02x01 - Every Little Thing

[bunniefuu]

They say that the United States has had its day in the sun, that our nation has passed its zenith.

They expect you to tell your children that the American people no longer have the will to cope with their problems, that the future will be one of sacrifice and few opportunities.

My fellow citizens, I utterly reject that view.

We must go forth from here united, determined that what a great general said a few years ago is true: "There is no substitute for victory." Three, two, one...

Further escalating tensions in the ongoing space race.

Another violation of the International Space Treaty.

...another Soviet m*llitary satellite yesterday provoked a strong response...

I will faithfully execute the office of president of the United States.

...Reagan administration announced that it was withdrawing the United States...

The first test-tube baby was born today in the United Kingdom.

Roman Polanski was arrested at the Canadian border while trying to escape.

Brezhnev said the decision not to inv*de Afghanistan was part of a broader refocusing of resources in the ongoing space race.

The meltdown was prevented by technology first developed for Jamestown.

...nighttime raid by the US m*llitary took the Iranians by surprise.

...leaders of the Polish Solidarity Trade Union were arrested in Gdansk today.

President Reagan refusing to bail out the Chrysler Corporation.

The US hockey team failed to overcome the heavily favored Soviets.

...surprisingly close race, President Reagan appears to have won a second term by defeating Senator...

John Lennon narrowly escaped death when a would-be assassin's b*llet missed its...

John Paul II was sh*t and k*lled today in Saint Peter's Square.

Leonid Brezhnev, leader of the Soviet Union, has d*ed.

Yuri Andropov will become the next premier of the Soviet Union.

...a wedding gift from the queen, Her Royal Highness, Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, is welcomed by the crowd.

NASA announced that the first space shuttle will be named Enterprise in honor of the fictional starship in the television series, Star Trek.

I believe that our nation is in great danger, and that danger grows greater with each passing day.

Soviet strategic missiles are larger, more numerous and more powerful than those of the United States.

If we desire peace, the way to achieve it is through our strength.

We are today, the last best hope of man on Earth.

We who have thrown the windows of our souls open to the sun.

The eyes of all people are upon us as they look to the heavens, to the highest hill in the sky, where we have built a city that will bring the light of freedom to the world.

Not another party, please.

They already gave me a birthday party up here last week, and they're giving me a surprise going-away party next week.

That's not much of a surprise.

It's tough to keep a secret up here.

Look, Senator Tower is on the Appropriations Committee.

I know.

And I think this party was his personal idea.

His chief of staff said he handwrote the invitation.

Come on, at least you know it'll have a great bar.

Okay.

But tell them it has to be a welcome home party, not, I repeat, not a birthday party.

I don't wanna see any more signs or banners or tiki mugs with the big 4-0 painted on them.

They did the whole luau thing?

Tradition.

I'm sure I can talk them into it.

I think it's more about celebrating the new job than your rapidly advancing years.

Thank you for that.

Aren't you gonna suit up?

Cutting it pretty close.

I'm staying inside this time.

Really?

Two weeks of darkness, and you don't wanna see the sun come up?

I've seen it.

More times than I can remember.

The next base commander went out with them, and I wanted him to get a chance to bond before I hand the keys over next week.

So, while everyone else is out enjoying the show, I'll have the whole base pretty much to myself for what will probably be the very last time.

And I intend to enjoy every minute of it.

Then I won't keep you.

Love you.

Love you too.

Ten minutes.

Mark.

I have a watch, Wubbo.

I don't need you to be timekeeper just 'cause you don't have anything interesting to do.

I have plenty to do.

Currently, I'm maneuvering the rover for the best position to capture the sunrise.

I swear to God, Wubbo.

You spend more time looking through that camera than you do actually looking at the moon.

But I will be sh**ting something special today.

No human has ever seen the sunrise through the glorious twin peaks of the western rim of Shackleton.

Be sure to tell all the gals back in Amsterdam that Apollo 37 named those glorious twin peaks Lenny and Squiggy.

I'll not be mentioning that.

This is Jamestown actual.

Okay, people, ten seconds.

Ten seconds... mark.

Enjoy the show, everyone.

Oh, sh*t!

