LOG ENTRY: SOL 14 (Nov. 20, 2035) I got my undergrad degree at the University of Chicago. Half the people who studied botany were hippies who thought they could return to some natural world system. Somehow feeding 7 billion people through pure gathering. They spent most of their time working out better ways to grow pot. I didn’t like them. I’ve always been in it for the science, not for any New World Order bullshit.  When they made compost heaps…

LOG ENTRY: SOL 11 (Nov. 17, 2035) I wonder how the Cubs are doing.

LOG ENTRY: SOL 10 (Nov. 16, 2035) Well, I’ve done three EVAs and haven’t found any hint of the communication dish.  I dug out one of the rovers and had a good drive around, but after days of wandering I think it’s time to give up. The storm probably blew the dish far away and then erased any drag-marks or scuffs that might have led to a trail. Probably buried it, too.  I spent most of today out at what’s…

Chapter 2  LOG ENTRY: SOL 7 (Nov. 13, 2035) Ok, I’ve had a good night’s sleep, and things don’t seem as hopeless as they did yesterday.  Today I took stock of supplies, and did a quick EVA to check up on the external equipment. Here’s my situation:  The surface mission was supposed to be 31 days. For redundancy, the supply probes had enough food to last the whole crew 56 days. That way if one or two probes had problems,…

And so it begins… (Moderator’s Note: Lots of action today! ~5k words, and we get to hear Watney’s inner dialogue for the first time. I’m excited! You’ll notice that I’ve left the “Chapter One” Heading where the book should’ve started. The stuff before that is similar to “Creation of Plastic;” I’ve left a note where it originally sat. All of the chapter headings have been left in place. This is also where the language starts to become a little too…

Mission Day – Nov. 7, 2035 (Sol 1)/Creation of Plastic: Part 5 Lewis and Beck opened Presupply 309. Working as best they could in their bulky EVA suits, they removed the various portions of Hab canvas and lay them on the ground. Three entire presupply probes were dedicated to the Hab. Following a procedure they had practiced hundreds of times, they efficiently assembled the pieces. Special seal-strips between the patches ensured air-tight mating. After erecting the main structure of the…

Creation of Plastic: Part 4 The presupply probes for Ares-3 launched on 14 consecutive days during the Hohmann Transfer window. Presupply 309 was launched third. The 251 day trip to Mars was uneventful, needing only two minor course adjustments. After several aerobraking maneuvers to slow down, it made its final descent toward Acidalia Planitia. First, it endured reentry via a heat shield. Later, it released a parachute and detached the now expended shield. Once its onboard radar detected it was…

Creation of Plastic: Part 3 The employees carefully folded the sheet, and placed it in an argon-filled airtight shipping container. Printing out a sticker, the man with the clipboard placed it on the package. “Project Ares-3; Hab Canvas; Sheet AL102.” The package was placed on a charter plane and flown to Edwards Air Force Base in California. It flew abnormally high, at great cost of fuel, to ensure a smoother flight. Upon arrival, the package was carefully transported by special…

Creation of Plastic: Part 2 All chemical reactions complete, the sheet was sterilized and moved to a cleanroom. There, a worker cut a strip off the edge. Dividing the strip in to squares, he put each through a series of rigorous tests. Having passed inspection, the sheet was then cut to shape. The edges were folded over, sewn, and resealed with resin. A man with a clipboard made final inspections, independently verifying the measurements, then approved it for use.

Diary of an Ass Can July 6th (Moderator’s Note: 130 Days Before Sol 6) This could be my last night on Earth. It’ll certainly be my last night on Earth for a long time. We launch tomorrow. They told me to get a good night’s sleep. Yeah. Right. I can’t take a sleeping pill. They don’t want any of us to have residual drugs in our system when we launch. Especially things that deliberately induce drowsiness. Makes sense, really. I…