01x29 - Sunday Drive

[bunniefuu]

[together] Ready! Jet! Go!

- ♪ Jet Propulsion ♪

♪ That's his name ♪

♪ Jet Propulsion ♪

♪ He'll rocket to fame ♪

♪ When he arrived, he created a buzz ♪

♪ 'Cause there was no house ♪

♪ And then there was, he said ♪

- ♪ People of Earth! You ain't seen nothing yet! ♪

♪ I'm from Bortron , and my name is Jet! ♪

- ♪ Jet Propulsion ♪

♪ That's his name ♪

♪ He looks like us ♪

♪ But he isn't the same ♪

- ♪ I'm a space tripper and a galaxy crosser ♪

♪ My parents brought me here in a flying saucer ♪

- ♪ And just to prove it was a fact ♪

♪ He flew them out to space and back ♪

♪ Jet Propulsion ♪

[spaceship whirring]

- ♪ Jet Propulsion ♪

[together] Ready! Jet! Go!

- ♪ He showed up, and now it's a blast ♪

♪ Looks like the future really got here fast ♪

- ♪ Nice to meet you, human race ♪

♪ Tell me all about the place ♪

- Jet Propulsion!

- Jet Propulsion!

- Jet Propulsion!

all: Ready! Jet! Go!

[playful music]

- Ah, nothing like a relaxing Sunday on the moon.

- Oh, I agree.

This low gravity makes me feel so light-hearted.

- [chuckling]

Go long, Sunspot!

[alarm blares]

- Oh, whoops! That's a reminder.

Remember it's time to go to Mars to do that travel report.

Ha-ha, can't wait.

- Yes, I'm so glad to be going

back to Valles Marineris, the grandest canyon.

- Oh, is it time to go to Valles Marineris?

I love that canyon.

It's the biggest in the solar system.

Can I help you do some reporting?

- Huh, oh, well, maybe we can find a way for you to help.

- Whoo-hoo!

So, uh, what's the assignment, exactly?

- [grunting]

Intergalactic tourism to Mars has dropped off lately,

so to drum up interest, we're writing a piece called

"Three Surprising Things About Mars."

- And Valles Marineris is such a grand canyon

it's the perfect place to report from.

- Wow, three surprising things about Mars, huh?

Sounds great.

Can I help? Please?

- Oh, well, like we said, Jet,

we'll try to think of something you can do.

- Yes! Thanks, Mom and Dad!

- Uh--that was not a "yes," Jet.

- Sunspot! Car trip!

[upbeat music]

♪ ♪

[sighs] What a fun day on the Moon.

And now we get to go to Mars. Whoo-hoo!

- Ready, everyone?

To Mars!

all: Excelsior!

[engine sputtering]

- Oh, that's not good.

- Huh, I'll look under the hood.

[pensive music]

Try turning it over again.

- [grunting]

The saucer's too big to turn over.

- I mean, try starting the engine.

- Huh? [chuckles]

[button beeps]

[engine sputtering, grinding]

Hmm, that's a new sound.

Not a good one.

- No. Let's ask Face .

Face?

[busy dial tone signal]

- Oh, now I remember.

Face is taking Sunday off.

He's at a Face family reunion.

both: Ohh, right.

- Let's call Bortron Tech Support.

They can fix it...

I hope.

- Bortron Tech Support.

- Ugh, oh, no.

It's the weekend Tech Support robot.

- Ugh, can we please talk to an actual Bortronian?

- Please hold. We value your time

and appreciate your business.

Please stand by.

[upbeat Muzak plays]

♪ ♪

Hello.

[comic fanfare]

Please state the nature of your request.

- The saucer won't start.

- Did you say, "The monster is in a cart"?

both: The saucer won't start.

- Got it. Are you in the saucer?

- Yes.

- Are you sitting in front of the dashboard?

- Yes. - Is the power on?

- Yes. - Is the saucer there?

- Yes! We're calling from it.

- Please hold. We value your time

and appreciate your business.

Please stand by.

[Muzak plays] [all sigh]

♪ ♪

Thank you for standing by.

We value your-- - Look,

can't we just skip this and download a new version

of the dashboard software or something?

- Or you could skip this and download a new version

of the dashboard software.

both: Phew.

- So, all we have to do is download some software.

Not a problem.

- Except remember what happened last time we upgraded

to a new dashboard?

- Huh?

Ohh, right.

That was a disaster.

- What happened?

I don't remember any of this.

- [chuckles] That's because you were just a baby then, Jet.

- Oh, yeah.

I forgot I was a baby once.

- Well, uh, luckily I think Sunspot took pictures.