Yeah, baby.

Awesome.

-Wubbo.

-Yes?

Stop staring at that screen, turn around and enjoy the view.

Rise up this mornin' Smiled with the risin' sun Three little birds Perched by my doorstep Singin' sweet songs Of melodies pure and true Sayin', This is my message To you-oo-oo -Singin', Don't worry -Don't worry About a thing 'Cause every little thing Is gonna be all right -Singin', Don't worry -Don't worry About a thing Emma.

Good morning, Ms.

Madison.

Morning.

Messages?

One from your cousin, Adlai.

Your aunt Hildy got through her surgery without any complications and is expected to make a full recovery.

I sent flowers and a note and arranged a little extra treat from the hospital kitchen.

Aunt Hildy won't eat anything without bacon in it.

They're gonna disguise some turkey bacon for her.

Good luck with that.

What else?

Various things.

Nothing that can't wait.

Okay, let's go around the world.

Skylab is starting shift two.

Their plan of the day is devoted to more solar observations with the Apollo Telescope Mount.

Astronaut Campbell is still nursing a cold, poor thing.

Be sure she's giving the flight surgeon hourly updates.

She'll dodge it if we let her.

She is a wily one.

The orbiter, Kon-Tiki, remains docked at Skylab, but she's scheduled for reentry and landing this afternoon in Florida.

Unless you can work your magic.

Pretty sure I can swing that one.

The bigger problem is getting him to agree to these polar launches.

Did you get-- Great.

-Where is he?

-Deep in the rabbit hole.

DOD COM just completed their ASAT test over the Pacific m*ssile range.

General Bradford is probably getting preliminary test results...

right now.

Okay.

Let's hope this works.

Perfect.

Keep going.

Columbia remains on station in lunar orbit, scheduled to return home to Earth next week with the Jamestown crew rotating home.

Beagle was scheduled to roll out to pad 39C today, but there's a report on some issues in her main engine turbopumps which might delay her launch date by a week or two.

Great.

Discovery, Enterprise and Endeavour are still in turnaround on the West Coast, while Atlantis, Victoria and Constitution are still in OMDP in Palmdale.

What about Pathfinder's thermal tile inspection report?

We're expecting the official report by digital mail by end of day, but the word is she passed with flying colors.

Jamestown reports making a new geological claim on a site 30 kilometers from the base, labeled "site 357/Bravo." Early data suggests there could be significant deposits of lithium.

Wouldn't that be nice.

Have they notified the Soviets?

Yes, ma'am.

There's a hard copy of the official notice in your in-box and a ghost copy in your d-mail.

Be sure notice of the claim is transmitted to the State Department for delivery to the Soviet embassy.

There's a new procedure.

State wants to deliver a formal hard copy of mining claims directly to the Soviet ambassador now.

-I'm sure that'll speed things up.

-Yeah.

And as a reminder, the celebration at Shackleton tomorrow morning, our time, in case you want to watch the festivities.

-Has it really been two weeks?

-Yes, ma'am.

-They're pretty excited up there.

-Always are.

Wish me luck.

-Morning.

-Morning.

I can get you a better printer.

Yeah, can you get the Pentagon to approve it in less than a year?

No, but I can have a new one installed this afternoon.

Brand-new, like, still in the box.

Must be nice to have your own revenue stream.

Well, capitalism, it works.

How'd the test go?

Thirty pages of data, all to say we missed.

It's bad luck.

But the day does have its bright points.

Army-Air Force tickets at the 50-yard line.

What'd you do, get Emma to rob the White House?

She's an old second-story gal from way back.

Wow.

Thanks.

Really.

What's it gonna cost me?

They're a gift.

But if you wanted to make Emma feel like her efforts were appreciated, you might consider allowing the Kon-Tiki to land at Edwards tonight.

And maybe also free up some space for a couple of polar launches from Vandenberg.

Well, I can clear the Kon-Tiki to land at Edwards, but you know the Pentagon really doesn't like having unsecured vehicles and crews at Vandenberg.

Come on, Nelson.

I've got orbiters double-parked at Edwards, and you've got three open launch windows before the next m*llitary shuttle's even scheduled.

