most of the comforts of home are locked away in the Europa. Habitation ballast array. So I won't get my comfortable chair. But I am gonna miss my bed, and the window for that matter. We're only supposed to spend a week to two weeks in this chamber... but we're just gonna have to make it work. We're just gonna have to make it work. This is Life One... out. Michael? It's Bob... obviously. It was important for me, right now, to tell you that I need you to get on a routine. I need you to sleep. I need you to eat three meals a day. I need you to exercise. It will be very, very important for you and for me... for you to do all of the work that you can to stay sane up there... and to know that I am here to talk to you... or at least send you periodic messages that... ...at some point in the future you'll respond to. I'm here for you, buddy. All right? Bob out. Niobium, Nb. Bromine, Br. Krypton, Kr. Rubidium, Rb. Strontium, Sr. Hi, Michael, Bob here. Just checking in. You've got a lot of people around here watching you. In fact, you're pretty much the biggest story in the world right now. Um, so I need to ask you... can I have the exclusive rights to your book? But also, I was asked today to ask you how you're feeling. Seemed an odd question. But then I realized I hadn't asked you... so... how are you? How are you feeling? Bob out. This is Life One. Diagnostics seem to be going smoothly. As of right now... it'll probably take me another three days to fully check the entire ship. At least this part of it anyway. I've taken in about 2,100 calories. I have 600 to go. I'm gonna try to keep it at that level for the duration. Done about 16 minutes of exercise. I think that's too much. I'm gonna try to dial it back for tomorrow. Otherwise, we're just trying to conserve our energy. I'll get in a daily log tomorrow about this same time. Other than that, we should be fine. This is Life One... out. Okay, Michael, here's the situation. You have a lot on your plate right now... but every single bit of it is extremely important. You've got a post-Venus engine burn that needs to happen... otherwise, you're going to spend the rest of your life as Venus' only real moon. Unfortunately, from my end, I am looking at... ...an electrical system that is completely fried. And it needs to be rebuilt from the ground up. So you're going to have to perform that engine burn manually... which obviously wasn't the way things were meant to be. The system's primary generator is unstable, at best... and you have got to keep the power running. You lose power and you will freeze to death in a manner of hours. So be very careful. Michael, what we have here is a classic, old-school Christmas light situation. Remember at Christmas when you were trying to get your Christmas tree lights to work? And they weren't, inexplicably. So you had to go through every single bulb and test it... to get proper connection in order for the lights to light up? Well that's what you're going to have to do, alone... with a 25 gazillion dollar spaceship. What I'm gonna need you to do is I'm gonna... ...need you to take all of the control systems... from the capsule and reroute them to the habitation module. The monitor that you're looking at right now. So let's take all of the systems and let's reroute it there. Now I hate to tell you this, but this means that... Michael, you're gonna need to go back in the capsule... and get your hands dirty. It's gonna take you a lot of time... but, just like Christmas, it'll be worth it in the end. Bob out. This is Life One, received your message. I understand what you're saying, Bob... but I think I can get to everything I need to get to... in the main habitation chamber. If I go into that capsule, I'm gonna have to get fully suited up. It's gonna be hard to work. It may take extra time coming from this way, but... hell, I got plenty of time. Frankly, I don't want to go in that capsule if I don't have to. So let's see what we can do from this side. This is Life One, out. Life One, this is Mission Control. Um, it's me, Adam. Um, I know you lost all your music and... ...entertainment data with the death of the capsule. So I put together some music that I'm going to send up to you now... and I think you'll enjoy it. No, no... uh... No! No! Surf's up We're surfing every day now Surf's up The summer's here to stay now Surfing till the sun's gone away This is Life One. Turn it off and keep it off. Life One out. Turn it off and keep it off. Life One out. Surf's up We're surfing every day now Surf's up The summer's here to stay We'll be spending all our time Surfing till the sun's gone away I started work on rerouting the control panel today. And happened