In Matt Damon's latest thriller "The Martian," NASA doesn't just play a key role in the movie — the agency was also an important consultant in the making of the film.
The movie is based on the best-selling recent novel by Andy Wier and explores the story of Mark Watney, a man marooned on Mars, and his struggle to survive.
While the premise is science-fiction, much of the NASA equipment and technology featured in the film is scientifically accurate. Here's a comparison of all the awesome, seemingly science fiction elements of the movie that actually exist as science fact.
Make sure you don't miss them when you see the film, which premiers on Oct. 2.
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SCIENCE FICTION: Mark Watney spends most of his time on Mars in what he calls "the Hab,"— short for Mars Lander habitat — which shields him from harmful radiation, contains breathable air, and protects against the sub-zero temperatures on Mars.
SCIENCE FACT: This is NASA's Human Exploration Research Analog (HERA). It's a three-story habitat that spent some time in the Arizona desert to test its equipment under intense arid climates similar to Mars before reaching its current home at Johnson Space Center in Texas.
SCIENCE FICTION: Perhaps the most impressive piece of machinery in Watney's arsenal is this Mars rover. It won't travel any faster than 15 mph, but it gives him great opportunity to explore the Martian surface.
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