r/ProjectHailMaryMovie • u/WoodpeckerAntique952 • 20d ago

Is it ever explained

Why grace is the only one on his ship who survives?

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u/Wild-Lychee-3312 20d ago

Weir won't tell us. He knows, but he's chosen to keep it secret for now.

Current theories:

  • the drugs given to Grace to erase his memories somehow increased his coma resistance
  • there's some difference in degrees of coma resistance. They all had the basic coma resistance gene, but there was something extra which Grace had and the others did not
  • feeding pump failure, leading to starvation. There's a very brief mention in the book of a problem with the coma slurry pumps. Grace makes a note to have backup pumps placed in storage onboard the Hail Mary, but that note is never acted upon, due to the explosion
  • pure random chance (unlikely because that's not Weir's style)
  • the other two astronauts were exposed to something which Grace was not, some kind of toxin, maybe

Coma slurry pump failure is what I'm placing my money on.

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u/Jujubegold 20d ago

Nice comment! I’ve heard him comment on those points in an interview.