Come on.

I'll tell the crews to wear blindfolds so they don't see anything they're not supposed to.

I'm sorry.

I wish I could, but everyone's still on edge after what happened in Berlin.

Berlin was almost a year ago.

It hasn't gotten any better, and in some ways it's gotten worse.

So, sorry.

Okay.

-It was worth a try.

-Yeah.

There you go.

No.

They're a gift.

I hear the Falcons might be headed to a bowl game this year.

From your lips to God's ears.

And, hey...

I owe you one.

You certainly do.

Okay, keep going.

-What else?

-Yes, ma'am.

The profit and loss statement for the last quarter is on your desk, along with projections on the new licensing revenue from the microgravity silicon growth patents.

And I got a d-mail from Administrator Paine's office asking if you and the general are available for dinner tonight.

Dinner?

What's he up to?

I think he's gonna press you on that Pathfinder thing again.

He's relentless.

Where?

Please not Mama's Porch.

Afraid so.

He's got a thing about that chili.

My hair's gonna smell like chili for a week.

-Good morning, Ms.

Madison.

-Morning, ma'am.

Gary.

Helena.

-God, she hates me.

-You think everyone hates you.

Not everyone.

Just management.

If that were true, you wouldn't be in the program.

Sometimes the system screws up.

Sounds like garden-variety paranoia to me.

I just know when people are out to get me.

That changes today, right?

Right.

I can't hear you, Captain.

Right.

Today you are not just a miserable Air Force bus driver dreaming of flying in space like the marine aviators you secretly worship.

Today you will achieve your goal.

And you will not take no for an answer.

Well, he never says no.

He just leans in real close and says, "I'll let you know when you're ready." The admiral is a tough old squid, and he'll be impressed by your courage.

They say he hates redheads.

-Yeah, that's just a rumor.

-The rumors are always true.

Go in there and get your ticket punched.

Or you can keep riding backup and water my plants when I'm on Skylab next month.

He's not that bad, Gary.

Really.

He freaks me out.

Go.

Come.

Hey, Chief.

You got a minute?

Can't you see I'm on the green at the ninth hole at Pebble Beach?

Oh, right.

-Okay, I can come back in a little bit.

-I'm on the carpet in my office.

Right.

Right.

What can I do for you, Mr. Piscotty?

Well, sir...

I wanted to talk to you about my... my career.

Your career?

That's a mighty big subject for a Thursday morning.

Yes, sir.

I mean, not my whole career.

I was hoping to discuss with you-- Yeah, yeah, you want a prime crew slot.

Yes, sir...

on Pathfinder.

On Pathfinder?

Wow.

That's ambitious.

You think you're ready to be prime crew on the maiden voyage of America's next-generation shuttle?

Yes, sir.

The vehicle that will redefine space travel as we know it and propel this country to Mars and beyond?

Yes, sir.

I like ambition in a pilot.

You're gonna be one hell of an astronaut.

Thank you, sir.

I'll let you know when you're ready.

I've been here three years now, sir.

Qualified as orbiter pilot, LSAM pilot, lunar prospector, robotic arms specialist, and astro-astronomer.

Been CAPCOM on five shuttle moon flights and two orbital repairs.

Been backup on six crew.

And my performance evaluation is consistently in the 95th percentile.

I've done everything this program has asked of me.

And so far, the closest I've been to space is standing on top of the gantry on pad 39A.

Why can't I get a flight?

I don't like redheads.

Everyone knows that.

When do I get my sh*t?

Just trust me when I tell you that when you're ready...

I'll let you know.

Now, I think it'd be a great idea for you to take your foot off my ball.

Thank you.

You can close the door behind ya.

With the development of new and exciting technologies like solar panels, NASA's making real contributions back here on Earth.

Even now, new electric vehicles made possible by batteries originally designed for the lunar rover are beginning to hit the road not only on the moon, but right here in the good old US of A.

And with that, I'll be happy to answer your questions.

Yes, sir?

How y'all go to the bathroom in space?

Let me tell you, without gravity, they gotta use air suction to make sure things go in the right direction.

So you could say when you take a crap in space, the sh*t really hits the fan.

