Original subtitles

For thousands of years,

human beings looked up at the night sky with wonder.

We saw cosmic dramas unfolding, great gods clashing,

signs and omens of a year of plenty or year of famine.

Now we look up and ask different questions.

Is the cosmos a result of blind chance?

What lies behind the forces

of matter and dark matter shaping our galaxy?

Could there actually be a grand design

or are we truly alone in the universe?

Astronaut Sarah Hughes is about to find out.

And it's goodbye to the Russians.

MSO2, this is Mission Specialist Sarah Hughes.

Whatever,

maybe next time Moscow will send me some real scientists.

And that is enough of that.

Yeah, that's what I'm talking about.

♪ Whoa, whoa ♪

♪ Take me down to the place downtown again ♪

♪ Take me, take me down with the rain ♪

♪ No I didn't know it should be (lyrics continue quietly) ♪

Hey there, sunshine.

♪ I don't have to tell you why it's so familiar ♪

International Space Station,

this is Mission Control, Houston.

Go ahead, Houston.

Are you lonely yet?

Hardly, I'm going to enjoy the silence.

Hate to rain on your parade,

but the mission psychiatrist

is gonna check in on you tomorrow.

Any particular reason?

Well, it's just we've never left an astronaut

alone in the ISS before.

It's only three days.

What, you guys afraid I'm gonna Kirk out?

Of course not.

We picked you because you were the most qualified.

Right, you picked me because I was the least crazy.

Anything I can help you with in the meanwhile, Dr. Hughes?

Well if I don't fall out of orbit or run out of oxygen,

you'll have done enough.

Roger that.

Just a reminder, got a live event at 1500 GMT.

Bunch of middle school kids wanna ask you some questions.

Including the most popular question of all?

How to become an astronaut?

No, how do you go to the bathroom in outer space?

Call me if you need me.

Roger that.

Don't go crazy now, girl,

you got three days of this.

Okay guys, it's been almost four months.

I think it's time we saw a little action here.

Are you guys getting enough water?

Are you getting too much water?

Why am I asking you these questions?

'Cause I'm supposed to talk to you, that's why.

Hailey?

Wait, wait!

Hailey!

No, she's not there, it's not real.

Sarah?

We need to talk, you're about to be in great danger.

Sarah, let me in.

Space adaptation syndrome.

Resurgence, I'm hallucinating.

There's nobody there.

I am here, we need to talk.

No, no.

Sarah.

Okay, you did not just see your sister.

You did not just see a man in the airlock.

Hey space station,

you're awfully quiet up there.

Thanks for pointing that out, Houston.

Are you all right?

You look a little frazzled.

Are you spying on me again?

Sorry, Doctor, mission rules.

Try and think of me as your guardian angel.

Well if I believed in God,

that would have some implications, but since I don't--

Roger that.

Just a reminder, your live event is coming up in 15 minutes.

Oh well, would you mind if we postponed it?

I don't know, until, I get back to Earth?

No can do, Dr. Hughes.

We've got a bunch of future astronauts

just waiting to bombard you with bathroom questions.

Great.

ISS, this is Mission Control Houston.

Can we get a microphone check?

This is Mission Specialist, Dr. Sarah Hughes,

how are you reading me?

Loud and clear, Dr. Hughes, thank you.

We're very happy to have with us

a group of students from the South Potomac Middle School.

Welcome aboard.

Our first question

is from a young lady named, Samantha.

Hi.

Hello, Samantha, what is your question?

How do you go to the bathroom in outer space?

Well, I'm glad you asked that question, Samantha.

We actually have a room up here

called the orbital outhouse and surprisingly,

it works the same as your bathroom works at home

only with a lot more suction.

Our next question comes from Russel.

Hi Russel.

Hi,

is it creepy being all by yourself up in space?

Uh, well, I'm not exactly alone.

I have my computers and my plants, my music

and the cap com, he's always keeping me informed.

It's like he's right here with me.

Another question?

Yes, our next question is--

What was, excuse me, kids.

Cut the feed.

We're all clear.

Houston, any data on that?

Negative, space station.

Dr. Hughes,

would you mind getting back to central post?

No, what is going on?

Insufficient data,

just get back to central post, please.

I'm on my way.

Houston, have you got anything for me?

Negative, Dr. Hughes.

