I’m The Martian by Andy Weir
The idea of long distance human space travel is a feasible goal, but not one that has been attempted. There is science behind it and humans have traveled to the moon several times (none since 1972), meaning short travel in space is possible. Any more than that and it has not been attempted. In Andy Weir's science fiction book The Martian he sets the main character on Mars and tells the entire story while that character, Mark Watney, is stranded on the planet alone.
Watney was part of a NASA space program called Ares 3. He and 5 other crewmates were sent to Mars for a 31 sol (1 sol is slightly longer than a day) period to collect scientific data, geographic samples, and test the Mars atmosphere for the possibility of sustaining life. When a sudden dust storm strikes their base, the Hab, they are forced to abort the mission early and get back to their ship. While moving to their ship, Mark Watney is impaled by a broken antenna and presumed dead by the rest of the crew. Unwillingly, the crew has to leave to save themselves and leaves a "dead" Mark Watney behind.
Mark wakes up and realizes his crew has gone. He then must come to terms with the fact he is the only living person on Mars and there is almost no hope of being rescued because everyone believes he is dead. Still, he decides to find a way to survive and use his resources to have the best possible chance of being rescued. Being a botanist and mechanical engineer he has many skill sets that suit his needs. With a few plant seeds, he grows potatoes inside the Hab and succeeds in extending his living period to almost 2 years. Then, he figures out a way to make more water for the plants and eventually finds a way to contact Earth all while overcoming adversity that could kill him with one mistake.
When he contacts Earth, they immediately begin working on a way to save him. After one failed attempt blows up, the only chance is for his original crew to change course and attempt a moving pick up. The catch is that Mark must travel 100 days to a new location that has the technology to launch him into space for the intercept. He succeeds in getting there with a rover and then must alter the Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV) to make it ready for the launch. After spending a year and a half on a planet alone, Watney finally has a chance to see people again and make it back to Earth.
The idea of long distance human space travel is a feasible goal, but not one that has been attempted. There is science behind it and humans have traveled to the moon several times (none since 1972), meaning short travel in space is possible. Any more than that and it has not been attempted. In Andy Weir's science fiction book The Martian he sets the main character on Mars and tells the entire story while that character, Mark Watney, is stranded on the planet alone.
Watney was part of a NASA space program called Ares 3. He and 5 other crewmates were sent to Mars for a 31 sol (1 sol is slightly longer than a day) period to collect scientific data, geographic samples, and test the Mars atmosphere for the possibility of sustaining life. When a sudden dust storm strikes their base, the Hab, they are forced to abort the mission early and get back to their ship. While moving to their ship, Mark Watney is impaled by a broken antenna and presumed dead by the rest of the crew. Unwillingly, the crew has to leave to save themselves and leaves a "dead" Mark Watney behind.
Mark wakes up and realizes his crew has gone. He then must come to terms with the fact he is the only living person on Mars and there is almost no hope of being rescued because everyone believes he is dead. Still, he decides to find a way to survive and use his resources to have the best possible chance of being rescued. Being a botanist and mechanical engineer he has many skill sets that suit his needs. With a few plant seeds, he grows potatoes inside the Hab and succeeds in extending his living period to almost 2 years. Then, he figures out a way to make more water for the plants and eventually finds a way to contact Earth all while overcoming adversity that could kill him with one mistake.
When he contacts Earth, they immediately begin working on a way to save him. After one failed attempt blows up, the only chance is for his original crew to change course and attempt a moving pick up. The catch is that Mark must travel 100 days to a new location that has the technology to launch him into space for the intercept. He succeeds in getting there with a rover and then must alter the Mars Ascent Vehicle (MAV) to make it ready for the launch. After spending a year and a half on a planet alone, Watney finally has a chance to see people again and make it back to Earth.