Yes.

I'm sure you get this all the time, but would you mind telling us the story of how you saved that poor girl who broke her arm on the moon?

It had been a rough week on the old Jamestown base.

And it was different in those days.

The base was just a single room.

Barely enough space for three people to live and work together.

Not like the palace they got up there now.

No, it was the pioneer days.

We were the settlers, and the Russians, they were the Indians.

It wasn't an easy place to live, and a lot of things went wrong.

Was a lot of turmoil.

And sometimes the-- sometimes the best of plans falls apart on ya.

Best equipment fails.

Even the best people.

Sometimes it all just falls apart on ya.

Anyway...

it was the middle of the night.

I rolled out of my rack before I was even awake.

Come.

Hey, Ed.

You got a minute?

Spaghetti night.

I know.

How about I walk you to your car?

Then I'm all ears.

Look, the president has some concerns about Pathfinder.

Look, you don't need my approval.

Payload's outside my lane unless it affects crew or crew selection.

I know, but the White House wants this to be a unanimous decision on the part of NASA.

You mean they don't want the press to say that they decided to do a little saber-rattling over the objections of the experts at JSC.

Come on, Ed, work with me here.

We're gonna arm it eventually.

Why not test that capability on the first flight?

We need to send a message to the Soviets.

They're about to test their own shuttle.

But we're already testing our second-generation shuttle.

Margo's just protecting her turf.

She's worried that the second we put weapons on Pathfinder that it'll become a m*llitary asset and outside her jurisdiction.

She's not wrong.

I go to the Pentagon a lot more than I'd like to these days, and I guarantee you, the Joint Chiefs up there, they would love to add Pathfinder to their little fleet out at Vandenberg.

Even if that were true, there will be plenty of new shuttles for everyone... eventually.

Look, I'm having dinner with Margo and the general tonight.

If I can turn Margo around to support putting ordnance on Pathfinder, are you in?

Look, if you can turn Margo Madison around over a bowl of chili, then who am I to stand in your way?

Is that your car?

You like it?

No more gas stations.

Just plug it in and get 60 miles on a single charge.

-Well, you do love your toys.

-It's not a toy.

It's the future.

Yeah, well, how fast does it go?

Fast enough.

Sixty-five.

That's a toy.

Speed limit's 55.

For some people.

-...twenty-five, twenty-six-- -Hey, babe.

Hi, sweetie.

-So, guess what.

-What?

With the money I made from last month's receipts plus the dividends from the LPH Investment Fund you didn't want me to invest in...

Keep b*ating that dead horse.

I'm gonna be able to pay off the second mortgage on the house next month.

-Full year ahead of schedule.

-Wow.

Hell of a job, honey.

Congratulations.

Thank you.

I deserve it.

Yes, you do.

Deserve every bit of it.

I gotta admit, I was skeptical.

I know.

Trust me, I'll remind you of that for the rest of your life.

Of that, I'm sure.

-Make a hole.

-Sorry.

Great.

Let's just...

-Thank you.

-I've been thinking about this all day.

All right.

Let's see.

Bobby put too much oregano in that.

He thinks he's improving it.

Better not be improving the garlic bread.

Tell ya that.

Where's the cheese?

Right here.

No, the cheese.

You know what he wants.

Come on, Dad.

This is real Parmesan, not those plastic shavings in the green container you call cheese.

It's good enough for the customers.

Not anymore.

Now it's fresh-grated every day.

I gotta use a spoon?

I can't even shake it over the spaghetti?

I know, it's pretty tough.

You want me to show you how?

Just-- -Mom, can you pass the bread?

-Sure.

Hey, did you get a chance to look at those college catalogs?

She means did you get a chance to look at the new catalog from William & Mary with that big pond on the cover.

Not a pond, it is a lake.

Lake Matoaka.

And it was created by the colonists in the 18th century, and it's one of the most beautiful places on the East Coast.

So fancy.

No, not yet, but I will.

Well, don't worry about it.

No pressure.

Wherever you choose to go is completely your decision.

William & Mary has one of the best English programs in the entire country, not to mention, a wonderful theater program.

Wait, theater?