Well I've got multiple alarms going off here.

Copy that.

Any suggestion?

Uh, Dr. Hughes,

I'm gonna turn you over to flight director.

Oh great.

Dr. This is flight director, Gene Valence.

Go ahead, flight.

We have minimal data at the moment,

but obviously we're experiencing an unscheduled event.

You think?

Stand by.

Okay, Ecom has just advised that we might be

losing pressure in the Columbus module.

What do you mean, we?

Stand by, Dr. Hughes.

Standing by.

ISS, we're definitely losing pressure

in the Columbus module.

Possible penetration by a micro-meteor.

Copy that.

How micro?

Don't panic, Dr. Hughes.

We have a contingency plan for this.

Mind telling me what it is?

We will as soon as we locate it.

Okay well, I'll just wait here until you find it.

Negative, we want you to move

into the airlock immediately.

The airlock?

It's the safest place

in the station right now.

It has plenty of oxygen

and a spacesuit in case you need to evacuate.

I have to stay in the airlock?

Listen Dr. Hughes, Sarah,

this is a serious situation,

but it's not life-threatening at the moment.

That's reassuring.

We're doing the best we can.

You will be able to see me in the airlock, right?

Yes, we have video there.

In fact, we are looking at it right now.

And the only thing in the airlock are the spacesuits.

Yes, what else would be in there?

Okay.

I'm on my way.

Copy that.

We better call the shrink to get over here ASAP.

I don't want her to blow.

You better call the Russians

and see if they can launch that Soyuz tonight.

Duly noted, cap com.

Houston, this is Hughes.

I'm in the airlock.

Copy that, Dr. Hughes.

Can you see me, Houston?

That's affirmative, Doctor, we have a visual.

How's that contingency plan coming?

Uh, we're working on that right now.

We'll have something for you shortly.

Copy that.

Any progress?

Sarah, don't be afraid.

Who are you?

How did you get in here?

I am the one you've been denying.

The damage from the micro-meteor is getting worse, Sarah.

The solution is difficult,

but if you'll put your trust in me,

I can help get you through it.

No, I'm hallucinating.

I must have SAS.

I'm already losing oxygen.

Yes, explanations.

Look and see.

Touch.

See that I have flesh and bones.

No.

If I can hallucinate seeing you,

I can just as easily hallucinate touching you.

It wouldn't prove a thing.

I'm imagining you.

Actually, Sarah, it's the other way around.

I imagined you before you were in your mother's womb.

So you're saying the puncture is actually getting larger?

Based on the increase of pressure loss,

it's reasonable to assume.

What are the options?

We can hope she holds out for the next three days

until the next Soyuz launch.

Can't we just get the Russians to launch sooner?

Yeah, like right now?

Even if the Russians wanted to help,

they can't just get up and go.

These things take time.

Can the puncture be repaired?

Yes, maybe,

but it'll require two people to pull off.

So you're Jesus then.

Well you don't look like the guy in the painting my mom had.

Sarah, my appearance is probably

the thing least relevant to the situation you're in.

If your appearance doesn't matter, why show me your hand?

Clever, but irrelevant.

You wanna talk about irrelevant?

I'll tell you what's irrelevant.

God's irrelevant.

You're irrelevant.

Humankind doesn't need some big daddy in the sky

to explain why the sun comes up anymore.

I don't need you anymore.

When I was going off to space camp,

do you know how many of your believers told me

I was wasting my time?

Do you know how much scientific progress

has been held back by your church?

That griefs me every time.

Sarah, I gave you such wonderful minds,

capable of great beauty.

No one should ever close the door on an open mind,

but Sarah, do you know how many

of the world's greatest scientific discoveries,

gravitation, the heliocentric model,

the human genome, made by my servants.

Some of your most valued colleagues at NASA call me Lord?

Yeah, like who?

Your guardian angel, for one.

Flight, more bad news from the engineers.

Looks like there's a leak in the cooling system.

It's venting ammonia.

Out into space?

And inside the Columbus module.

Eventually,

it'll circulate throughout the whole space station.

If she inhales that, she is going to die.

Well, even smart people

can believe in crazy things

if it gets them through the night, I suppose.

Is it crazy to believe in things you can't see?

Well that's the whole point, isn't it?

We can't see God.

Not usually.

At least not when we've got

enough oxygen going to our brains.

