Gravity

TITLES FADE IN : SUPERIMPOSE : AT 600 KM ABOVE PLANET EARTH THE TEMPERATURE FLUCTUATES BETWEEN +258 AND -148 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT. THERE IS NOTHING TO CARRY SOUND. NO AIR PRESSURE. NO OXYGEN. LIFE IN SPACE IS IMPOSSIBLE. TITLES FADE OUT. OVER BLACK SUPERIMPOSE : GRAVITY FADE IN : EXT. OUTER SPACE - DAY A section of the Earth as CAMERA TRACKS. The EXPLORER space shuttle becomes visible. The fuselage roof of the shuttle is open, creating an exterior hangar where the Hubble telescope is docked. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Um, please verify that the P-one ATA removal on replacement cap part one and two are complete. EXPLORER CAPTAIN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- DMA M-one, M-two, M-three and M- four are complete. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Okay. Copy that, Explorer. Dr. Stone, Houston. Medical is concerned about your ECG readings. RYAN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- I ’ m fine, Houston. MISSION CONTROL ( V.O. ) ( over radio ) Well, Medical does n't agree, Doc. Are you feeling nauseous? RYAN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Not any more than usual, Houston. Diagnostics are green. Link to communications card ready for data reception. If this works, when we touch down tomorrow, I ’ m buying all you guys a round of drinks. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- That ’ s a date, Doctor. Just remember, Houston ’ s partial to margaritas. RYAN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Booting comms card now. Please confirm link. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- That ’ s a negative, we ’ re not seeing any data. RYAN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Standby, Houston, I ’ m gon na reboot the comms card. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Standing by. ANOTHER ANGLE MATT -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Houston, I have a bad feeling about this mission. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Please expand. MATT -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Okay, let me tell you a story. It was ninety-six. -LRB- MORE -RRB- MATT ( V.O. ) ( CONT'D ) I ’ d been up here for forty-two days. Every time I passed over Texas, I looked down knowing that Mrs. Kowalski was looking up, thinking of me. Six weeks I ’ m blowing kisses at that woman. Then we land at Edwards and I find out that she ’ s run off with this lawyer. So, I packed my car, and I headed to -- MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio ; interrupting -RRB- Tijuana. You ’ ve told this story, Kowalski. As Houston recalls, she, uh, took off in your seventy- four GTO. Engineering requests fuel status on the jetpack prototype. MATT KOWALSKI, a veteran astronaut commander on his last space mission, spacewalks behind the shuttle. He wears a propulsion backpack. MATT -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Five hours off the reservation and I show thirty percent drain. Give my compliments to Engineering. Except for a slight malfunction in the nulling of the roll axis, this jetpack is one prime piece of thrust. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Engineering says thank you. CAMERA TILTS UP WITH Matt. MATT -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Tell ‘ em I still prefer my sixty- seven Corvette, though. Speaking of which, did I ever tell you -- MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- We know the Corvette story, Matt. MATT -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Even Engineering? MISSION CONTROL ( V.O. ) ( over radio ) Especially Engineering. Matt starts to play a country western song over the radio speakers. He moves, circling around the space shuttle. Over radio, Hank Williams, Jr. sings “ Angels Are Hard To Find. ” MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- We ’ re going to miss you, Matt. RYAN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Comms card reboot in progress. ANOTHER ANGLE DR. SHARIFF DASARI becomes visible, tethered to the shuttle, as he makes repairs to it. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Thank you, Doctor. -LRB- to Shariff -RRB- Shariff, what ’ s your status? SHARIFF -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Nearly there. Replacing battery module A-one and C. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Uh, could you be a little more specific? Indeterminate estimates make Houston anxious. SHARIFF -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Oh, no, no, Houston. Don ’ t be anxious. Anxiety ’ s not good for the heart. System is ready to reactivate. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Hubble telescope engaged. Upgrade fully functional. Matt approaches Shariff from b.g. We hear people in Mission Control chatter and cheer, V.O. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- That applause you hear is for you, Shariff. Congratulations. Kick back, take the rest of the day off. Shariff starts dancing. SHARIFF -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Whoo-hoo-hoo! -LRB- chuckles ; singing in Hindi -RRB- Mera juta hai jaapaani, my patloon inglistaani saar pe laal topi rusi -- -LRB- low -RRB- -- phir bhi dil hai hindustani. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Matt, do you have a visual on just what Mission Specialist Shariff is doing up there? Matt moves around Shariff. MATT -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- He appears to be doing some form of the Macarena. -LRB- off Shariff ’ s laugh -RRB- But that would be just a best- guess scenario on my part. CAMERA TILTS DOWN and DOLLIES IN ON DR. RYAN STONE, a medical engineer on her first mission. She is on a crane- like robotic arm attached to the shuttle. She is focused on a communication card panel on the Hubble. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Dr. Stone, Houston. Medical now have you with a temperature drop to thirty-five-point-nine and a heart-rate rise to seventy. How are you feeling? RYAN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Houston, I ’ m fine. It ’ s just keeping your lunch down in zero-G is harder than it looks. MISSION CONTROL ( V.O. ) -LRB- over radio -RRB- Uh, Dr. Stone, Medical is asking if you want to return to Explorer. RYAN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Negative. We ’ ve been here a week, Houston. Let ’ s just finish this. -LRB- clears throat -RRB- Card is up. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Uh, no, that ’ s a negative. I ’ m afraid we ’ re getting nothing on this end, Doctor. RYAN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Try again. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- No, still nothing. RYAN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Houston, can you please turn that music off. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Kowalski. MATT -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Not a problem. Matt turns the music off. RYAN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Thank you, Kowalski. Now, Houston? MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- That ’ s a negative. RYAN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Could Houston be misinterpreting the data? MISSION CONTROL ( V.O. ) -LRB- over radio -RRB- Well, we ’ re not receiving any data. Engineering is recommending a vis-check for component damage. Ryan takes a card out and examines it. RYAN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Let me see what ’ s going on. What have we got? -LRB- to Mission Control -RRB- Visual examination doesn ’ t reveal any damaged components. The problem must be originating from the comms panel. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Yeah, that seems to be the case. Engineering admits that you warned us that this could happen. That ’ s as close to an apology as you ’ re going to get from them. We should have listened to you, Doc. RYAN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Get working. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Well, looks like we ’ re going to have to improvise. Matt moves INTO FRAME. RYAN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- I ’ m on it. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- How long do you think it ’ ll take you? RYAN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- One hour. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Outstanding. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- CONT'D -RRB- Installing your system in the Hubble is the purpose of this mission and so we appreciate your patience, Doctor. Kowalski, we-we know you don ’ t care about things like this, but, uh, for your information, this delay is not gon na be long enough for you to break Anatoly Solovyev ’ s spacewalking record. It seems like you ’ re gon na be left, uh -- CAMERA TILTS DOWN and TRACKS WITH Matt as he moves past Shariff. MATT -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Seventy-five minutes shy? Never crossed my mind. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Matt... it ’ s been a privilege. MATT -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Right back at you, Houston. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Enjoy your last walk. MATT -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Am I a go to assist Dr. Stone in removing the panel? RYAN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Assistance appreciated. CAMERA PANS AROUND WITH Matt as he joins Ryan at the crane-like robotic arm. