Welcome to Martian Messages!

@martian-messages

The mission control for all things related to the Martian Messages substack. Enjoy life on Mars! || PFP credit: @helios-shine (check out their Martian RP, @man-on-mars) || join our tumblr community! tumblr.com/join/Un7gyCFT

144 posts

Welcome to Mars!

Hi there! I'm Mod Ashla (she/her), and I run the Martian Messages newsletter.

Martian Messages is a substack subscription similar to Dracula Daily. It aims to bring you live updates on Mark Watney as he struggles to survive on Mars. The text is taken from the original blog series by Andy Weir, so if you're a fan of the book, you might find a few differences! My goal is to start next November. Please feel free to contact me or @liopleurodean if you have any questions or comments!

(Note: This is a personal project, and only one person is running it. I'm super excited to share this with everyone, but please be patient as I work through formatting/math/editing. Thanks!)

Disclaimer: I do not own The Martian by Andy Weir. The version I will be using is taken from his blog, prior to the editing and publishing process. This in mind, it does have sensitive content (extensive swearing and occasional lewd comments) so please be careful if you wish to read!

I'll try to post updates here, tagged #watney watch if you aren't subscribed to the email list. I hope you enjoy!

#the martian #andy weir #martian messages #substack #dracula daily #watney watch

Moderator’s Note:

Okay, here’s the (not so) fun part. For the next five-ish months, we’re not gonna hear from Watney and friends. I know, it’s sad. I’ll miss them too. Posts will pick back up on November 26 (more than a year after we started, can you believe it?) In the meantime… keep talking about Mars! A couple of suggestions: Watch The Martian (2015) Read Project Hail Mary (and maybe watch the new movie? Past…

June 11, 2036

Jun. 11, 2036 (Sol 213)“Welcome to Jiuquan,” Guo Ming said. “I hope your flight was smooth?”Su Bin translated Guo Ming’s words as Teddy took the second-best seat in the observation room.“Yes, thank you,” Teddy said. “The hospitality of your people has been wonderful. The private jet you arranged to bring us here was a nice touch.”“My people have enjoyed working with your advance team,” Guo Ming…

June 10, 2036

Chapter 19Jun. 10, 2036 (Sol 212)“Hey, Melissa…” said Robert. “Am I getting through? Can you see me?”“Loud and clear, babe,” said Commander Lewis. “The video link is solid.”“They say I have 5 minutes,” Robert said.“Better than nothing,” Lewis said. Floating in her quarters, she gently touched the bulkhead to stop drifting. “It’s nice to see you in real-time for a change.”“Yeah,” Robert smiled. “I…

June 9, 2036

LOG ENTRY: SOL 211 (Jun. 9, 2036)I am smiling a great smile. The smile of a man who fucked with his car and didn’t break it. This is considerably more rare than you might think.I spent today removing unnecessary crap from the rover and trailer. I was pretty damn aggressive about it, too. Space inside the pressure vessels is premium. The more crap I clear out of the rover, the more space there is…

June 7, 2036

LOG ENTRY: SOL 209 (Jun. 7, 2036)Cold night last night. The solar cells were still detached from the farm, so I had to leave the Hab in low-power mode. I did turn the heat back on (I’m not insane), but I set the internal temperature to 1C to conserve power. Waking up to frigid weather was surprisingly nostalgic. I grew up in Chicago, after all.But nostalgia only lasts so long. I vowed to complete…

June 6, 2036

LOG ENTRY: SOL 208 (Jun. 6, 2036)Today, it was time to experiment with the panels.First, I put the Hab on low power mode: No internal lights, all nonessential systems offline, all internal heating suspended. I’d be outside most of the day anyway.I detached 28 panels from the solar farm and dragged them to the rover. I spent four hours stacking them this way and that. The poor rover looked like…

June 5, 2036

LOG ENTRY: SOL 207 (Jun. 5, 2036)I spent the last week recovering from back problems. The pain wasn’t bad, but there aren’t any chiropractors on Mars, so I wasn’t taking chances.I took hot baths twice a day, laid in my bunk a lot, and watched shitty ’70’s TV. I’ve already seen Lewis’s entire collection, but I didn’t have much else to do. I was reduced to watching reruns.I got a lot of thinking…

