ARIA is waking up the base…

Mission VigilGo for Air

Sol 1, 05:30

⬢ 0 parts

Learn about Mars

Tap a question to read the answer. The game waits while you read.

What is a sol?+

A sol is one day on Mars.

Your job is to keep the base alive for 5 sols. Then the big air system is ready.

Did you know? A day on Mars

A day on Mars is called a sol. It is about 40 minutes longer than a day on Earth.

Mars Curiosity rover data
Air: oxygen and CO₂+

You breathe in a gas called oxygen. You breathe out a gas called CO₂.

The oxygen maker makes oxygen. The air cleaner takes CO₂ out of the air.

Watch the CO₂ most. It gets dangerous long before the oxygen runs out.

Did you know? Your breath

You breathe out about 1 kg of CO₂ every day. In a closed room it has nowhere to go.

NASA life support numbers
Power and heat+

Every machine needs power. At the power box, you choose which ones get it.

Solar panels turn sunlight into power. At night they stop. Dust stops them too.

Mars is very cold. When the sun is gone, give 1 power to the heater.

Did you know? Colder than a freezer

Mars is about −59 °C on average. A kitchen freezer is only −18 °C. At one landing site, the nights fell to −89 °C.

NASA Mars fact sheet
Food and water+

There are no shops on Mars! Astronauts bring food, and grow some too.

Salad needs water and light to grow. When it is big, pick it and eat.

Did you know? Water, again and again

The Space Station cleans its used water and drinks it again. It gets back 98 of every 100 drops, even from sweat and pee!

NASA: water recovery on the Space Station
Radiation+

The Sun sends out radiation. It is made of tiny, fast bits you cannot see.

Too much of it can make you very sick.

In a solar flare, go inside. Stack the supply bags into a shelter, and wait for ARIA to say all clear.

Did you know? Counting radiation

Earth's air and its magnetic field block most radiation from space. Mars has thin air and no such shield. The Curiosity rover carries a tool that counts the radiation there.

Mars Curiosity rover data
Talking to Earth+

Radio is as fast as light. But Mars is very far away, so every message takes minutes to arrive.

Here is where Earth and Mars are today:

Did you know? A slow phone call

Radio is as fast as light, but Mars is very far away. A message takes from 4 to 22 minutes to reach Earth.

NASA Mars mission questions
How to play+

Walk with the arrow keys or W A S D. On a phone, tap the ground.

Press E, or tap a machine, to use it.

Follow the yellow dots to your next job. Yellow jobs keep you alive.

Blue jobs are extra. They give you parts for the 3D printer.

Press P to pause.

Oxygen:20.9%

ARIA: You breathe in oxygen. Keep it between 19.5% and 23.5%. The oxygen maker makes more.

Oxygen

20.9%

Good

The air you breathe in. Good from 19.5 to 23.5%.

Oxygen

20.9%

Good

The air you breathe in. Good from 19.5 to 23.5%.

CO₂:1.20%

ARIA: CO₂ is the gas you breathe out. Too much makes you sick. The air cleaner takes it out.

CO₂

1.20%

Too much

The air you breathe out. Good below 0.7%.

CO₂

1.20%

Too much

The air you breathe out. Good below 0.7%.

ARIA

Beep! Beep! Wake up, please!