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Permission granted. MATT Thank you, Houston. -LRB- to Ryan -RRB- Mind if I join the fun? RYAN Certainly. MATT How you feeling? RYAN -LRB- pants, chuckling -RRB- Like a Chihuahua that ’ s being tumble-dried. MATT -LRB- chuckles softly -RRB- Well, it ’ s been a rough week. If it makes you feel any better, I coughed up everything but my kidneys on my first ride. RYAN Shit. Ryan drops a bolt, which floats as Matt reaches out to grab it. Matt moves to Ryan and gives the bolt to her. They work together on removing the panel. RYAN Sorry. I ’ m used to a basement lab in a hospital where things fall to the floor. -LRB- chuckles softly -RRB- Thank you. MATT Well, you ’ re the genius up here. I only drive the bus. RYAN Yeah, well, call me a genius if I can get this board initialized in the next hour. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Explorer, this is Houston. EXPLORER CAPTAIN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Go ahead, Houston. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Uh, NORAD reports a Russian satellite has incurred a missile strike. Matt continues to breathe heavily into the radio. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- The impact has created a cloud of debris orbiting at twenty thousand miles per hour. Current debris orbit does not overlap with your trajectory. We ’ ll keep you posted on any developments. EXPLORER CAPTAIN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Copy that, Houston. RYAN Should we -- Should we be worried? MATT No, let ’ s let the boys down there worry for us. RYAN Explorer, engage arm and pivot to cargo bay. EXPLORER CAPTAIN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Stand by for arm maneuver. The robotic arm begins to move very slowly, pulling Ryan and Matt along. MATT So, doc, now that you work for NASA, how do you like us? SHARIFF Kind of like winning the lottery, huh? Shariff chuckles. RYAN -LRB- inhaling sharply -RRB- I was just happy that they didn ’ t cut the funding to my research. MATT How long was your training? RYAN Oh, six months. SHARIFF Including holidays? RYAN Mm-hm. Ryan moves. Matt unclips a cable. MATT So, what is this scanning system? SHARIFF Oh, nothing Matt. It ’ s just a new set of eyes to scan the edge of the universe. Matt holds the cable. RYAN It ’ s designed for hospital use, but this one ’ s a prototype. EXPLORER CAPTAIN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Stand by for locking. Matt and Ryan begin to remove another panel. MATT Listen, they don ’ t bankroll prototypes. Even for your pretty blue eyes. RYAN Well, my eyes are brown. MATT Right now, your eyes are bloodshot. She chuckles. SHARIFF Kowalski! Is this great, or what? Woo-hoo-hoo! Matt and Ryan turn to see Shariff jump and float away from the shuttle. His safety tether tenses and snaps him back. Matt glances upward. MATT And to think he went to Harvard. You got ta admit one thing : Can ’ t beat the view. -LRB- beat -RRB- So, what do you like about being up here? RYAN The silence. I could get used to it. MATT Terrific. RYAN Houston, from first inspection, comms panel appears to be dead. Am I a go to cut link to auxiliary? MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- You ’ re the expert, doctor. It ’ s your call. MATT Houston, I have a bad feeling about this mission. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Please elaborate. MATT It ’ s the same feeling I had about Mardi Gras in 1987. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- That is affirmative. Surprisingly, Control hasn ’ t heard the Mardi Gras story. Please proceed. Matt and Ryan work the panel. MATT Well, it ’ s day one, and I ’ m bumping my way down Bourbon Street looking for a sister of a friend of mine. Streets are full of people. I ’ m thinking there ’ s no way I ’ m gon na find this girl. RYAN Proceeding to override. MATT Then all of the sudden, I look up, and there she is, and I ’ m about to yell out, and I see she ’ s holding hands with some short, hairy guy in board shorts and a Margaritaville shirt. And then I realize that this guy is not a guy. That my girl is holding hands with a -- MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- ISS, this is Houston. RUSSIAN SPACE STATION CAPTAIN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Houston. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Explorer, this is Houston. EXPLORER CAPTAIN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Go ahead, Houston. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- Mission abort. Repeat. Mission abort. Initiate emergency disconnect from Hubble. Begin reentry procedure. ISS, initiate emergency evacuation. EXPLORER CAPTAIN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Copy all, Houston, and in work. -LRB- to Matt -RRB- Matt, immediate return to Explorer. Repeat, immediate return to Explorer. MATT Copy. Explorer, prep airlock. EXPLORER CAPTAIN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Airlock engaged, ready to receive. MATT Houston, elaborate. MISSION CONTROL ( V.O. ) -LRB- over radio -RRB- Debris from the missile strike has caused a chain reaction, hitting other satellites and creating new debris. Traveling faster than a high-speed bullet up towards your altitude. All copy. MATT Copy all. -LRB- to Ryan -RRB- Put a bow on it, Dr. Stone. RYAN I can ’ t. The board is still initializing. MATT I ’ m not gon na ask you again. RYAN One second. MATT Not one second. Now. Shut it down. That ’ s an order. Ryan finishes working. RYAN Okay, I ’ m sorry. I ’ m sorry. I ’ m done. I ’ m done. EXPLORER CAPTAIN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Kowalski, initiate emergency disconnect from the Hubble. Ryan and Matt close the panel. MATT All right, Shariff, let ’ s do this. Matt and Shariff move to the base of the Hubble. SHARIFF Roger, Matt. MATT Houston, update. MISSION CONTROL ( V.O. ) -LRB- over radio -RRB- Well, we have a full-on chain reaction. It ’ s been confirmed that it ’ s the unintentional side effect of the Russians striking one of their own satellites. SHARIFF They shot down their own satellite? Matt pulls down a lever. Then moves upward. MATT Right of disposal. Most likely a spy sat gone bad. Now it ’ s shrapnel. -LRB- to Explorer Captain -RRB- Explorer, ready to disengage HST. EXPLORER CAPTAIN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Locks releasing in three... two... one. The locks holding the Hubble in place release. Matt pushes it up. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Explorer, new data coming through. MATT What's the blowback, Houston? MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- It ’ s not good. Most of our systems are gone. Debris chain reaction is out of control and rapidly expanding. Ryan is on the robotic arm. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Multiple satellites are down, and they keep on falling. Matt flies to the right. MATT Define ‘ multiple satellites. ’ MISSION CONTROL ( V.O. ) -LRB- over radio -RRB- Most of them are gone. Telecommunication systems are dead. Expect a communication blackout at any moment. RYAN Kowalski, visual of debris at nine o ’ clock. Fragments of debris fly past. MATT Half of North America just lost their Facebook. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Explorer, repeat, expect a communication blackout at any moment. EXPLORER CAPTAIN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Copy that, Houston. A large piece of debris from a BSE satellite flies past Shariff. MATT Explorer, this is Kowalski, confirming visual contact with debris. Debris is from a BSE sat. The debris flies. SHARIFF Heads up! MATT To repeat, I have -- RYAN Dr. Stone requesting faster transport. MATT WE have to go. We have to go, go, go! MISSION CONTROL ( V.O. ) -LRB- over radio -RRB- Kennedy reports meteorological conditions no-go for re-entry. Matt flies left. EXPLORER CAPTAIN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Houston, Explorer. Copy. RYAN Explorer, Dr. Stone requesting faster transport to bay area. Explorer, do you copy? MATT Explorer, permission to retrieve Dr. Stone. Matt flies towards Ryan. EXPLORER CAPTAIN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- You ’ re a go, Kowalski. -LRB- to Mission Control -RRB- Houston, this is Explorer, copy. MATT All right. EXPLORER CAPTAIN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- We've lost Houston. We ’ ve lost Houston. Matt tries to help Ryan detach herself. MATT Unstrap. Look, we need to get the hell out of here. RYAN All right. SHARIFF Need some help there, Matt? MATT No, don ’ t wait for us. A piece of debris smashes into Shariff, killing him. RYAN It ’ s stuck! MATT Man down! Man down! Flying debris punctures holes in the shuttle, which starts to veer out of control. EXPLORER CAPTAIN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Houston, this is Explorer, copy. Houston, this is Explorer, copy. Kowalski, repor -- Ryan, still attached to the robotic arm, spins around with the shuttle. MATT Explorer ’ s been hit! -LRB- to Explorer Captain -RRB- Explorer, do you read? Explorer, over! Explorer! The robotic arm breaks off from the shuttle with Ryan still attached to it. She continues to spin around. MATT Astronaut is off structure! Dr. Stone is off structure! -LRB- to Ryan -RRB- Dr. Stone, detach! You must detach! If you don ’ t detach, that arm ’ s gon na carry you too far! RYAN -LRB- crying out -RRB- No! No! I can -- MATT Listen to my voice! You need to focus! RYAN I can ’ t! I can ’ t! MATT I ’ m losing visual of you. In a few seconds, I won ’ t be able to track you. You need to detach! I can ’ t see you anymore! Do it now! RYAN Okay, I ’ m trying! I ’ m trying! I ’ m trying! Ryan detaches herself and flies off. MATT Houston, I ’ ve lost visual of Dr. Stone. Houston, I ’ ve lost visual of Dr. Stone.