to find two ping pong paddles. Ping pong ball and a book of light reading. Compliments of Nathan Miller. Life One out. It's in the toilet. Astronaut Forrest... On behalf of my family and with love from all of our country... we wish you a safe return and you've been a really big inspiration for all of us. Please come back safely, okay? Thank you, Kadru. See you guys in six years! And thanks again for your great questions. You did good. Finished Mary Shelley's Frankenstein... again. Don't really care for her poetry. I'll move on to Shakespeare tomorrow. This is Life One out. Jackson, Lincoln, Johnson, Grant, Reagan, Bush... Clinton, Bush, Obama, Raton. Okay, first names... George... Hi, Michael, it might be time now to start thinking about... performing some no-fire engine burn test. Just to check the connectivity on the primary generator. Let me know when you might be ready to start... ...testing and we'll get ready on our end down here. Bob out. I've rerouted the circuits from S-23. I think we're about, let's say ten days out... before we'll be able to do some kind of engine-burn test on the new control panel. This is Life One out. This is Life One, daily log. Did another ten minutes of exercise. That seemed to go pretty well. 2,400 calories consumed today. I guess we'll call it a late-night snack to finish up. I've been eating... candy corn-flavored paste for the last 14 days. I think we'll switch to cheeseburger. Life One out. Sleepy, Sneezy, Happy, Grumpy... Dopey... Doc. No... Sleepy, Sneezy, Happy, Grumpy... Dopey, Angry and Doc. Gray-6, pull wire. They're all gray, Bob. Have eaten what I'm supposed to eat today. I have exercised as much as I'm supposed to exercise. I have been working on rerouting this damn panel for I don't know how long... and I would love to have just a little room to work. Next time you build one of these things... maybe... maybe... a little elbow room. Just a thought. Sleepy, Sneezy, Happy... Was one drunk? Daily log 42. Calisthenics, ten minutes. Caloric intake, 2,700, right on the money. And happy to say that Panel 17-OHG is finished. So, put a big check mark by that one. We'll get to work on 18-01HG tomorrow. But today, I do believe I am putting my feet up. Sleepy, Sneezy, Happy, Grumpy. Sleepy, Sneezy, Happy, Grumpy... Dopey, Bashful and Doc. We're about 24 hours from our first engine-burn test. I wouldn't get too excited, I think we have a long way to go. Fortunately, we got plenty of time. Talk to you tomorrow. This is Life One out. This is test number one for an engine burn after reconnection. We are going in three, two, one. It's about what I expected. This is Life One. Test number one has failed. We startin' over. Hi, Michael, it's... My name is Eric Hainen, I'm from Haifa, Israel... and in behalf of my family, my town, my country... I wish you best of luck and a safe journey back home from space. Thank you. Michael, standby. I have an important message to you from Mr. Moffitt. I will be sending it to you now. Michael, this is Mr. M. I got something that might cheer you up. We've compiled a short video of well-wishers from around the world. I'd like to ask your permission to transmit this up. This is Life One with an answer to your request. No. No, no, thank you. Life One out. Read a little Hamlet today. He says there is nothing either good or bad... but thinking makes it so. Question is, do you you change your thinking or just try to stop thinking all together? This is Life One out. Um, I want to know, how do you go to the bathroom in space? I don't know why you let something like that bother you so much. It was a personal question about my personal business. Kid asked the question. What do you want me to tell them? That every time we defecate, our stool is... ...reconstituted into a paste that we eat for dinner? It's flavored paste. And you get to choose your own flavor. This is Life One, Day 182. Six months. I don't know, Bob. Should we be celebrating? Okay, Michael, everything appears to be 100 percent on track... and you're getting everything done, famously... except that my data is showing that there are issues and problems... that I don't understand... so, let me do some more work... and let me get back to you, but stay the course, things are improving. Bob out. Toronto... Stockholm. New York City. Burlington... Vermont. Vermont... Santiago, Chile... Hollywood. Hi, Michael, uh, we've been quiet down here. Just not wanting to put any unnecessary pressure on... on you. We have some people down here who... want to know how close you think you are to a second engine-burn test. So if you could, please kindly confirm receipt of this message. Bob out. Uh... I'd say we