May 30, 2036

LOG ENTRY: SOL 201 (May 30, 2036)Yeah, I definitely pulled something in my back. I woke up in agony.So I took a break from rover planning. Instead, I spent the day taking drugs and playing with radiation.First, I loaded up on Vicodin for my back. Hooray for Beck’s medical supplies!Then I drove out to the RTG. It was right where I left it, in a hole 4km away. Only an idiot would keep that thing…

May 29, 2036

LOG ENTRY: SOL 200 (May 29, 2036)I hauled rocks today.I needed to know what kind of power efficiency the rover/trailer will get. On the way to Pathfinder, I got 80km from 18kwh. This time, the load will be a lot heavier. I’ll be towing the trailer and all the other shit.I backed the rover up to the trailer and attached the tow clamps. Easy enough.The trailer has been depressurized for some time…

May 28, 2036

LOG ENTRY: SOL 199 (May 28, 2036)I’ve got it. I know how to power the Oxygenator and Atmospheric Regulator.The problem with small pressure vessels is CO2 toxicity. You can have all the oxygen in the world, but once the CO2 gets above 1% you’ll start to get drowsy. At 2% it’s like being drunk. At 5%, it’s hard to stay conscious. 8% will eventually kill you. Keeping alive isn’t about oxygen, it’s…

May 27, 2036

LOG ENTRY: SOL 198 (May 27, 2036)I’ve had a breakthrough with the Oxygenator!I spent most of the day looking at the specs. It heats CO2 to 900C, then passes it over a zirconia electrolysis cell to yank the carbon atoms off. Heating the gas is what takes most of the energy. Why is that important? Because I’m just one guy and the Oxygenator was made for six. 1/6th the quantity of CO2 means 1/6th…

May 26, 2036

Chapter 18LOG ENTRY: SOL 197 (May 26, 2036)Sigh…Just once I’d like something to go to plan, ya know?Mars keeps trying to kill me.Well… Mars didn’t electrocute Pathfinder. So I’ll amend that:Mars and my stupidity keep trying to kill me.Ok, enough self-pity. I’m not doomed. Things will be just be harder than planned. I have all I need to survive. And Hermes is still on the way.I spelled out a Morse…

May 25, 2036

LOG ENTRY: SOL 196 (May 25, 2036)I fucked up.I fucked up big time. I made a mistake that might kill me.I started my EVA around 08:45, same as always. I got my hammer and screwdriver and started chipping the trailer’s hull. It’s a pain in the ass to make a chip before each drilling, so I make all the day’s chips in a single go.After chipping out 150 divots (hey, I’m an optimist), I got to work.It…

May 24, 2036

LOG ENTRY: SOL 195 (May 24, 2036)Another day, another bunch of holes. 145 this time (I’m getting better.) I’m half-way done. This is getting really old.But at least I have encouraging messages from Venkat to cheer me on![17:12] Watney: 145 holes today. 357 total.[17:31] JPL: We thought you’d have more done by now.Dick.Anyway, I’m still bored at night. I guess that’s a good thing. Nothing’s wrong…

May 23, 2036

LOG ENTRY: SOL 194 (May 23, 2036)I average a hole every 3.5 minutes. That includes the occasional breather to let the drill cool off.I learned this by spending all damn day drilling. After 8 hours of dull, physically intense work, I had 137 holes to show for it.It turned out to be easy to deal with places I couldn’t reach. I didn’t need to modify a landing strut after all. I just had to get…

May 22, 2036

LOG ENTRY: SOL 193 (May 22, 2036)I managed to not kill myself today, even though I was working with high voltage. Well, it’s not as exciting as all that. I disconnected the line before I fucked with it.As instructed, I turned a rover charging cable into a drill power source. Getting the voltage was a simple matter of adding resistors, which my electronics kit has in abundance.I had to make my own…

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