EXT. OUTER SPACE - 600 KM ABOVE EARTH - DAY Ryan spins out of control as she careens. MATT -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Dr. Stone, do you copy? Repeat, do you copy? She flies PAST CAMERA and continues in the b.g. RYAN Yes, yes, yes. I copy! I ’ m detached! MATT -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Give me your position. RYAN I don ’ t know! I don ’ t know! I ’ m spinning! I can ’ t -- I can ’ t --! MATT -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Report your position. RYAN GPS is down. I ca -- It ’ s down, I can ’ t -- She spins and flips. MATT -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Give me a visual. RYAN I told you, nothing. I see nothing! MATT -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Do you have a visual of Explorer? RYAN No. No. MATT -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Do you have a visual of ISS? RYAN No. MATT -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- You need to focus. Anything, use the sun and the Earth, give me coordinates. RYAN It ’ s so fast. I can ’ t breathe! I can ’ t breathe! MATT -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Give me coordinates! Dr. Stone, do you copy? Repeat, do you copy? Give me your position! Report your position. Give me a visual! Do you have a visual of Explorer? Do you have a visual of ISS? I need you to focus. Anything. Use the sun and the Earth, give me coordinates. Give me coordinates. She continues spinning. DISSOLVE TO :

INT. HELMET - DAY Ryan glances about as she tries to calm down. The Explorer shuttle, a glowing light, is far off in the distance. RYAN Kowalski? Kowalski, do you copy? Kowals -- I have-have a vis -- Kowalski, I have a visual. I have- have a visual of Explorer. With north at -- twelve o ’ clock and the shuttle is at the center of the dial. I can see -- I can see the Chinese station. No -- No, it ’ s the International Space Station. ISS is at -- ISS is at seven o'clock. CAMERA RACKS FOCUS ON the inside of the helmet, which illuminates gauges and meters of the vital statistics of Ryan ’ s space suit, which read : CWL TEMP 15C WARN RADIATION LOW OXYGEN 10 % LIFE SUPPORT BATTERY 42 % RYAN Lieutenant Kowalski, do you copy? CAMERA PULLS BACK OUT of her helmet. DISSOLVE TO :

EXT. OUTER SPACE - 600 KM ABOVE EARTH - DAY Ryan continues to flip and spin around. RYAN Explorer, do you -- do you copy? Houston, do you copy? Houston, this is Mission Specialist Ryan Stone. I am off structure and I am drifting. Do you copy? Anyone...? Anybody...? Do you copy? Please copy. Please. MATT -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Dr. Stone, do you copy? RYAN Yeah, Lieutenant Kowalski, yes. Yes, Lieutenant Kowalski, I ’ m here, I ’ m here! MATT -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Repeat, do you copy? Ryan shines her flashlight, using it like a beacon. RYAN Yes, yes, I copy, I ’ m here! I ’ m here. MATT -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Flash your light. RYAN My light -- my light? MATT ( V.O. ) -LRB- over radio -RRB- Flash it so I can see you. RYAN Uh, okay. Uh... I... Okay, okay. Here, here! I ’ m here! MATT -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Ah, there you are. Hang on tight. Report your status. RYAN I ’ m fine, I ’ m fine. I ’ m all right. MATT -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Your status. Give me your readings. Ryan looks at the gauge on her wrist, which indicates her suit status. RYAN I... Uh, three -- three -- three point six PSI. MATT -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Your O2, give me your O2. RYAN Uh, oxygen is going down. It ’ s going down fast. It ’ s going down fast. Nine -- No, eight-eight percent. Eight three point nine percent. MATT -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- Okay, you ’ re breathing too fast. You ’ re burning oxygen, and we don ’ t want to do that. We want to relax. Copy? RYAN Okay, so -- Okay, sorry. Yes, copy, copy. MATT -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- All right. Nearly there. RYAN Please hurry. Matt approaches from far off in the b.g. He speeds toward her. MATT You can holster that torch, Dr. Stone. RYAN Sorry. Sorry. Matt collides with her and grabs onto her. Ryan reacts, panicked. They tumble together, facing each other. MATT Gotcha. All right, now I ’ m gon na tether you to me. RYAN Uh-huh. MATT I know, you never realized how devastatingly good-looking I am. But I need you to stop staring and help me with the tether. RYAN Mm-hmm. MATT Okay? RYAN Okay, okay. Uh, I got it. Matt attaches the tether to Ryan ’ s suit. They continue tumbling together. MATT All right, here we go. All right. Now, to clear you from the jets... RYAN Uh-huh. MATT I ’ m gon na give you a little push. RYAN No, no, no, no. No, no, no. MATT Not a push. RYAN No, no. MATT A nudge. RYAN No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no! Damn it, no! Matt pushes Ryan away from him. As she drifts again, she panics. Matt turns and uses the thrusters to accelerate. MATT See? Where you go, I go. Better. Let ’ s get outta here. Matt pulls Ryan behind him via the tether. RYAN Goddamn it. MATT I know what you mean. RYAN Damn it. They move towards the Explorer in the distance. MATT You ’ re burning oxygen. We ’ re going back to the shuttle. How ’ s that for a plan? Copy? RYAN Fuck! MATT Right. Copy that. Houston, in the blind. This is Kowalski. Dr. Stone and I are gon na make our way back to base. Can you get the Explorer to prepare the airlock for arrival? Copy? Houston, this is...

EXT. OUTER SPACE - 650 KM ABOVE EARTH - DAY Matt flies, pulling Ryan behind him. MATT... Kowalski. How do you copy? Houston, in the blind. This is Kowalski. RYAN They can ’ t hear us. MATT We don ’ t know that. That ’ s why we keep talking. If somebody is listening, they might just save your life. Set your watch for ninety minutes. RYAN Why ninety? MATT Well, Houston clocked that... Ryan sets her watch. MATT... debris at fifty thousand miles an hour. If you factor in our current orbit, then I figure we got about ninety minutes before we get our asses kicked again. Text on the wrist display next to the watch reads : SUIT PRESS 35PSI 01:30 00 OXYGEN ALERT 6 % BATTERY 18 % SPC02 4.1 min She reaches and grabs hold of the tether. RYAN O2 down to six percent. MATT Okay. Pretty scary shit being untethered up here, isn ’ t it? RYAN Yeah, pretty scary shit. MATT Well, you did all right. Matt thrusts forward again, pulling her in a jerking motion.

INT. HELMET - RYAN’S POV THROUGH THE HELMET TO MATT - DAY RYAN Well, you weren ’ t so bad yourself. MATT Houston, in the blind. This is Kowalski. Our current location is approximately... nine hundred meters out from the Explorer. Dr. Stone and I would like to retrieve the body of Mission Specialist Shariff and return it to the shuttle. Am I a go to retrieve? Roger that. Matt flies back and forth as he tries to correct their course, searching for Shariff. The tether jerks Ryan back and forth. RYAN Where is he? Where is he? Matt ignites the thrusters and speeds in b.g. toward the panel Shariff is attached to. Matt grabs onto the panel, stopping his trajectory. Ryan flies past him toward Shariff ’ s corpse. RYAN Oh, my God. Oh, my God.

EXT. OUTER SPACE - 650 KM ABOVE EARTH - DAY Ryan flies f.g. and crashes into Shariff ’ s corpse, causing it to careen out of control, pulling the panel with it. Matt, still holding onto the panel, disconnects Shariff ’ s tether from it and attaches it to himself. MATT Grab him! Grab him! RYAN I ’ m trying, I ’ m trying! Matt lets go of the panel, which exits, as Shariff ’ s corpse and Ryan pull him with them. MATT You ’ re pullin ’ me away. RYAN Got h -- I got him! Ryan grabs hold of Shariff ’ s corpse and holds on. MATT Clutch him like he ’ s your Valentine. RYAN I got -- I got him. Okay. I got him. MATT I can ’ t engage my thrust with you two yo-yoin ’ around. Ryan looks down at the face of the corpse and reacts. Shariff ’ s corpse. The helmet is destroyed and there is a hole through his face, caused by the debris. Ryan is horrified. Near Shariff ’ s corpse there is a photo floating, attached to a small tether. The photo depicts Shariff with his wife and son. MATT Jesus Christ. Matt leads Ryan and Shariff ’ s corpse toward the wreckage of the Explorer, which has suffered devastating damage. MATT Here ’ s hopin ’ you have a hell of an insurance policy, Houston. The damages to Explorer are catastrophic. Will commence search for survivors. RYAN O2 down to five percent.

EXT. OUTER SPACE - EXPLORER - DAY Matt, Ryan, and Shariff ’ s corpse are flying toward Explorer at a high velocity. MATT All right, here we go. Careful of the edges! They slam into the shuttle and scatter. Ryan flies and is pulled by the tether to Matt, who grabs onto the broken cockpit window frame. Matt pulls Ryan toward him. MATT Here. Here! CAMERA PUSHES PAST THEM THROUGH the window frame, INTO the cockpit, which is in disarray. Several objects are floating about. The beam of Matt ’ s flashlight shines onto a floating toy. Ryan moves to enter, but suddenly bumps into the corpse of one of the astronauts. Matt peers in through a hole on the other side of the cockpit. MATT Houston, in the blind. To confirm. Mission Specialist Dr. Stone and Mission Commander Matthew Kowalski are the sole survivors of the STS-one-five- seven. Ryan joins Matt, now tethered to the shuttle. Shariff ’ s corpse floats in the b.g. RYAN I apologize for not complying. I should ’ ve stopped working as soon as you instructed me to. MATT We were gon na get hit no matter what. There was nothing you could do to change that. Hey. RYAN Yes? MATT All right, we have to make our way to the Space Station. Over there. Matt points to the space station way off in the distance. MATT It ’ s a bit of a hike, but we need to use their escape pod, the Soyuz, to get back to Earth. Agreed? Dr. Stone, agreed? Matt and Ryan facing each other. RYAN Agreed. MATT All right. After you. Matt pushes Ryan, and she spins away. Matt pushes off the shuttle and thrusts, pulling Ryan with him. RYAN Oh, God. Oh, God. Oh, God. MATT Houston, in the blind. This is Kowalski. CAMERA PULLS BACK to reveal Shariff ’ s corpse, now tethered to the shuttle. MATT Dr. Stone and I have determined to proceed to ISS and use one of their Soyuz for re-entry. ISS, if you hear us... we could sure use a rescue mission.

