Goofs for
Mission to Mars (2000) More at IMDbPro »

• Factual errors: While looking at a DNA sequence Terri Fisher says that the last two chromosomes are missing. What is missing is actually the last two nucleotides. DNA does not have chromosomes.
  
  
• Factual errors: When looking at the DNA model, only a few base pairs of the DNA are shown. All DNA is exactly the same regardless of what organism it comes from. The only differences lie in the sequences of the nucleotide bases. It is absolutely undeniably impossible to distinguish human DNA from any other type of DNA based on the very short stretch of bases shown in the figure at which the scientist proclaims "that DNA looks human." Humans have over 3 billion bases, and almost all of them are in common with other primates. A few bases will never be enough to prove that any DNA is human in any time period or technology level. It is thus a gross contradiction of scientific fact.
  
  
• Revealing mistakes: In the weightless scene inside the space station, Woody's watch slips down his arm, indicating the presence of gravity.
  
  

• Factual errors: When on the planet of Mars we continually hear sounds. There is only an insignificant atmosphere and so we wouldn't hear anything except for the radio in their helmet/rocket.
  
  
• Factual errors: When the three astronauts enter the alien structure and view the solar system model, all the planets (and the Earth's moon) are revolving in the wrong direction. Viewed from the Northern hemisphere, planets rotate counter-clockwise around the Sun, and so does the Moon around the Earth. It is possible that the alien solar system model is seen from the other orientation i.e. our Southern hemispheres of the planets are on top for them. However a Mars with large ocean masses in the top hemisphere is seen, which is in fact our Northern hemisphere of Mars, assuming that water filled the depressions on Mars long ago.
  
  
• Continuity: While viewing the DNA sequence on the computer, the cable on the left side is plugged in, and then out, and then in again.
  
  
• Factual errors: Inside the face, Jim checks the screen on his wrist to see what the gasses were in the room. It reads "Nitrogen 57% Oxygen 20% Trace Gasses 1%" which doesn't add up to 100%. The nitrogen should be at 79%.
  
  
• Factual errors: The walls of the tent should be fully inflated by the much higher pressure inside, compared to the low atmospheric pressure of Mars.
  
  
• Factual errors: Because there is no pressure in the outer space, the astronaut's space suits should look swollen since there is air pressure inside them. However, in the movie astronauts suits look normal when they are in the open space (we can see changing wrinkles). The same is valid for when they are on Mars surface.
  
  
• Factual errors: The Mars Recovery vehicle is shown pointing forward before it attempted to go into orbit. Any spacecraft would have to point backwards, and thus slowdown, to enter orbit.
  
  
• Factual errors: During the scene where Terri attempts to rescue Woody she resets her fuel readout to 100%, it is then stated that by using only 50% of her fuel the remaining 50% would get her back, This is incorrect. The first 50% would allow her to reach a certain velocity in respect to the ship, the remaining 50% would only allow her to get back to the same velocity as the ship not to the ship itself.
  
  
• Factual errors: When Phil Ohlmyer shows the "DNA-model" of his dream woman to Jim McConnell, the free floating candy moves in a circular motion around the center of the model. Unless the candy is interconnected, this would be impossible to obtain in real life, as the individual pieces of candy can only have a straight line of motion. Even if you would rotate one candy in a circular motion and then release it, it would continue in a straight line tangent to the circle.
  
  
• Factual errors: In the movie it stated that the 23 chromosomes came from mars about a million years ago and set off the explosive growth on the planet earth. This is not true at all. Humans are the only organisms that have 23 chromosome sets [we are diploid having 46 actual chromosomes]. Different organisms have a different number of chromosomes so sending 23 chromosomes to earth wouldn't have really started the 'explosive growth of life on the earth'. Ferns for example have over 1000 chromosome sets.
  
  
• Factual errors: The astronauts use the liquid from a soda escaping into space vacuum to locate a leak in the spaceship. They find the leak by looking for the frozen "soda stalactite" protruding from the hole outside the ship. Since the boiling point of liquids are drastically lower in the vacuum of space, the soda would instantly boil off and evaporate leaving no such icicle with which to find the leak.
  
  
• Factual errors: There is a fundamental misunderstanding of how the jet packs work. In space, with no friction or proximal gravitational pull, a single burst from the jets accelerates the operator into constant motion until a counteracting burst slows them down. There would be no need for the multiple instances of everybody "using up fuel" by burning their jets constantly when trying to maneuver.
  
  
• Factual errors: The galaxy that Jim is zooming off to in the final shot wouldn't look any different from Mars than it would from Earth. It would just look like a single star.
  
  
• Factual errors: The dust storm shown on Mars would not have been dangerous to the mission and would not have required the action blown the astronauts so. The air pressure on Mars is a mere 6 millibars (compared to Earth's 1013 millibars), so the "fierce" duststorm would have had the impact of a feather on the people and space craft.
  
  

• Crew or equipment visible: SPOILER: Shortly after Woody dies, a cameraman can be seen reflected in the face.
  
  

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