Gagarin Ridge drilling disaster

Mars-94 crew:

* Grigory Kuznetsov
* Dr. Dimitri Mayakovsky
* Isabel Castillo
* Alexei Poletov

### Result

* The drill being used for the drilling mission falls apart, injuring Ed Baldwin.
* Alexei Poletov is injured and Isabel Castillo and Nick Corrado are killed in the resulting landslide caused by the canyon's destruction.
* Alexei also dies in the aftermath.

The **Gagarin Ridge drilling disaster** occurred during the Helios-Soviet water drilling mission on Gagarin Ridge on Mars, when the giant drill came apart under too much housing pressure, largely due to Danny Stevens' refusal to increase the drill compressor speed due to his drug problem.

The destruction of the drill resulted in the injury of Ed Baldwin, as well as the subsequent collapse of the ridge near Helios' Mars base, which resulted in the deaths of Isabel Castillo, Nick Corrado, and Alexei Poletov.

## History

### Prelude

After the first three crewed Mars missions had landed and set up their bases on the Martian surface, Soviet scientists discovered a potentially huge liquid water deposit after analyzing orbital scans. The underground deposit was expected below a steep ridge close to Helios' Mars base, which was named "Gagarin Ridge" after the famous cosmonaut. The Soviet delegation in Houston subsequently approached Helios to use their equipment, namely their MSAM and their "Big Ass Drill" (BAD), to get access to the water deposits, and they finally made a deal where both parties would get 50% of the hauled water.

### The disaster

As the drill began mining, it started to speed up earlier than expected, up to the point where the drill was into too much stress. Edward Baldwin contacted Helios rover 2 and told them to increase the drill compressor speed. However, Danny Stevens ignored the desperate orders and shut off communications after several moments. Shortly after, the drill fell apart, with parts of it hitting Ed Baldwin and Isabel Castillo.

### The collapse

With Ed injured, everybody left the drilling site, moving back to the main base with the MSAM *Popeye*. However, after landing near the hab rovers, Stevens and Baldwin hear rumbling sounds. Looking back, the canyon behind them is beginning to collapse. Stevens immediately gives the order to run, as everyone begins to flee the incoming threat. Danny and Ed manage to seek refuge in Hab 1, right before the dust cloud consumes the rover and Alexei Poletov and others are caught in it.

### Aftermath

Alexei awakens under multiple feet of Martian sand. He extracts himself from the sand and immediately begins hailing "Mayday" to anyone listening. As he continues calling for help, he stumbles upon the body of Corrado, whose helmet had been smashed in, exposing him to the elements of Mars. Unbeknownst to him, Louisa Mueller is still alive and they eventually establish communication, reuniting. She tells him as she made her way to him, she came across the body of Castillo whose helmet was also busted in. As they stand over Castillo's body, they take in their surroundings, noticing everything from the MSAM to the habs and fuel factory are gone.

## Gallery

The drilling siteBaldwin at the controllsDrill monitor inside HAB moduleDrill monitor inside HAB moduleStarting to drillGagarin Ridge with the drilling siteDrill is collapsingDrill is collapsingThe canyon collapsesAlexei Poletov caught in the dust cloudSeismologic map of the region during the landslideGagarin Ridge & landslide seen from orbitInSAR image of the regionGagarin Ridge & Helios base on a mapSatellite image of the region after the landslide
## See also

* Helios Mars mission
* Helios Mars base
* Gagarin Ridge

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 *For All Mankind* TV Series - Season 3, Episode 7: "Bring It Down"
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 *For All Mankind* TV Series - Season 3, Episode 8: "The Sands of Ares"
3. ↑ *For All Mankind* TV Series - Season 3, Episode 6: "New Eden"