EXT. OUTER SPACE - 550 KM ABOVE EARTH - DAY Matt floats, pulling Ryan behind him. The sun crests over the edge of the Earth. Hank Williams, Jr. sings “ Angels Are Hard To Find ” under the following scenes. RYAN O2 down to two percent. MATT We ’ re getting there. Beautiful, don ’ t you think? RYAN What? MATT The sunrise. Matt slowly floats, pulling Ryan behind him. MATT That ’ s what I ’ m gon na miss the most. So where ’ s home, Dr. Stone? Ryan, where ’ s home? RYAN Home? MATT Mm-hm. Down there. Mother Earth. Where do you pitch you tent? RYAN Lake Zurich. MATT Where the hell is that? RYAN Illinois. Matt floats, pulling Ryan behind him. MATT Illinois. Central Time Zone. -LRB- sighs -RRB- That would make it roughly... eight PM. What are the good people of Lake Zurich doing at eight o ’ clock? RYAN I don ’ t know. I ’ m not gon na make it. I ’ m slowing you down. MATT What would you be doing? Come on, Ryan. It ’ s eight o ’ clock. You've just left the hospital after an eighteen-hour shift. Driving home. RYAN The radio. I listen to the radio. MATT There we go. Let me guess. NPR? Classical? Top forty? RYAN Anything. I don ’ t care, as long as they don ’ t talk. I just drive. MATT And where are you driving to? RYAN I just drive. MATT What do you miss down there? Is there a Mr. Stone? RYAN No. MATT Nobody special? Ryan slowly floats. The reflection of the Earth appears on her helmet. MATT Somebody down there looking up, thinking about you? Ryan? RYAN I had a daughter. Matt glances at the mirror affixed to his wrist. The mirror on his wrist depicts the reflection of Ryan. RYAN She was four. She was at school playing tag. Slipped, hit her head, and that was it. Stupidest thing. I was driving when I got the call, so... ever since then, that ’ s what I do. I wake up, I go to work, and I just drive. Matt floats in the b.g. toward the far-off space station. Ryan is pulled with him. RYAN O2 down to one percent. MATT Well, I ’ ve got good news and bad news. The good news is, we ’ re about five minutes from the ISS and I know where the Russians stash their vodka. And that is good, because I ’ m runnin ’ on fumes here. The bad news is, I ’ m gon na be about ten minutes short of breakin ’ Anatoly ’ s record, and I -- An alarm sounds, indicating Ryan ’ s oxygen level is low. Matt looks at his wrist mirror. RYAN Uh... MATT What? RYAN Uh... I ’ m redlining. My O2 tank pressure is low. MATT Your tank is out of oxygen but you still have it in your suit. RYAN Got it.

INT. HELMET - RYAN’S POV OF MATT AND THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION - DAY MATT So you have to sip, not gulp. She looks down to her arms as she checks her oxygen monitor. The monitor reads : oxygen low. MATT Wine, not beer. She glances up to Matt. MATT Sip, Ryan. -LRB- to Mission Control -RRB- Houston, in the blind, we have a visual of the ISS. The station must have been evacuated because the first Soyuz is...

EXT. OUTER SPACE - DAY Matt and Ryan float in the f.g., as Ryan exits. MATT... missing. The second Soyuz exhibits surface damage, and its chute has been deployed. Any use as an escape pod for re-entry is impossible. Matt floats toward the space station, pulling Ryan with him. RYAN Shouldn ’ t we be turning? We ’ re drifting again. MATT Not yet. I wasn ’ t kidding about those fumes. This can has one or two good thrusts left... if we ’ re lucky. Steady. Aim. Fire! Matt triggers his thruster, hurtling them at a high speed.

INT. HELMET - RYAN’S POV - DAY Past Matt to the space station. Ryan ’ s arms enter f.g. and grab hold of the tether. RYAN Brake! Brake! You have to brake! MATT I can ’ t, the can ’ s empty.

EXT. OUTER SPACE - SPACE STATION - DAY MATT We ’ re gon na hit hard! Grab a hold of anything you can!

INT. HELMET - RYAN’S POV TO THE SPACE STATION - DAY She flies toward the space station.

EXT. OUTER SPACE - SPACE STATION - DAY Matt flies and smashes into it. Ryan is pulled behind him. RYAN It ’ s -- what do I do? What do I do?! She flies into f.g. as CAMERA TILTS UP and FLIPS AROUND to TRACK WITH her as grabs hold of a railing. MATT Ryan! Matt flies past, pulling Ryan with him. Ryan bumps into a solar panel and their tether snaps. Ryan falls. RYAN The tether broke, I ’ m detached! I ’ m detached! MATT Grab a hold! Grab anything! Ryan falls. She becomes entangled in some of the Soyuz ’ s parachute rigging. The rigging pulls her up. She reaches out her hand. MATT Ryan! Give me five! RYAN I ’ ve got you.

INT. HELMET - RYAN’S POV - MATT - DAY He flies toward her, unsuccessfully grabs for her hand. RYAN I ’ ve got you. Right here, right here. Okay, get it. Ryan grabs hold of the tether attached to him. MATT Shit! Shit. RYAN No. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.

EXT. OUTER SPACE - SPACE STATION - DAY Ryan is pulled by the tether. RYAN Got ya. Matt holds firmly onto the tether as he is yanked. Ryan holds firmly onto the tether. Ryan ’ s left leg is entangled in the parachute rigging. RYAN Got ya. You just... hold on and I ’ m gon na start pulling you in. I ’ m gon na star -- MATT Hey, Doc. RYAN Just hold on. Hang on. I am gon na pull you in. I ’ m gon na pull you in. MATT Ryan, listen. You have to let me go. RYAN No. MATT The ropes are too loose. I ’ m pulling you with me. RYAN No. Matt takes hold of the tether clip. RYAN No, no, no. MATT You have to let me go, or we both die. RYAN I ’ m not letting you go! Ryan is pulled and Matt yanks her back. RYAN We ’ re fine! MATT No. Ryan, let go. RYAN No. No. You ’ re not going anywhere. You ’ re not going anywhere. Matt starts to unclip the tether. MATT It ’ s not up to you. RYAN No, no, no, no, no... no... Please don ’ t do this. Matt unclips the tether. RYAN Please, please, please, please don ’ t do this. Please don ’ t do this. No, no, no. Please don ’ t, Matt. Please don ’ t do this. Matt lets go of the tether and floats off. MATT You ’ re gon na make it, Ryan. RYAN No! Ryan floats toward the space station. Matt floats away. RYAN I had you. I had you! I had you. Ryan smacks into a part of the space station and flips over. She grabs hold of a metal railing. We see Matt far away now in the b.g. Ryan ’ s C02 alarm goes off, indicating that she ’ s out of oxygen. MATT Ryan, do you hear me? Do you copy? RYAN My CO2 alarm went off. My CO2 alarm went off. MATT Look, you need to board the station. Do you see the airlock? Ryan turns, holding tightly onto the metal railing. MATT Hey, Ryan, you copy? Look for the airlock. It ’ s above you, next to the Zarya module. You see it? RYAN Yes. Yes, I see it. I see it. MATT All right, good. That ’ s where you want to go. Now you ’ re getting lightheaded, right? RYAN Yeah. Yes. MATT That ’ s because you ’ re breathing CO2. You ’ re losing consciousness. You need to board the station. RYAN Okay. Holding on tight to the space station ’ s railing, Ryan turns her body upside down and moves toward the station. MATT That second Soyuz is too damaged for re-entry, but it ’ s perfectly fine for a little Sunday drive. Ryan climbs upward. RYAN Sunday drive? MATT Look to the west. You see that dot in the distance? CAMERA PANS TO a tiny dot in the distance, which is the Chinese station. MATT That ’ s a Chinese station. RYAN Yes. MATT You ’ re gon na take the Soyuz, and you ’ re gon na cruise over there. Chinese lifeboat is a Shenzhou. RYAN I ’ ve never flown a Shenzhou. CAMERA DOLLIES AROUND Ryan. MATT It doesn ’ t matter. Its re-entry protocol is identical to the Soyuz. RYAN Okay. MATT You never flown the Soyuz either? RYAN Only a simulator. MATT Well, then you know. RYAN But I crashed it. MATT It ’ s a simulator, that ’ s what it ’ s designed for. RYAN Every time. I crashed it every time. CAMERA TRACKS WITH Ryan to reveal Matt, a tiny speck in b.g. MATT You point the damn thing at Earth. It ’ s not rocket science. And by this time tomorrow, you ’ re gon na be back in Lake Zurich with a hell of a story to tell. You copy? Ryan, you copy? RYAN I ’ m gon na take the Soyuz and come get you. MATT No, you ’ re not. RYAN I ’ m coming to get you. MATT No, I ’ ve got too much of a head start on you. RYAN -LRB- wavering -RRB- I ’ m coming to get you. MATT I ’ m afraid that ship... -LRB- chuckling -RRB- Already sailed. Ryan, you ’ re gon na have to learn to let go. RYAN But I -- MATT I want to hear you say you ’ re gon na make it. Come on, Ryan, say it. RYAN I ’ m gon na make it. MATT All right. Keep going. What kind of name is Ryan for a girl? RYAN Dad wanted a boy. MATT Are you close to the airlock? RYAN Not yet. MATT Keep going. So now that we have some distance between us... you ’ re attracted to me, right? RYAN What? MATT Well, people say I have beautiful blue eyes. RYAN You have beautiful -- You have beautiful blue eyes. MATT I have brown eyes. Hey, you want to know the good news? RYAN What? MATT I ’ m gon na break Anatoly ’ s record, and I think mine ’ s gon na stand for a long, long time. RYAN Oh, no. I ’ m coming to get you. Matt, a tiny speck in b.g. MATT Oh, my God. RYAN What? What? MATT Wow. Hey, Ryan? RYAN Yeah? MATT You should see the sun on the Ganges. -LRB- exhales sharply -RRB- It ’ s amazing. CAMERA PANS TO Ryan. She moves her arm. Hank Williams Jr. ’ s “ Angels Are Hard To Find ” continues.