We can't see God.

We can't measure God's mass

and we can't detect God's radiation signature or whatever.

Or whatever.

I'm a physiologist, not a physicist.

Sounds like something Bones would say.

Star Trek.

Speaking physiologically,

the complexity of your own body is in itself

a whole universe of interconnected chemical

and electrical processes.

It's all happening inside you.

Yeah, yeah, irreducible complexity, right?

I'm familiar with the argument of intelligent design.

The unimaginable, perfect structure of the eye,

and so forth.

I just think it's neat.

Nature's ability to develop that kind of complexity

over billions of years is what's neat.

Evolution is maybe the most impressive

and yet beautifully simple scientific theory

in all of biology.

So you only believe in what you can measure,

is that right?

Yes.

How do you measure the love that you had

for your little sister?

I don't want to talk about her.

I know and that's why you turned your back on faith

after you lost her.

Sarah, it's time for us to deal with that grief, you and I.

In a while, you'll be asked to do the most difficult task

you've ever been given

and you won't be able to do it without me.

Why can't engineers ever drum up good news?

Any ideas on what we should tell her?

Hey, is she talking to us?

Sorry.

Her squawk box is off.

Maybe she's praying.

That's what I would do and I'm agnostic.

No, she'd be the last person to pray.

Dr. Hughes, this is Mission Control.

We did not copy your last transmission.

Can you repeat.

They can't see or hear me.

Dr. Hughes, do you read me?

Yes Houston, I read you.

Is everything all right up there?

No, everything is not all right.

Copy that.

Cap com, I know the doctor doesn't usually ask this,

but I'm asking you, give it to me straight, please.

Roger that, Dr. Hughes.

As you know, the micro-meteor caused

some atmospheric pressure loss aboard the station

and it's extended to the coolant system

which is leaking ammonia,

threatening to poison your oxygen supply.

Now the damage is small and no longer seems to be increasing

so hopefully, if it doesn't worsen,

you should have plenty of time for us

to coordinate a repair and rescue.

Roger that.

You have a bunch of really smart people down here

working on every option.

Try not to worry.

We'll have a plan for you shortly.

Copy that and thank you.

Standing by.

You knew, you said danger was coming

before the meteorite hit.

How did you know?

I live beyond time.

How is that possible?

I created time.

No, you're not real, go away, you can't be.

Sarah, let's reason together.

Can a hallucination predict the future?

No, it could only know what I know.

I have a plan for your future too, Sarah.

To get me out of here?

To bring you eternal life.

Am I gonna die out here?

Not if you'll trust me,

be willing to take a step into the unknown,

a leap of faith,

a leap of faith.

A spacewalk?

Are you serious?

You can't be serious.

Well it's happened before.

The Canadians performed a spacewalk

and replaced the pump control.

The Canadians had two astronauts.

We only have one and last time I checked,

spacewalks aren't her forte.

Well how many AVA hours has Dr. Hughes logged in?

None, zero.

She's never done a spacewalk?

In training, yes, under water.

That's not very reassuring.

I didn't know that.

There has to be another way.

There's none.

If we're to stop the leak so that she can survive

long enough for a rescue,

it has to happen from outside the hull.

Well her training wasn't that long ago.

Hopefully she's got a good memory.

Tell me, if you're not a hallucination,

was that really her I saw before?

Was that Hailey?

Your sister loved you very much.

She still does.

And I loved her

and then you took her away.

Why did you do that?

I understand your pain.

Don't you dare.

It's the truth.

My heart aches in ways that you can never know

'cause my thoughts are not your thoughts,

my ways are not your ways.

I'm sorry to say, Sarah,

there are some things that are not for you to comprehend.

How convenient for you.

What a handy little out you've got there.

Johannes Kepler said that science is

thinking God's thoughts after him.

Humanity's most brilliant minds

have only scratched the surface of the universe.

If I tried to show you the true workings

that govern the billions of galaxies,

much less the billions of lives on Earth,

you could no more comprehend even a fraction of it

than a three year old could grasp the Theory of Relativity.

So I'm just supposed to take it on faith

that Hailey was taken for a good reason,

that it wasn't just some random drunk driver

and I'm supposed to be okay with the fact that she's dead?

She's not dead, she's in a better place.

If you love her, she's still very much alive.