are... three weeks... Three weeks out from our next engine-burn test, so... nobody get excited. I'll check in again tomorrow. That looks like that's gonna take forever. Bob, I need to talk to you about something. I, uh... I know there's a vacuum in that capsule. I know that there's no sound in that capsule. I know that Nathan is dead... but I hear something in there. I can't figure out what it is. And I'm starting to think that it's me. Life One out. Astronaut Forrest... what is it you plan to do with your free time? Michael? Bob here. Listen, buddy, could you do me a favor and just get a little rest? I know that you are working very, very hard on this repatch... but there's no reason to push yourself to do another engine-burn test tomorrow. Between you and me, you have got plenty of time... so let's just put it off for a day or two. Go to the beach, drink a Mai Tai. Just take a day off, okay? Bob out. I got about six more hours on this repatch... but we are doing this engine-burn test tomorrow come hell or high water. That's all I got. Life One out. This is engine-burn connection test number two. Arming... in three, two, one. Fuck! This fucking... Bob, I'm becoming concerned about the failure of these engine-burn tests. I'm worried about the ramifications. We've got, uh... about 2,500 calories... taken in today and about 11 minutes calisthenics. There's a sound coming from the hibernation and reentry capsule. I don't know what it is. Could you... take a look at that for me? Or give me some ideas about what that could be? Thanks. Life One out. Michael, this is Bob. There is no reason that there should be any sound coming from the capsule. The capsule is dead. Now, listen to me. You are not sleeping. One friend to another, you look like hell, bro. So, get some rest, continue eating, continue exercising. You have to exercise not just your body, Michael, but your mind and get some rest. That's my advice to you today. Bob out. Shut up, Nathan! Shut up! Goddamn it! God...! This is engine-burn test number seven, three, two, one. This is engine-burn test number eight... in three, two, one. Test number 11 in three, two, one. Number 14... in three, two, one. Three, two, one. In three, two, one. This is engine-burn test number 25... in three, two, one. Oh, baby. Come on, come on, come on. God... No, no, no, no, no! No, no. 1632, 1634... no, that's all right. Goddamn it, come on! Wasn't a... wasn't a frayed wire, was it? S-20, S-26, 27. Ugh, it's not here. Fuck, it's cold. No, no, no, that's fine. It's fine. This isn't it. This isn't it. Come on. Guidance systems, check. Guidance system, check. Hey, look, pal... there's nobody else I'd rather do this mission with. I mean that. Let's do this. What are you doing? This ain't the man I know. Get the fuck up... Michael! Michael, get up! Michael, you... you son of a bitch. I... I cannot believe that you made it. Uh, I lost a lot of money. Um, be well, we'll do the work we need to here... and, uh, send us a message when you can. Bob out. Yeah, I made it. I'm alive anyway. So what's next? I still have a post-Venus engine burn ahead... and have yet to perform a successful test. And if I do get all the way back to Earth... I have to crawl back into that capsule... and hope that whatever rudimentary interior repair I do... won't rupture on reentry. And before that can happen... I have years of this. For what? To say... I survived? Sometimes I think... if I could get these engines fired up at all. Maybe I shouldn't stop at Earth. Maybe I should... ride this thing... all the way to Europa. In a lot of ways... I'm dead already. Otherwise... yeah... I made it... but what's the point? Astronaut Forrest, I just want to thank you so much... for being a tremendous influence to me and my family. We're so proud of you. We wish you the very best... and please, have a safe journey home. You're my hero. Michael, Bob here. Listen, buddy, you are now nearing Venus... and your ship is sending back the most... beautiful pictures that I've ever seen. Buddy, Venus is right outside your ship right now... and I... I wanted to implore you... to... to let me send you the images. It's amazing... Bob out. This is Michael Forrest of Life One. I have just seen Venus. It's so close, I feel like I can... It's so close, I feel like I can reach out and touch it. I'm millions of miles from home. My only companion is dead. And I can't help but think... that I'm the luckiest man alive. I wish... that you could see what I see. This is Life One out. This is Life One. Standby for a post-Venus engine burn. Arming... in three... two... one. That's the stuff. Michael? It is official. The Broncos have won the Super Bowl. No, not