INT. HELMET - RYAN’S POV - DAY Matt is a tiny speck. With great effort, Ryan climbs to the airlock and opens its handle.

EXT. OUTER SPACE - SPACE STATION - DAY Ryan opens the airlock door and is blown by the air pressure as she tightly grips the door handle. She manages to climb inside the airlock.

INT. SPACE STATION - AIRLOCK MODULE - DAY Ryan closes the airlock door. She turns the handle of a valve. The oxygen levels of the module re-pressurizes. As oxygen fills the cabin, Ryan takes off her helmet and breathes deeply. She removes her suit.

INT. SPACE STATION - DAY Ryan enters and glances about. An electrical panel with exposed wiring emits sparks and flames. Ryan enters the communications room. RYAN Where are you? Where are you? Comms. Comms. There you are. She stops and turns toward the radio panel, placing a radio headset on her head. RYAN -LRB- into radio -RRB- Okay. Matt, this is Ryan, copy. Matt, this is Ryan, copy. Matt, I made it, I ’ m here, I ’ m on the station. Do you copy? Come on, Matt, talk to me. Tell me where you are, give me your position. Where are you? Give me a visual. Just tell me what you see. Oh, come on. You ’ ve been yammering since we left Cape Canaveral, and now you decide to shut up? Talk to me. Just say something, say anything! I don ’ t care! Hey, tell me about, uh, Mardi Gras. Tell me about the hairy guy. Huh? Tell me what happened. What happened to the, uh, hairy guy? Ryan ’ s reflection is on the window as she gazes through it. RYAN -LRB- into radio -RRB- Please talk to me. -LRB- whispering -RRB- Please. -LRB- to mission control -RRB- Houston, in the blind... this is Mission Specialist Ryan Stone reporting from the ISS. All communications with Mission Commander Matthew Kowalski have been lost. Radio transmission absent. Visuals nonexistent. To confirm, I, Ryan Stone, am the sole survivor of STS-one-five- seven. An alarm sounds, prompting her to float and examine a laptop affixed to the wall. RYAN What now? On the laptop monitor, which displays a message and a graph of the station, which indicates which sections are on fire. The alert reads : “ FIRE. ” On the map, the labels of which read : “ Kibo Lab, jcm, Overhead, Port, UC Lab, Node 2, Deck. ” Ryan approaches a ball of fire. She grabs a fire extinguisher off the wall and uses it on the fire. The spray from the fire extinguisher blasts her against the wall, momentarily knocking her unconscious, then she regains consciousness. The fire is quickly expanding. Ryan takes the fire extinguisher again, plants her feet and stabilizes herself. She sprays the fire extinguisher. The fireball rapidly expands, knocking Ryan into a new passageway. The fireball expands throughout the station behind her. She dives down, through a hatch. She struggles to open the hatch to the second Soyuz. The fireball is expanding into the compartment. Ryan climbs down into the second Soyuz, still carrying the fire extinguisher and locks the hatch above her. She climbs further down into another section of the Soyuz. She closes the second hatch above her. The Soyuz shakes, due to the station outside exploding and crumbling.

INT. SOYUZ - DAY Ryan slides down through a hatch into the command center of the Soyuz. RYAN Okay. Okay. Where is it, where is it? Where is the power? Here you are. Okay, great, just like training. Um... Uh, undocking, undocking. She reaches for a nearby instruction manual, which is marked in red. She straps herself into the seat and examines it. RYAN -LRB- clearing throat -RRB- Undocking. Red. Okay. Okay, where is it? Where is it? Come on. Okay. Okay. Okay, I remember this, I remember this. She reaches up and presses several buttons on the control console. The monitor now displays a countdown which reads : “ 00:04.30. ” The Soyuz is jolted and shakes terribly. Ryan flips through the pages of the instructions. RYAN Oh, you don ’ t have four minutes. We ’ re going manual. Come on. Okay. Okay. Active-Activate, undock. -LRB- Russian -RRB- Rezerveyi rassik. She reaches up toward another control panel and presses a button.

EXT. STATION (OUTER SPACE) - DAY The Soyuz is released from the station and floats away from it. The Earth is far off in the b.g.

INT. SOYUZ - DAY The periscope displaying the station from outside. As it floats away, the parachute, which has been deployed, is tangled around a section of the station. Ryan breathes heavily. She is seated and watches the periscope in front of her. She checks her watch for the amount of time until the debris will hit again. It reads “ 00:07:25. ” RYAN Seven minutes to get out of here. Ryan pulls out the joysticks to activate the manual control steering. RYAN -LRB- whispering -RRB- All right, okay.

EXT. OUTER SPACE - DAY The station thrusts away, the parachute still caught. It pulls taut and stops the Soyuz with a jolt.

INT. SOYUZ - DAY Ryan is shaken about as the station is jolted. She glances about, confused. RYAN What? What-what? What-what?

EXT. STATION (OUTER SPACE) - DAY The parachute tenses and pulls the Soyuz toward the station at a high speed.

INT. SOYUZ - DAY Ryan, upside down, gazes at the periscope. She sees that the Soyuz is on a trajectory to crash into the station. RYAN No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no! She uses the manual controls to activate the thrusters.

EXT. OUTER SPACE - DAY The thrusters emit a quick blast changing the Soyuz ’ s direction slightly. The parachute ropes become taut. The Soyuz flies away from the station, but the parachute snaps the Soyuz back toward it.

EXT. STATION (OUTER SPACE) The Soyuz flies over the station. The parachute catches again. The ropes pull taut.

INT. SOYUZ - DAY Ryan is shaken about as the Soyuz is jolted to a stop. She takes control of the manual steering.

EXT. STATION (OUTER SPACE) The Soyuz is pulled back toward the station.

INT. SOYUZ - DAY Ryan looks through the periscope. RYAN Stop! Stop! Stop! Stop! Stop!

EXT. STATION (OUTER SPACE) The thruster jets are manually activated, stopping its approach and gently pushing it away at a steady rate.

INT. SOYUZ - DAY Through the periscope, we see Soyuz is slowly floating away from the station. RYAN Come on, come on, come on, come on, come on. Come on. -LRB- whispering -RRB- Come on, come on, come on, come on. Ryan uses the manual steering to steady the Soyuz. RYAN -LRB- whispering -RRB- That ’ s right, that ’ s right. Come on, come on, come on. -LRB- low -RRB- That ’ s right, that ’ s right, that ’ s right, that ’ s right, that ’ s right. Ahhh. Come on.

EXT. STATION (OUTER SPACE) - DAY The Soyuz flies away from the station at a slower velocity than before. The parachute pulls taut, and the Soyuz jolts to a stop, but the soft thrusters keep it from being pulled back toward it.

INT. SOYUZ - DAY Through the periscope, we see that Soyuz has steadied, but is still tethered to the station via the parachute, which is entangled in one of the station ’ s solar panels. RYAN -LRB- whispers -RRB- F -- -LRB- breathes heavily -RRB- Great. Ryan glances about.

EXT. STATION (OUTER SPACE) - DAY The Soyuz hovers near the station. Ryan, wearing a space suit, steps out of the hatch, tethered to the inside of the Soyuz cabin. Her watch timer goes off, indicating that the debris should be coming back. She glances about, but does not see any debris. RYAN Clear skies with a chance of satellite debris. She climbs down the side of the Soyuz to where the parachute ropes are bolted to the vessel. She attaches herself to an open panel and glances about. RYAN -LRB- whispering -RRB- Okay, we detach this, and we go home. Piece of cake. Satisfied that no debris is coming, she produces a tool and starts to detach the parachute ropes. She doesn ’ t see the debris coming toward her. RYAN Okay. -LRB- low ; indistinct -RRB- Okay, what do we have? Okay, all right. Ryan drops one of her tools, which starts to float away. She turns to grab it and sees the debris hurtling toward her as it starts to tear through the satellites. RYAN Shit. As she quickly tries to detach the parachute ropes, she flips upside-down and tries to ignore the debris cutting through the station behind her. RYAN Okay. Okay, come on. Come on, come on. All right. Okay, okay, okay. Okay. She removes one of the ropes as a section of the station explodes behind her. The remaining part of the station flies under the Soyuz. She holds onto the Soyuz as the station spins out of control, pulling the Soyuz with it. She struggles to hold on as the Soyuz flies through new debris. She removes the final rope and holds tight to the Soyuz, which flies away from the station. The wing of the Soyuz plows through a satellite. The Soyuz floats, seemingly out of harm ’ s way. Ryan climbs toward the Soyuz hatch. She glances back at the crumbling station before exiting. RYAN I hate space.