When she was little,

we used to take care of the houseplants together.

I was in charge of watering them

and she would rotate them throughout the windows

to make sure they had the perfect light

and she would say to me,

"I'm your sunshine."

That's how she became interested in nature, in science.

What I'm doing up here, this was her dream.

She had so much potential

and now she's gone.

So that's what she's become to you, a dream that died.

She was so young and now she's gone.

And that's what she'll always be to you.

Sarah, until you learn to forgive,

you can't move on and face your fears

and her light will be set forever.

Okay, so the plan is she goes back to the PMM

and finds a replacement pump control unit,

but does she even know where to look?

We'll tell her exactly where it is.

And then she exits the ISS,

replaces the unit and we're done.

Spacewalks aren't trivial, we don't do them for fun.

There's a reason why we put astronauts

through all that training.

Yes, it's so that when they're confronted with a problem,

they can keep their focus on finding solutions.

Well let's hope so.

Otherwise, you're gonna need a miracle.

We're gonna need one either way.

You realize no one will ever believe me, right?

I have a reputation, you know, the proud skeptic.

Can I tell you a secret, Sarah?

You were never a skeptic, not really.

When pain and anger are allowed to fester in your heart,

it becomes easy to doubt anything good, even yourself.

I remember the first time you were up here.

When you saw that view, you thought,

how could all this have happened--

By accident.

International Space Station,

this is Mission Control Houston.

Go ahead, Houston.

Dr. Hughes, we now have a plan

in place to repair the damage to the Columbus module.

Copy that.

But I have to tell you, it's going to be tricky.

Please define tricky.

We just sent you the procedure.

I hope she's up for this.

Don't worry, if I know Sarah,

she's not gonna let us down.

You guys want me to do a spacewalk?

That's affirmative.

You realize I've never done this before.

That's also affirmative,

but we are going to be with you every step of the way.

All of us.

Copy that, Houston.

I can't do this.

Sarah, don't you realize that with me,

all things are possible?

Look, if you rally are God,

why don't you just go fix the puncture?

I am going to fix it

and I'm going to use you to do it.

She'll put on the MMU and exit the space station.

The man maneuvering unit?

Yes.

A device she's never used before.

Dr. Hughes is a fully trained astronaut.

She wouldn't be flying if she wasn't.

I think we'd be minimizing the risk

if she were tethered to the ship,

have her crawl out to the unit on her own.

No, she has to carry a drill and the replacement unit.

That's way too much for one person to carry,

even clipped to her suit.

That's why we need a second astronaut.

Which we don't have.

Oh no.

The puncture's widened again.

That'll make the air unbreathable sooner

and even that was too soon.

Well how much time does she have?

Too early to say, engineer needs more data.

Hours, a day if she's lucky,

but nobody'd be able to reach her by then.

Then this spacewalk has to happen now.

She can clip her tools and the replacement unit to her suit.

I don't like it either, but we don't have any other choice.

Your call.

For once, I think we're forced to agree.

ISS, this is Mission Control.

Go ahead, cap com.

You are clear for EVA.

Copy that.

I've been asked to remind you

that engineering prefers that you have it replaced

within the hour or the air supply will be--

Yeah, I know.

Copy that, Houston.

Anything we can do for you?

No, just give me a minute to finish suiting up

and I'll depressurize the airlock.

Roger.

You got this.

Roger that.

Courage, Sarah, my spirit will be with you.

I though you said you were coming with me.

Spirit and I are one.

Yeah, but out there, I could use another pair of hands.

It's called stepping out of the boat, Sarah.

When Peter stepped off the boat, he walked on water.

Yeah, but didn't he sink?

When he began to take his eyes off of me

and look more at the waves, yes.

That's how it's gonna happen to me.

I'm--

Everyone is afraid of failure, Sarah,

some so afraid they won't even try.

I'm here to help you step off the boat.

If you can do that, I can help you get back in.

Houston, I'm ready.

Okay, cap com, I'm exiting the airlock.

Copy that.

Time is of the essence, but take it slow and steady.

Okay, I'm on my way.

Engineering estimates one hour

until catastrophic contamination.

Sarah?

This might not mean much to you,

but there's at least one of us down here praying for you.

Thank you, cap com.

You can add me to the list.

Houston, I have a visual on the puncture.

It's about 30 meters away.

Copy that.