You're talking about studying theater now?

I don't know.

Maybe.

It was just a random thought.

No, no.

Engineering, physics, computer science.

That's the future.

You got good enough grades to write your own ticket to wherever you wanna go.

But we're not gonna push any particular course of study or college, are we, Dad?

No, we're not.

We're absolutely not.

Could you pass me the salt?

I think it's over there by that William & Mary alumni mug.

You should pursue anything that you want.

All right, you find your passion.

Yeah.

Find the real cheese while you're at it.

-Ed.

-Dad, you're such an old man sometimes.

-Come on.

-Look.

It doesn't melt right.

Look.

Just mix it in.

It will.

-Try it.

It's delicious.

-It's crumb-- All right, we have returned.

Hey, I think she's on next.

Hit the light.

Turn it up.

Sure.

Okay.

You know, the new TVs, they have remotes and they come in color.

Can you imagine that?

Yeah, well, some things shouldn't change, ever.

My first guest has flown three times in space, logging over 4,000 hours in orbit.

But her most famous mission was Apollo 25 when she risked her own life to rescue astronaut Molly Cobb.

Do you remember that?

It's always a pleasure to have her on the show.

American hero, Tracy Stevens.

Wow, what is she wearing?

Not much.

Great to see ya.

Thank you.

It's great to be back.

How many outfits does she have at this point?

I understand you're just getting back from vacation in South America.

Is that right?

That's right.

We were in Rio mostly and then hopped over to Aruba for a few days and then a last-minute visit to Vegas before coming to beautiful downtown Burbank to see y'all.

Highlight of your vacation, I'm sure.

I bet Ronnie and Nancy are watching this in bed right now.

Yeah, in their pj's and their TV trays.

So I have to ask, is that a new ring on your finger?

Yes.

And does it mean something special?

It does.

When Sam and I were in Vegas, we got married.

Congratulations.

Wow.

That's great.

Good for you.

Oh, my God.

Guys, can you grab a close-up of this?

Oh, goodness.

What the hell, Trace.

How long have you and Sam...

Just up and get married without even a phone call?

We can say his name, right?

Sure.

Everyone knows who Sam Cleveland is.

Oh, right.

You mean because he's as rich as J.R.?

What?

She left a message on the machine yesterday.

She didn't say she was getting married.

She kinda sounded loopy?

So I didn't think it was important, Mom just being Mom.

Left a message on the machine.

Jesus H. Christ.

You met after your last mission?

I'm gonna go play Atari.

That's right.

I came back from helping to repair the...

Hey, Jimmy, wait.

How do you feel about this?

We met and hit it off.

Your mom getting remarried to Sam Cleveland?

It was funny, actually.

See, Sam had...

I don't know.

It's what she wants to do, I guess.

So, how long have you been engaged?

The truth is we were never engaged.

-Hello?

-You weren't?

-Yeah.

-So it was a total surprise.

That's right.

Spontaneous, spur-of-the-moment, whatever you wanna call it.

-Yeah.

-You watching this sh*t?

You mean about Mrs.

Tracy Cleveland?

Did you know about this?

Hell no.

Yeah.

We were in Aruba like I said...

-You okay?

-Yeah.

No, I don't know.

I'll take a break.

sh*t, I mean, I knew it was gonna happen eventually, but-- -Been there, done that, sure.

-Yeah.

-This time, he seemed...

-Well, she's his problem now.

You want some company?

Maybe knock back a few?

Maybe more than a few?

Nah, appreciate it.

I'll be fine.

Okay.

So we go out to this private little beach, and I tell you, Johnny, it was the most beautiful sunset I've ever seen in my life.

I'm not kidding.

I'm not kidding.

The sun was just setting, and the light was shining on the water in these just brilliant blues and turquoise, and I looked down, and next thing I know Sam is on one knee.

And I think to myself, "Oh, goodness gracious.

What is wrong with this man's leg?" But I start to get what's going on.

And before I can even take a breath, he's got this ring in his hand and-- Panamanian strongman Omar Torrijos, whose Democratic Revolutionary Party recently declared its allegiance to Marxist-Leninist principles and ideology, has issued a strong demand that the United States hand over control of the canal to the people of Panama, a demand that Secretary of State George Shultz rebuffed today in equally strong language.