INT. SOYUZ - DAY A control panel displays several alerts and alarms. Ryan ’ s helmet floats. Ryan closes the hatch after having just come through it. She straps into the command seat and switches off the alarms. RYAN -LRB- to the control panel -RRB- Shut up. -LRB- beat -RRB- Okay. She looks at her watch. She resets her watch timer to 01:30. She starts the timer. Ryan reacts to the temperature which is now below freezing. She places an instruction manual in her lap and uses the steering joysticks to reposition the Soyuz. RYAN All right. That ’ s good. Ryan looks through the periscope, displaying the western horizon. RYAN Okay. Let ’ s stabilize you.

EXT. OUTER SPACE - DAY The Soyuz floats and steadies into a stabilized position.

INT. SOYUZ - DAY The periscope displays the far-off Chinese station on the western horizon. The Soyuz stabilizes in a position to head directly toward it. RYAN Okay. Let ’ s go visit the Chinese station. -LRB- to Mission Control -RRB- Houston, in the blind, Tiangong is approximately one hundred kilometers to the west, and I am off its course by about thirteen degrees. I will correct trajectory. She clears her throat.

EXT. OUTER SPACE - HIGH ANGLE - DAY The Soyuz floats.

INT. SOYUZ - DAY The periscope displays the Chinese station in the distance. RYAN -LRB- whispering -RRB- Okay. Okay. LOW ANGLE - RYAN reaches up and flips some switches. RYAN Okay. -LRB- to Mission Control -RRB- I will engage S-Ka-Dae in five... four... three... Ryan presses the thruster ignition button on the control panel. RYAN Two... one.

EXT. OUTER SPACE - DAY The Soyuz continues to float.

INT. SOYUZ - DAY Ryan reacts, confused. RYAN What ’ s happening, what ’ s happening? Come on, come on. Ryan reaches up toward the control panel again. LOW ANGLE - RYAN presses the thruster ignition button again. RYAN One.

INT. SOYUZ - DAY Ryan repeatedly presses the ignition button, but nothing happens. She starts to panic. RYAN Come on, come on, come on. She taps on the fuel gauge, frozen in place due to the temperature. The needle is tapped loose and drops down to zero, indicating that there is no fuel. RYAN You got ta be kidding me. You got ta be kidding me! Ryan angrily hits and kicks the control panel. RYAN No! Don ’ t you fu --

EXT. SOYUZ (OUTER SPACE) Ryan calms down. The Chinese station is far off in the b.g. RYAN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- Houston, in the blind. Houston, in the blind, this is Dr. Ryan Stone. I ’ m calling from the Soyuz TMA-one-four-M. I ’ m currently out of fuel and adrift, do you copy? Houston. This is Dr. Ryan Stone. Do you copy? Houston. This is Ryan Stone. Do you copy? The sun sets behind the edge of the Earth.

INT. SOYUZ - DAY The edge of the window, which starts to gather frost and freeze over. RYAN -LRB- O.S. -RRB- -LRB- into radio ; wavering voice, sniffs ) Houston, this is Missish -- Mission Specialist Ryan Stone, do you copy? ANINGAAQ -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- ( Indistinct ) THE TOP OF A CONTROL PANEL A card depicting a Russian religious character is affixed to it. RYAN -LRB- O.S. -RRB- -LRB- into radio -RRB- Houston, Houston, please confirm identity. ANINGAAQ -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- ( Indistinct ) RYAN -LRB- O.S. -RRB- -LRB- into radio -RRB- Houston, you ’ re coming in over an A.M. frequency. Copy. RYAN ’ S HELMET AND A FIRE EXTINGUISHER Both floating in the air. RYAN -LRB- O.S. -RRB- -LRB- into radio -RRB- Do you copy? -LRB- pants -RRB- Is this the Chinese station? Is this Tiangong? Copy. ANINGAAQ -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- ( Inuit ) RYAN -LRB- O.S. -RRB- -LRB- into radio -RRB- Mayday, can you copy? RYAN leaning toward the control panel, reacting as a transmission finally comes through the radio. RYAN -LRB- into radio -RRB- Mayday, mayday, mayday. ANINGAAQ -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio -RRB- ( Inuit ) RYAN -LRB- into radio ; panting -RRB- Ma -- Yes, yes. Mayday, mayday. Mayday, mayday. An -- -LRB- whispering -RRB- Anin -- Aningaaq, is that --? Is that your --? Is that your name? Aningaaq is your -- is your name? Is that your name? ANINGAAQ -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -LRB- over radio ; in Tagalog -RRB- Mayday! RYAN -LRB- into radio -RRB- No, no, no. No, my name is not ‘ Mayday. ’ I ’ m Stone. Dr. Ryan Stone, I need help. I am -- She reacts as she hears dogs over the radio. RYAN Wh -- Those are dogs. They ’ re calling from Earth. They ’ re calling from Earth. Ryan sits back in her seat and moves her fingers, trying to keep them warm. RYAN ( into radio ) Aningaaq, make your dogs bark again for me, would you please? Your dogs. Dogs, you know. Woof, woof. Dogs. Aningaaq makes barking sounds, howls. Ryan makes howling sounds along with him. RYAN -LRB- into radio -RRB- Woof, woof. Whoo, whoo! Ryan starts crying. RYAN -LRB- into radio ; crying -RRB- Oh, I ’ m gon na die, Aningaaq. I know, we ’ re all gon na die. Everybody knows that. But I ’ m gon na die today. Funny, that. You know, to know... Aningaaq starts to sing. RYAN -LRB- into radio, crying -RRB- But the thing is, it ’ s that I ’ m still scared. I ’ m really scared. Nobody will mourn for me, no one will pray for my soul. Will you mourn for me? Will you say a prayer for me? Or is it too late? A tear falls from her eye, freezes, and floats. CAMERA RACK FOCUSES ON IT. RYAN -LRB- into radio -RRB- I mean, I ’ d say one for myself, but I ’ ve never prayed in my life, so... Nobody ever taught me how. Nobody ever taught me how. CAMERA RACK FOCUSES BACK ON Ryan as she hears a baby over the radio. She reacts and cries, as she hears Aningaaq singing. RYAN -LRB- into radio -RRB- A baby. There ’ s a baby with you, huh? Is that a lullaby you ’ re singing? That ’ s so sweet. I used to sing to my baby. I hope I see her soon. She leans over and presses a button on the control panel. CAMERA PANS WITH her as she reaches up and switches off the lights. She turns some dials, decreasing the oxygen in the cabin ’ s atmosphere, preparing to kill herself. The monitor, displaying the atmosphere levels and vital statistics of the cabin. The oxygen meter drops rapidly as an alert sounds. Text under the meter reads : “ O2. ” Ryan, now sitting back in the seat. She closes her eyes. RYAN -LRB- into radio -RRB- That ’ s nice, Aningaaq. Keep singing, just like that. -LRB- exhales sharply -RRB- Sing me to sleep, and I ’ ll sleep. Keep singing. And sing, and sing. The beam of a flashlight shines on her through the O.S. porthole. She sees Matt, peering through the porthole. He starts to open the hatch. Ryan, covering her face and reacting. RYAN No, no, no, don ’ t! Matt opens the hatch, sucking out all the air and sound. He crawls in and closes the hatch behind him. Ryan, cowering behind her hands, but still alive. Matt sitting next to her. He leans over and turns a dial to re- pressurize the cabin. He takes off his helmet as air and sound are returned. MATT -LRB- grunts -RRB- Check your watch. Thirteen hours and eleven minutes. Call Anatoly and tell him he ’ s been bumped. Ryan reacts. MATT It ’ s a little gloomy in here, isn ’ t it? Matt switches the lights back on. RYAN How did you --? MATT Trust me, it ’ s a hell of a story. RYAN But how did --? Hank Williams, Jr. sings “ Angels Are Hard To Find ” over radio. MATT -LRB- grunts -RRB- That ’ s better. I found a little extra -- a little extra battery power. It helps that I didn ’ t have you around to distract me. I have to say, I ’ m glad to see ya. I didn ’ t think you were gon na make it. -LRB- pants -RRB- Did you find the vodka? RYAN -LRB- panting -RRB- You -- You never told me where -- where it was, so... MATT Oh, well... Matt reaches under his seat and produces a small bottle of vodka. Matt sips from the bottle. MATT To Anatoly. -LRB- in Russian -RRB- Na zdorovje. -LRB- sips ; grunts -RRB- Huh? No? RYAN No. MATT All right. Let ’ s get out of here. The Chinese station ’ s about a hundred miles. Just a little Sunday drive. RYAN We can ’ t. MATT Sure we can. Matt presses several buttons. RYAN There ’ s no fuel, I tried everything. MATT Well, there ’ s always something we can do. RYAN I tried everything. MATT Did you try the soft landing jets? RYAN They ’ re for landing. So... MATT Well, landing is launching. It ’ s the same thing. Didn ’ t you learn about that in training? RYAN I never got to land the simulator. I told you that. MATT But you know about it. RYAN And I crashed it... -LRB- emphasizing -RRB-... every time. But this -- MATT Listen, do you want to go back, or do you want to stay here? CAMERA SLOWLY DOLLIES AROUND IN FRONT of them as Matt switches off the lights. MATT I get it, it ’ s nice up here. You can just shut down all the systems, turn out all the lights... and just close your eyes and tune out everybody. There ’ s nobody up here that can hurt you. It ’ s safe. I mean, what ’ s the point of going on? What ’ s the point of living? Your kid died. Doesn ’ t get any rougher than that. But still, it ’ s a matter of what you do now. If you decide to go, then you got ta just get on with it. Sit back, enjoy the ride. You got ta plant both your feet on the ground and start livin ’ life. RYAN How did you get here? MATT I ’ m telling you, it ’ s a hell of a story. Hey, Ryan? RYAN What? MATT It ’ s time to go home. PULL BACK to reveal that Matt is not there. Ryan was imagining him. An alert sounds. She leans and turns the dials to repressurize the cabin. The oxygen meter starts to rise. The meter reads “ O2. ” Ryan presses a button, turning off the alert. She breathes deeply, then leans and switches the lights back on, then presses more buttons on the control panel. She reaches for a landing instructions manual, which is marked green. RYAN Landing... -LRB- inhales sharply -RRB- Landing -- Landing is launching. -LRB- whispers to herself -RRB- I said... Oh. Okay, landing, landing. Landing is green. Ryan flips through the pages and stops on a graph. RYAN Okay. Okay, landing. All right. Okay. Soft landing jets trigger automatically at three meters before landing, so... Ryan rotates her wrist, trying to stay warm. RYAN -LRB- as if to Matt -RRB- Oh, you ’ re a clever son of a bitch, Matt. -LRB- to herself -RRB- I need to -- I need to get rid of the B.O... HIGH ANGLE - RYAN flips through the instructions. RYAN... and the engine module. -LRB- sniffs -RRB- Right. Okay. ANOTHER ANGLE Ryan peruses the instructions and reaches to the control panel. RYAN Okay. Ryan flips open the cover to a button. HIGH ANGLE - RYAN holding her hand to the button. RYAN Okay. Tri-module separation. Ryan presses the button. RYAN Go.