Can you switch on your body cam?

You're not gonna be able to see much, Houston.

It's beginning to look like Christmas out here.

Roger that.

Okay, Christ, I'm focusing on you.

Okay, you got this.

Houston, I'm within three meters.

Copy that.

Dr. Hughes, we have a visual on that puncture.

I hope you remembered to bring your snow shoes.

Copy that.

I just hope you guys have a procedure

to get this stuff off me.

Darn, new engineering data suggests

catastrophic in less than 20 minutes.

Tell her to hurry.

Don't tell her anything.

That's shaky data at best and if she hurries,

she'll make a mistake.

Slow and steady--

Slow and steady will get her killed.

Tell her to fix that leak now.

I'm not telling her anything

unless there's a consensus and it's constructive.

She's going fast as she can.

What?

No.

Is everything all right?

I'm stuck.

I'm either out of tether

or I'm caught on something.

It's plenty long enough, it must be tangled.

Dr. Hughes, can you turn around

and see if you can spot any abnormalities?

Negative, Houston.

I can't see a thing.

Are you close enough to reach the pump control unit?

Negative again, Houston.

I might be able to reach the first two,

but I'll never reach the others.

Anybody got any ideas?

She could retrace her steps.

There's not enough time,

it took her this long just to get out there.

Detach the tether.

Are you insane?

She'll float out into space.

It's either that or suffocate.

The Russians are two days away.

She can't make the repair without a tether.

Houston, I'm turning back.

Don't turn around!

No, I can't reach the unit!

Roger that, just keep trying.

You have to get free now.

I am trying.

Come on.

Please,

please.

Oh, I could, I could use a hand.

Anybody, Hailey, I need you, please.

Please, please.

Save me Lord.

Save me Lord.

Houston, please be advised,

I've reached the unit and I'm commencing repairs.

There is a God.

Roger that!

She's gonna make it.

Not a moment too soon.

You realize, of course,

we're gonna have to say something to the press.

Like what?

We'll think of something.

We'll tell them the truth,

it was a miracle.

Good luck with that.

Houston, this is International Space Station.

Go ahead, Space Station.

I'm showing normal air circulation

with minimal traces of ammonia.

Copy that, we're showing

the same data down here.

Doctor, I just wanna let you know,

you're a bit of a hero down here.

I am?

Oh yeah.

The media can't get enough of you.

Your parents have been on the television nonstop.

They must be loving that.

Well, my mother, anyway.

You're a bit of a hero to us too.

Can I tell you something?

I had a lot of help.

I believe it.

I don't think you have any idea.

Why don't you tell me all about it when you get back?

Roger that.

And now the bad news.

Oh?

That little Q and A you were having

with those middle school students?

Yeah.

We promised them

we'd finish that up today.

Well, at least I got the bathroom question out of the way.

Well,

before we were so rudely interrupted,

we had a group of future astronauts here

who had some questions.

Well, I'm ready when they are.

First off, we have Alex.

Hi Alex.

Hello Dr. Hughes.

It's an honor to speak with you.

It's an honor to speak with you too, Alex.

What's your question?

Well, after going into space,

do you feel lonely, like we're alone in the universe

or do you think there's a God?

Hm, that's a tough question.

Well Alex, I haven't seen an alien yet,

but that doesn't mean they don't exist.

I guess, in some ways, being in space

is a lot like being on Earth.

You have some days where you feel incredibly lucky

and others, you just feel like quitting,

but I don't know anyone who can come up here

and see what I've seen and not believe

in some greater mystery.

Up here, it's easy to imagine there's more to it.

I think if we try to remember

the love of our friends and family,

even the ones we've lost, we never feel alone.

Great question, who's next?

Hey there, sunshine.

♪ Something happened all the way ♪

♪ When I was going through the place to make amends ♪

♪ I couldn't make it out between ♪

♪ The black and white and gray and oh, I needed a friend ♪

♪ Tick tok beat like four on the floor ♪

♪ The deafening silence that we can't ignore ♪

♪ A tight, tight fit and reach for the day ♪

♪ Tickles your ears 'cause I am afraid ♪

♪ The stars tipped over, the sky came closer ♪

♪ Your words like fire, shot like lightning ♪

♪ Can we go, captured in light assaulting the night ♪

♪ When the stars tip over (music fades) ♪