Astrophysicist breaks down Project Hail Mary (ft. Ryan Gosling)

Video Description

How much of the science in Project Hail Mary is actually possible? Because this story is packed with real science! I got to sit down with Ryan Gosling and author Andy Weir to chat about how the science in Project Hail Mary (one of the most scientifically ambitious sci-fi stories ever written) was translated from the book to the big screen. Plus along with Andy Weir and Ryan Gosling, I also sat down with directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller about how you visually communicate difficult concepts like relativity on screen, whilst keeping the human story at the heart. It’s got alien life, interstellar travel, astrophysics, molecular biology and more, but how much of the science in Project Hail Mary works in the real Universe? In this video we're going to separate the real physics from where the story naturally has to lean into the fiction side of sci-fi. There will be mild spoilers but nothing that hasn't already been revealed in the trailers. Here’s an astrophysicist’s/scientist’s review of Project Hail Mary #projecthailmary #ryangosling #andyweir @SonyPicsUK @AmazonMGMStudios @sonypictures Full interviews with Ryan Gosling, Andy Weir, Phil Lord and Christopher Miller also coming soon! 00:00 Introduction 01:28 What could make the Sun dim? 04:18 The science behind "astrophage" 06:57 Relativity and time dilation 14:19 The real stars tau-ceti and 40 Eridani and their planets 16:24 The science of alien life (but not as we know it) 20:27 Bloopers Ashby (2003) - https://link.springer.com/article/10.12942/lrr-2003-1 Burrows et al. (2024) - https://arxiv.org/pdf/2404.17494 Figueira et al. (2025) - https://arxiv.org/pdf/2507.07514 Ginsburg (2018) - https://arxiv.org/pdf/1810.04307 Hafele & Keating (1972) - https://www.jstor.org/stable/1734834?origin=ads Horneck et al. (1994) - https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/0273117794904480?via%3Dihub Jönsson et al. (2008) - https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960982208008051 Leibundgut et al. (1996) - https://arxiv.org/pdf/astro-ph/9605134 Ma et al. (2018) - https://arxiv.org/pdf/1807.07098 Schwieterman et al. (2018) - https://arxiv.org/pdf/1705.05791 Smith et al. (2021) - https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1089/ast.2019.2197 Tuomi et al. (2013) - https://arxiv.org/pdf/1212.4277 Wallis et al. (2004) - https://articles.adsabs.harvard.edu/full/2004MNRAS.348...52W Wesson et al. (2010) - https://arxiv.org/pdf/1011.0101 Video filmed on a Sony ⍺7 IV Video edited by Dr Becky Smethurst --- 👩🏽‍💻 I'm Dr. Becky Smethurst, an astrophysicist at the University of Oxford (Christ Church). I love making videos about black holes, cosmology, dark matter, the early universe, the James Webb Space Telescope, and the biggest unsolved mysteries in astrophysics. I like to focus on how we know things, not just what we know. And especially, the things we still don't know. If you've ever wondered about something in space and couldn't find an answer online - you can ask me! My day job is to do research into how supermassive black holes can affect the galaxies that they live in. In particular, I look at whether the energy output from the disk of material orbiting around a growing supermassive black hole can stop a galaxy from forming stars. http://drbecky.uk.com --- 📚 My book, "A Brief History of Black Holes", out NOW in hardback, paperback, e-book and audiobook (which I narrated myself!): http://lnk.to/DrBecky --- 👕 My merch, including JWST designs, are available here (with worldwide shipping!): https://dr-becky.teemill.com/ --- 🎧 The Supermassive Podcast that I co-host: podfollow.com/supermassive --- 🔔 Don't forget to subscribe and click the little bell icon to be notified when I post a new video!