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The Potatoes
In order to keep the Rover warm during two long journeys (the trips to Pathfinder and to Schiaparelli), Watney recovers the RTG (Radioactive Thermoelectric Generator) that had powered the Ares 3 MAV before the Ares 3 Crew arrived on Mars. The RTG is essentially a box of unstable plutonium, and it’s highly dangerous for Watney to handle. NASA uses RTGs as power sources for unmanned missions, but they are not willing to risk explosion or exposing their astronauts to high levels of radiation by using the RTG on manned missions. However, in order to survive on Mars, Watney must take the kind of risks that NASA cannot condone—he must recover the RTG from the place where Lewis buried it a safe distance from the Hab and use it in order to keep himself warm enough to stay alive. The RTG exemplifies the narrow margin of error that Watney confronts time and again. As long as the RTG remains intact, it’s relatively safe; if it’s damaged, it will become deadly. Regardless, though, if Watney doesn’t at least try to use the RTG, he will certainly die. In this way, the RTG is emblematic of all of the risky, lose-lose choices that Watney must make on Mars.
The RTG Quotes in The Martian
The The Martian quotes below all refer to the symbol of The RTG. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 7
Quotes
The RTG is a generator. It’s a paltry amount of power, compared to what the rover consumes, but it’s not nothing. It’s one hundred watts. It’ll cut an hour off my total recharge time. Why not use it? I wonder what NASA would think about me fucking with the RTG like this. They’d probably hide under their desks and cuddle with their slide rules for comfort.
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Chapter 8
Quotes
“What about the RTG? Does the public know about that yet?” Teddy asked. Annie leaned forward. “So far, so good,” she said. “The images are public, but we have no obligation to tell them our analysis. Nobody has figured it out yet.” […] “How dangerous is it?” Teddy asked. “As long as the container’s intact, no danger at all.”
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The RTG Symbol Timeline in The Martian
The timeline below shows where the symbol The RTG appears in The Martian. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 7
Sol 68. Watney decides that he’ll heat the rover using the RTG (radioisotope thermoelectric generator), a box of highly unstable radioactive plutonium. NASA uses RTGs to power...
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Sol 69. Driving towards the RTG, Watney is out of sight of the Hab for the first time. He is struck...
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Sol 70. Watney tests the Rover using the RTG for heat and uses its 100 watts to boost the battery power; it works beautifully....
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Chapter 8
The managers discuss the RTG—from satellite images, they’ve realized that Watney is using it for heat, but they decide not...
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Chapter 9
...the urine through the water reclaimer and compost his “manure” for the potato farm. The RTG, the solar cells, and batteries are working as planned. While the solar cells charge for...
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Chapter 10
...rover and leaves it outside, where it can communicate with NASA. Then he returns the RTG to the place where Lewis had buried it.
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Chapter 18
...energy by running the oxygenator only on designated rest days—not while driving. He’ll use the RTG to heat the Hab’s air so that the atmospheric regulator doesn’t work as hard.
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...has pulled something in his back, but takes Vicodin and drives out to retrieve the RTG. Back in the Hab, he experiments with wrapping plastic tubing around the RTG and running...
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Chapter 20
...move in the “big three.” Sol 380. Watney makes a heat reservoir by sealing the RTG inside a bag, submerging it in water, and running air through the hot water. Sol...
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Chapter 24
...checks out the trailer. The atmospheric regulator and oxygenator are working perfectly. Watney refills the RTG’s water tank, which spilled when the trailer rolled, reconnects the hoses between the rover and...
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