11 Sci-Fi Movies That Got Science Completely Wrong

The Martian depicts astronaut Mark Watney's struggle to survive after a storm leaves him alone on Mars with no means of contacting Earth.

In a movie set extensively on Mars just a short way into the future, it's easy to pick apart the science behind the story.

While there are a few scientific inaccuracies, the worst offender is actually remarkably early on: the dust storm that causes Watney's crewmates to evacuate and leave him for dead.

Dave Lavery, an executive for Solar System Exploration at NASA, who also served as a consultant on the movie, explained the mistake best:

"Dust storms certainly do occur on Mars, they get winds in excess of 100 mph (160 km/h), but a 100 mph wind on Mars, because the atmosphere is so thin, has the same inertia and dynamic pressure down at the surface as about an 11 mph (18 km/h) wind on Earth. It’s not going to have the sort of energy to move large objects the way that is portrayed in the book and the film.”

To be fair, The Martian was adapted from a novel by Andy Weir, so, technically, the fault lies with him.