EXT. OUTER SPACE - DAY The three modules of the Soyuz -- the control cabin, the airlock, and the engines -- separate. The control cabin floats with Ryan inside as the other sections exit either side.

INT. SOYUZ - HIGH ANGLE - DAY Ryan flips through the instruction manual. RYAN Okay. -LRB- to Mission Control -RRB- Houston, here ’ s the tricky part. Soyuz has to think we are three meters off the Earth. ANOTHER ANGLE Ryan stops on a graphic in the instructions, displaying what to do next. RYAN All right. Okay. -LRB- as if to Matt -RRB- Hey, Matt? Ryan reaches toward the control panel. RYAN -LRB- as if to Matt -RRB- Since I had to listen to endless hours of your storytelling this week, I need for you to do me a favor. Ryan presses another button. HIGH ANGLE - RYAN continues pressing buttons according to what the instructions tell her. RYAN -LRB- as if to Matt -RRB- You are gon na see a little girl with brown hair, very messy, lots of knots. She doesn ’ t like to brush it. That ’ s okay. Her name is Sarah. Can you please tell her that Mama found her red shoe? She was so worried about that shoe, Matt. But it was just right under the bed. Ryan presses more buttons. The monitor changes to display new graphics in Russian. RYAN -LRB- as if to Matt -RRB- Give her a... HIGH ANGLE - RYAN continues pressing buttons whilst perusing the instructions. RYAN ( as if to Matt )... big hug and a big kiss for me, and tell her that Mama misses her. You tell her that she is my... -LRB- voice wavers -RRB-... angel. And she makes me so proud. So, so proud. ANOTHER ANGLE Ryan presses several buttons. She manually sets the current altitude at 3 meters. A counter on the monitor changes to read : “ 000 003.0 ” RYAN -LRB- as if to Matt -RRB- And you... HIGH ANGLE - RYAN continues to press buttons. RYAN -LRB- as if to Matt -RRB-... tell her that I ’ m not quitting. You tell her that I love her, Matt. You tell her that I love her... -LRB- voice wavers -RRB-... so much. Ryan looks up. RYAN -LRB- as if to Matt -RRB- Can you do that for me? Roger that. -LRB- to herself -RRB- Here we go. Ryan looks back at the control panel in front of her. She presses a button.

EXT. OUTER SPACE - DAY The soft landing jets ignite at the back of the Soyuz control cabin, hurtling it toward the Chinese station in the distance.

INT. SOYUZ - LOW ANGLE - DAY Ryan reaches up and grabs her space helmet and pulls it down. ANOTHER ANGLE Ryan puts on her space helmet and unbuckles the seat belt. She leans to gaze through the porthole.

EXT. SOYUZ (OUTER SPACE) - DAY The Soyuz cabin hurtles toward the Chinese station. Ryan gazes through the porthole.

INT. SOYUZ - DAY The Chinese station can be seen through the porthole, and it appears to be dropping toward the Earth. RYAN You ’ re losing altitude, Tiangong. You keep dropping and you ’ re gon na kiss the atmosphere. But not without me, because you ’ re my last ride. Ryan disarms the emergency exit latch for the hatch. RYAN Okay. Ryan moves back and reaches up to grab the fire extinguisher floating above her. RYAN Wait. She cradles it to her and moves back toward the hatch. The Soyuz is quickly approaching the Chinese station. RYAN Five... four... three... Ryan holds the exit latch. RYAN No more just driving. Let ’ s go home. Ryan pulls the latch.

EXT. OUTER SPACE - DAY The hatch bursts open, and Ryan is hurtled out of the Soyuz. HIGH ANGLE - THE CHINESE STATION AND THE SOYUZ Ryan hurtles forward and twirls about with the Chinese station below her. She struggles to locate its position as she spins, using the fire extinguisher to stabilize her position. RYAN Steady. Okay, come on, come on. Come on. Steady, steady. Come on. Come on. Where are you? Where are you? Ryan flips back to see the Chinese station below her. RYAN Forty-five, ninety, one-eighty. One-eighty. Ryan uses the spray of the fire extinguisher to act as a thrust back toward the station. RYAN Come on. Okay, okay. Okay. All right. She thrusts down toward a satellite wing. She can ’ t grab hold of anything and floats, hovering over the station. She tries to use the fire extinguisher to move back down, but it is empty. She tosses it away and continues floating, just above the station. RYAN -LRB- crying out -RRB- Damn it. Ryan reaches out and grabs the end of the station. She hangs on. RYAN Down, down, down. Down, down, down, down, down. Down. Ryan struggles to climb up the length of the station. She finally reaches the hatch. RYAN Come to Mama. Come to Ma -- She cries out. As she holds on to the rail surrounding the hatch, the next debris strike starts. Debris hurtles past her as she opens the hatch and crawls down inside. The station hurtles toward the Earth through the shower of debris.

INT. CHINESE STATION - AIRLOCK - RYAN’S POV THROUGH HELMET - DAY to the control panel as Ryan removes the helmet. Chinese space station voice continues over speaker in Mandarin over following dialogue. She turns and struggles to open an airlock, moving through the compartment. RYAN Okay. Shit! Okay. Come on. Shenzhou, come on. Shenzhou. Shenzhou. Fuck! Okay, this way. Shenzhou. Where are you? Come on, where are you? What ’ s this? She glances down at a hatch.

EXT. CHINESE SPACE STATION - DAY The space station traveling toward Earth as the station starts to break apart.

INT. CHINESE SPACE STATION - DAY Ryan, floating, tossing her helmet. Ryan closes the airlock hatch behind her. And floats down a compartment, into the control cabin.

INT. SHENZHOU CONTROL CABIN - DAY Ryan, upside down, closing the hatch and locking it. She sits in a seat and buckles her seat belt. RYAN I -- She glances at the cabin window.

EXT. CHINESE SPACE STATION - DAY The space station traveling and continuing to break apart.