really. Uh, you're on your way home, buddy. Two more years to go. Maybe by the time you're home, you'll be old enough to have a beer with me. Sleep well, 'cause I am going to bed. Bob out. Life One to Mission Control. You remember that video that Moffitt made for me? Think you could track that down? I think I'd like to see it now. Thanks. This message is for Astronaut Michael Forrest. My name is Avery Grey. I'm from Omaha, Nebraska. Good luck, Michael, in Chinese. Hi, Michael... Astronaut Forrest, I just want to thank you so much... for being a tremendous influence to me and my family. We're so proud of you. We wish you a safe return and you've been a really big inspiration for all of us. Please come back safely. One... one time, in school... I was watching one of your videos... for a long time, like, we're talking hours. Um, and then this teacher came in... and she said, "You're missing science class. " And then I told her, "I ain't missing nothing. "I'm watching Astronaut Michael Forrest going to search for space worlds. " That sounds like science to me. You're my hero. Astronaut Forrest, you are a great hero to the Japanese people. You give us hope. And your great accomplishment will be edged in the history of mankind. Sometimes I wonder if you're scared. You don't ever look scared... but you might get stuck up there... and I just wanted to tell you, don't be scared. 'Cause I'm gonna be just like you. And, if you get stuck, I'll come and get you. All right, cross checks are complete. We've run ten pressure-test simulations and it appears that your patch is solid. The inflatable aero-shell is 100 percent, was never compromised... so you've got yourself a heat shield. You can start warming up the capsule for the ride home. Really, at any time, all systems are go... with power generator running at 99.6 percent. Truly, a hell of a job, you've got her purring like a kitten. So this is it. Time to say goodbye to the HAB MOD. Time to say goodbye to Life One. Listen, Michael, um... I'm proud to have been here with you. Thanks, Bob. I couldn't have done it without you. That is so true. It's been my pleasure. Okay, standby. All that's left to do is fire the engines for the breaking procedure. We'll see you after splashdown. Bob out. Life One to Mission Control. Life One to Mission Control. Mission Control, over. Jeffs, how you doing, buddy? Listen, I need to speak to Mr. Moffitt. Can you find him for me? Thanks. This is Life One out. What can I do for you, Michael? How's the countdown going? Funny you should ask. That's actually what I wanted to talk to you about. Shoot. I've decided to abort the countdown. What are you saying? What do you mean abort? I'm rebooting the mission. I'm going to Europa. Wait a minute. I got a ton of reasons why that's not gonna work. Besides, everybody here is working to get you down safely. Just listen to me for a second. There's a reason I came up here. Someone's supposed to go. Someone's supposed to see this. Michael, I have no button to bring you down. You got me. You got me. There's nothing I can do. I thought my life was over when that accident happened. The truth is, I've been living life up here. I'm gonna continue to live. Michael... what was this all for? See the whales on Europa? Mr. Moffitt... you got to learn to trust me again. Michael, listen to me. I don't know how else to put this, but we gotta lay Nathan to rest. We have to. I just want you home. You hear me? Michael? I can't have another death on my conscience. Michael? Michael? This is Michael Forrest of Life One. You'll have to forgive me. I'm not normally a man of many words... but I'm doing the best I can. I wanted to thank all of you... for your support. Thought I was alone up here. I was wrong. It was about three years ago... from now that Astronaut Nathan Miller lost his life. I lost a colleague, a fellow astronaut, friend. But just like all of you, his spirit never abandoned me. In a book he brought onboard, a collection of poems. He speaks to me. One passage in particular, I still hear him loud and clear. It's by T.S. Eliot. It says, "We shall not cease from exploration. "And the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started. "And know the place for the first time. "Through the unknown, unremembered gate... "when the last of Earth left to discover was that which was the beginning. "Quick now, here, now. Always. "A condition of complete simplicity costing not less than everything. "And all shall be well. "And all manner of things shall be well. "When the tongues of flame are enfolded into the crowned knot of fire. "And the fire and the rose are one. " We're just getting started. This is Life One... out. |
|