Houston, Skylab.

Ready to begin solar coronagraph observations.

Hey, morning, Skylab.

We got a new CAPCOM on now with a new crew.

Lab coats in the back room are eager and waiting for your solar telemetry data.

Is that you, Bill?

You're up bright and early.

Must have drawn the short straw this morning.

Actually, I tried to draw an inside straight last night, ended up swapping out morning duty for an extra 50.

That sounds like an American poker reference to me, Bill.

And I look forward to you explaining all the rules to me in between ATM passes.

It's easier to show you in person.

Maybe you could join our little game next time you're back in the world.

That sounds grand.

But I hope you don't think I am, as you Americans would say, an easy mark.

Never crossed my mind, Doreen.

Bring your paycheck.

Okay.

I am at the ATM panel.

Starting a run.

Seeing some X-ray emission.

And the particle count is rising.

Image intensity count is exceeding 30.

Fifty.

Wait a minute.

There is a large, a very large prominence extending out into the corona.

Looks like a major solar flare, but it's bigger than anything I've ever seen.

Houston, the prominence is at least 100,000 kilometers long already, and I'm reading a shower of proton radiation.

Solar flare that size, there's a good chance we're gonna have interference across the broadcast spectrum.

Let's alert the FCC and get them ready for that.

Flight, JPL just lost contact with the Mariner 14 probe.

There was a surge in proton radiation and then zip.

Like, it got fried.

Mariner 14 is just inside the orbit of Mercury.

So it can't be related to the flare.

It's too fast.

Those plasma clouds never move that quickly.

Maybe, or maybe we've just never seen them move that fast.

Get management in here.

Singin' sweet songs -Of melodies pure and true -Pure and true Sayin' "This is my message to you-oo-oo" -Singin', Don't worry -Don't worry About a thing 'Cause every little thing Is gonna be all right -Singin', Don't worry -Don't worry About a thing Coronal mass ejection verified.

This is a major solar event.

It's well into S5, bigger than anything recorded in our observations.

That's bigger than anything recorded period.

Is that chili?

We're looking at a few billion tons of solar material being ejected into space and heading this way.

Is it dangerous?

The Earth's magnetic field will filter out most of the hard radiation, so there's no danger to life on Earth, but everyone outside of Earth's atmosphere is at risk.

Like my people on Skylab?

Their orbit is relatively low, but we need to get them into a more heavily shielded part of Skylab.

Doreen, you're gonna need to take shelter.

Columbia is still in lunar orbit.

Their crew will have to do the same.

Charlie, get them to hunker down in the hardened shelter on the mid-deck.

Likewise for Jamestown, we need them to get into the base storm shelter ASAP.

-Copy, Flight.

-They'll be ready.

They trained for this.

But they never trained for anything this fast.

Coronal mass ejections usually take days to travel from the sun to the moon.

But this isn't a CME.

This is hard proton radiation.

That's deadly, and it's traveling at 30% the speed of light.

Which is really fricking fast.

Tell Jamestown to follow emergency power protocols.

Scram the nuclear reactor, switch to reserve power.

Copy.

-How long do they have until it hits?

-Less than 30 minutes.

Estimated time to radiation limit exceedance: 27.

This is Jamestown actual to all astronauts.

We've got a solar storm coming in, and it's a hot one.

We've got 27 minutes to get to shelter.

Those of you who can make it back to Jamestown in time, you need to get moving now.

If you're too far away, you're gonna have to find shelter in place.

Find somewhere dark and deep and sit tight.

This is gonna be a bad one.

Go, go, go!

Back to the rover.

Watch your oxygen rates.

Copy that.

Shaw, we're in emergency power protocols.

I need you to take your team and scram the nuclear reactor.

Roger, Jamestown.

We'll hold the elec cycle for you.

Jamestown, this is Molly.

Wubbo and I are too far out to make it back.

We're gonna shelter in place.

I'm packing up the rover now.

Copy that.

Ideally, you're gonna need three meters of regolith between you and the radiation.