INT. SHENZHOU CONTROL CABIN - DAY RYAN In the Soyuz, the power button is... here. Ryan is using the control panel. RYAN Ah. Okay, uh, undocking, undocking. Um -- -LRB- sucks airs through teeth -RRB- Uh, eeni, meeni -- Okay, that does n't sound good. Miny... moe. Female Chinese Shenzhou voice over speakers in Mandarin. RYAN Ah. -LRB- in Spanish -RRB- No hablo chino. -LRB- sucks air through teeth -RRB- Miny... moe. Ryan presses buttons on the control panel. The panel reads : “ 00:00:52.0 ” RYAN Okay. Okay, good.

EXT. CHINESE SPACE STATION - DAY The space station traveling through space.

INT. SHENZHOU CONTROL CABIN - DAY The control panel reads : “ 00:00:44.0 ” RYAN -LRB- into radio -RRB- Houston. Houston, in the blind. This is Mission Specialist Ryan Stone reporting from the Shenzhou. I ’ m about to undock from Tiangong... And I have a bad feeling about this mission. -LRB- chuckles -RRB- Reminds me of a story, Houston -- Ryan cries out. CAMERA PANS TO the cabin window, then back to Ryan. RYAN Never-Never mind the story, Houston. Never mind the story. It's getting hot in here. Okay. All right. Okay. All right, the way I see it, there ’ s only two possible outcomes. Either I make it down there in one piece and I have one hell of a story to tell, or I burn up in the next ten minutes. Either way, whichever way... no harm, no foul! Because either way... it ’ ll be one hell of a ride. I ’ m ready. Ryan reaches out and grabs her helmet, putting it on.

EXT. CHINESE SPACE STATION - DAY The space station, burning up and breaking apart as the Shenzhou control cabin splits off from the rest of the station and hurtles off.

INT. SHENZHOU CONTROL CABIN - DAY Ryan, as the cabin spins.

EXT. SHENZHOU CONTROL CABIN - DAY The cabin hurtling toward Earth.

INT. SHENZHOU CONTROL CABIN - DAY The smoking control panel. Ryan reaches for the control panel and presses a button.

EXT. SHENZHOU CONTROL CABIN - DAY The cabin splits off from the rest of the vessel and continues on. The burning cabin traveling among burning debris. It falls toward Earth, entering the atmosphere. The burning debris plummeting into Earth ’ s atmosphere.

INT. SHENZHOU CONTROL CABIN - DAY The control panel sparking.

EXT. EARTH’S OUTER ATMOSPHERE - DAY And cabin and burning debris, leaving a smoking trail as they travel. The cabin is breaking apart.

INT. SHENZHOU CONTROL CABIN - DAY The cabin window as daylight flashes through it.

EXT. EARTH’S ATMOSPHERE - DAY The pod, plummeting, falls through the clouds as a parachute emerges from the pod, slowing the pod ’ s trajectory.

INT. SHENZHOU CONTROL CABIN - DAY MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- Shenzhou, in the blind, this is Houston. Indicate FM frequency. The control panel is burning. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- Our radars detect you on a reentry trajectory. If you copy, please confirm identity.

EXT. EARTH’S ATMOSPHERE - DAY The pod falling through the clouds.

EXT. LAKE - DAY The pod, falling and drops into a lake.

INT. SHENZHOU CONTROL CABIN - DAY Ryan removes her helmet as smoke fills the cabin. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- This is Houston. Other radio voices. RADIO WOMAN #2 -LRB- V.O. -RRB- It ’ s freezing, it ’ s boring as hell. RADIO -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -- is : No money down! Ryan unstraps herself and rises, staggering to the hatch door. She unlocks the hatch. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- Please confirm iden -- Other radio voices. MALE RADIO DJ -LRB- V.O. -RRB- -- messages, we ’ ll be right -- MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- This is Houston, please confirm identity. MALE WEATHERMAN -LRB- V.O. -RRB- Skies over the Midwest are completely clear -- MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- We ’ ve deployed a rescue mission to retrieve you. Rescue mission is on the way.

EXT. LAKE - DAY The door to the pod shoots off.

INT. SHENZHOU CONTROL CABIN - DAY Ryan stands at the hatch as water pours inside the cabin, forcing her against the cabin wall. MISSION CONTROL -LRB- V.O. -RRB- Shenzhou, in the blind, this is Houston. We ’ ve deployed a rescue mission to retrieve you. Our radars -- The cabin fills with water.

EXT. LAKE - DAY The pod sinking below the surface of the lake.

INT. SHENZHOU CONTROL CABIN - DAY Ryan struggling to stay above the water as it continues to rise.

EXT. LAKE - UNDERWATER - DAY The pod, sinking down.

INT. CABIN - UNDERWATER - DAY Ryan, dropping below the surface of the water. She swims into a cloud of air bubbles.

EXT. LAKE - UNDERWATER - DAY Ryan swimming. Her spacesuit weighs her down and she struggles to remove it. A frog swims past. Ryan removes her spacesuit and swims up.

EXT. LAKE - DAY Ryan surfaces. She floats on her back. The CAMERA TILTS UP TO the sky. Burning debris from the space station soars through. TILT BACK DOWN TO Ryan swimming. She crawls onto the shore and lies down, exhausted. RYAN -LRB- chuckles -RRB- Thank you. No. She struggles to her feet. She unsteadily walks off. FADE OUT. OVER BLACK END CREDITS. THE EN D

Summary: The Space Shuttle Explorer, commanded by veteran astronaut Matt Kowalski, is in Earth orbit to service the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). Dr. Ryan Stone is aboard on her first space mission, to perform a set of hardware upgrades on the Hubble. During a spacewalk, Mission Control in Houston warns Explorer's crew about a rapidly-expanding cloud of space debris accidentally caused by the Russians having shot down a presumed defunct spy satellite (see Kessler syndrome) and orders the crew to return to Earth immediately. Communication with Mission Control is lost shortly thereafter as more communication satellites are knocked out by the debris. High-speed debris strikes the Explorer and Hubble, tearing Stone from the shuttle and leaving her tumbling through space. Kowalski, using a Manned Maneuvering Unit (MMU), rescues Stone, and they return to the Explorer, soon discovering that the Shuttle has suffered catastrophic damage and the rest of the crew are dead. Stone and Kowalski decide to use the MMU to reach the International Space Station (ISS), which is in orbit about 1,450 km (900 mi) away, Kowalski estimating that they have 90 minutes before the debris field completes an orbit and threatens them again. On their way to the ISS, the two discuss Stone's home life and her daughter, who died young in an accident. As they approach the station, they see that the ISS's crew has evacuated using one of its two Soyuz spacecraft, the remaining Soyuz spacecraft exhibiting damage with its parachute having been deployed in space rendering it unable to return to Earth. Kowalski suggests using it to travel to the nearby Tiangong space station, 100 km (60 mi) away, in order to board the Shenzhou spacecraft to return safely to Earth. Out of air and maneuvering fuel, the two try to grab onto the ISS; the duo's tether snaps on one of the station's solar panels. Stone's leg gets entangled in the Soyuz's parachute cords and she grabs a strap on Kowalski's suit, but it soon becomes clear that the cords will not support them both. Despite Stone's protests, Kowalski detaches himself from the tether to save her from drifting away with him. Stone is pulled back towards the ISS, while Kowalski floats away. Stone enters the space station via the airlock of the Pirs module. She cannot re-establish communication with Kowalski or Earth, and concludes that she is now the sole survivor. Inside the station, a fire breaks out, forcing her to rush to the Soyuz. As she maneuvers the Soyuz away from the ISS, the tangled parachute tethers snag, preventing the spacecraft from leaving; Stone performs a spacewalk to cut the cables, succeeding just as the debris field returns, destroying the station. Stone angles the Soyuz towards Tiangong, but soon discovers that the Soyuz's engine has no fuel. After an attempt at radio communication with an Inuk on Earth, Stone resigns herself to her fate and shuts down the cabin's oxygen supply to commit suicide. As she begins to lose consciousness, Kowalski seemingly enters the capsule; scolding her for giving up, he tells her to rig the Soyuz's soft landing rockets to propel the capsule toward Tiangong, before himself disappearing. Realizing Kowalski's appearance was a hallucination, Stone regains the will to go on, restoring the spacecraft's oxygen flow and rigging the landing rockets to propel the capsule towards Tiangong. Unable to dock with Tiangong, Stone ejects herself from the Soyuz and uses a fire extinguisher as a makeshift thruster to travel to the rapidly deorbiting Tiangong. Stone manages to enter Tiangong's Shenzhou capsule just as the station enters the upper atmosphere, undocking the capsule just in time. The Shenzhou capsule re-enters the atmosphere successfully despite having sustained debris damage during its descent, and lands in a lake. Radio communication from Houston informs Stone that she has been tracked on radar and that rescue crews are on their way. Stone opens the hatch but is unable to exit due to water rushing in. She takes a deep breath and holds it until the capsule sinks, allowing her to swim through the hatch. She sheds her Sokol space suit that is weighing her down, and crawls onto the beach before standing up triumphantly and walking away.