But anything is better than nothing out there.

Good luck.

And keep an eye on your dosimeter badges.

Wubbo, what's your 20?

I'm heading back to base camp.

Probably about two kilometers away, but it's difficult terrain, so it will take me at least 15 minutes.

Yeah, same for me.

There's a lava tube right next to base camp.

I'll meet you inside.

Roger that.

Twenty-five minutes.

Mark.

Yes, sir, I will.

This is for Jamestown?

Okay.

I'll be back.

Just got off the horn with NORAD.

They're worried about losing our early-warning satellites over the Soviet Union.

Now, they're hardened against radiation in case of a nuclear att*ck, but no one knows how they're gonna hold up in this situation.

Anything we can do to shield 'em?

If we had more time, we could try to move them to lower orbits, but for now, I think the best plan is to ride it out and see what happens.

If we lose eyes on the USSR, we have no warning if they decide to launch.

A first strike?

Why?

Because of the storm?

That doesn't make any sense.

It's affecting both sides equally.

There's no advantage to either of us.

We can never know why or when the Soviets might decide to launch a first strike.

That's why we have to have continuous eyes on the Soviet ICBM fields.

If it makes you feel any better, they're probably gonna lose some of their satellites over the US too.

That doesn't make you feel better.

This is Bradford.

There's a strong possibility the Soviets might lose eyes on North America.

Recommend go to DEFCON 3.

Understood.

Hold on.

DEFCON 3?

That's two steps away from nuclear w*r.

This is a solar storm.

If the Soviets lose eyes on us, they're gonna worry that we might take advantage of the situation and strike first.

And in that case, they might decide to launch their missiles to keep us from destroying them on the ground.

That's crazy.

Let's hope so.

No, just depressurize.

We can refill the tanks later.

Copy that.

All right.

Make it safe and lock it down.

Come on, time to go.

How long you think the storm's gonna last, Chief?

Houston wants us to shelter for at least three hours.

We're gonna need an air freshener down there.

Okay.

Come on, let's go, let's go, let's go!

Three minutes left.

Move!

Okay, Wubbo, I'm outside the lava tube.

Wubbo, what's taking you so long?

Wubbo?

Wubbo.

Wubbo Ockels, report.

Earth contact...

three...

two...

one.

Jamestown colony, this is Houston.

Do you read?

Jamestown, Houston.

Do you read?

Wubbo.

Come on, Wubbo.

Wubby-Wubby-woo.

You're starting to scare me here.

Oh, sh*t.

Jamestown colony, this is Houston.

Do you read?

CAPCOM, you can stand down.

We're in the thick of it now.

There's no way we'll reach them until the storm has passed.

What was the last head count?

Ten minutes ago, 14 were in the shelter and three within visual sight of the base.

Don't worry.

Ellen will get them inside and buttoned up.

What about Molly and Wubbo?

Molly is a survivor.

Trust me.

They'll be okay.

Three more satellites.

Jesus.

White House is about to put out a statement to the country explaining the storm and that there might be radio and television interruption soon, but that everyone should be fine.

Be better if Reagan himself got on TV and reassured people.

-He's good at that.

-He can't.

The president's on Air Force One.

Joint Chiefs decided to get him in the air in case the Soviets try to make a move during the satellite blackout.

We staying at DEFCON 3?

For now.

The storm is about to hit the moon.

Molly, this is Ellen.

The storm is seconds from impact.

All communication will be disrupted.

So you and Wubbo need to remain in place.

Repeat, remain in place until you have received the all clear from me.

Good luck and Godspeed.

My God.

How much radiation can someone take?

It varies...

by gender, body weight, age, a host of other factors.

But basically, a dose of ten millirems is like getting a chest X-ray.

A thousand rems will k*ll you in an hour.

And exposures in between, you're talking increasingly bigger and bigger chances of developing cancer over a period of time.

It becomes a numbers game.

Each astronaut wears a dosimeter badge.

It monitors their exposure to radiation the whole time they're on the moon.

Your badge is green...

your body's clean.

Your badge is red...

You're dead?

It's not good.

Let's put it that way.

It's not good at all.

Wubbo.

Wubbo.