[chimes]

- Aww, Jet was still in his baby seat.

- [laughs]

- Anyway, once we uploaded the new dashboard...

- Every command was in

a different place than the old version.

And when we'd push a button to go forward

into hyperdrive, we'd go sideways instead.

- [laughing] Or in reverse when we were trying to lift off.

We nearly destroyed the garage.

[baby crying]

[young Jet giggling]

- I sure was cute.

all: Aww.

- Hmm. Well.

We don't have any choice but to download the software.

We can't stay forever on the Moon.

- Right, we need to get the saucer working,

fly to Mars, do our report,

and then get back to Earth.

- Oh, yeah!

[beeps]

[slowly] Please download the new dashboard software.

- Did you say,

"Please clown-fold the blue surfboard dishware"?

- Uh, no, I said...

both: Please download the new dashboard software.

- Mm, I thought that is what you said.

[comic fanfare]

Downloading software now.

Please hold.

both: Whew.

- Well, prepare for a long wait.

Let's hope it'll be done in time for dinner.

Everyone have something to do while we wait?

both: Yep.

[upbeat circus music]

[both whooping]

- Good, I thought I'd learn Earth French.

♪ <span> ♪

[speaks French]

- Download of your new dashboard software

complete.

[items squeak and thud]

- [grunts] Huh?

- Well, all righty then. Allons à <span> Mars.

[mysterious chimes] - Huh.

The dashboard looks sort of different.

- Yes, familiar, yet different somehow.

Well, let's just jump right in and try it out.

To Mars!

[beeps]

Huh. That button was supposed to

activate the interstellar overdrive, not the wipers.

Well--let's try this one.

[energy powering up]

[disco music plays]

- [grunting]

♪ ♪

[music slows, stops]

[beeping]

Sorry, hon, I know we're trying to get to Mars,

it was, uh, just so catchy.

- Do any of these buttons work?

That's supposed to make the fernambulator

calculate the time-space differential of Mars's orbit.

[beeps]

Instead, it's offering me an ice cream cone.

Hmm, chocolate fudge.

- Blech.

[beeps] [machinery whirring]

[beeping]

- [gulps]

- Can I try pushing a button, Mom?

- Sure, Jet.

Maybe you've got the golden touch.

- So I push this button and say,

"To Mars," right?

both: Right.

- Oh, do I also say, "Excelsior"?

- Well, you never know, it could help.

- [clears throat]

To Mars! Excelsior!

[suspenseful music]

[ship whipping]

all: Whoo--whoa--whoa--ooh--whoa.

- [laughs]

- Come on, . dashboard.

Work better!

- Faster, faster!

- Oh, Jet. Slower, slower!

[groans]

- How about if I push this button?

[whipping halts]

[both sigh]

Hey, I think I found "undo."

That's good to know.

Okay, let's try this again.

We push this button and say, "To Mars!"

- Well, golden touch, hope it works.

- Excelsior!

[triumphant music]

[ship clanking]

all: Whoo-hoo!

[laughter]

♪ ♪

- Uh, nope.

Apparently, it took us to Saturn.

[both groan]

- Ah! Here's the problem.

I wasn't holding down this button

while I pushed the big one.

Let me try again.

- Go for it, Mom!

- To Mars!

all: Excelsior!

[dramatic music]

♪ <span> ♪

- Uh, not Mars.

Now we're over Venus.

- We followed all the instructions.

Why isn't the new dashboard working?

- Well, we can't give up. - Right, Mom!

We're Propulsions, we don't give up!

We try and try again.

♪ If you try and you make a mess ♪

♪ Who cares if it's not a success? ♪

♪ Try again even if it's hard ♪

all: ♪ And we can get that saucer to fly us to Mars ♪

- Yeah.

- You're both right.

We don't give up.

We try and fail and try and fail a bunch of times

until we succeed.

- [chitters]

- Oh, thank you, Sunspot.

At least someone read the manual.

Hmm.

It says that with this new version,

you have to hold the first button down

for a couple of seconds, then wait for it to light up

before pushing the second.

But how do I push the third button?

Both my hands are holding down buttons!

- [chitters]

- Ah. Thank you, Sunspot.

And now, to Mars!

[ship powering up]

all: Excelsior!

- Whoa!

[intergalactic whooshing]

- This is going so much faster than it usually does.

- Whoa--so fast that I can't even see where we're headed.

[intergalactic whoosh]

- Hmm, the instruments show that we're fast approaching

another planet. I can't see it yet.

- Yay! I bet it's Mars at last.

I just know it.

[suspenseful music]

♪ <span> ♪

[whooshing decelerates]

[ship clanking]

[dire music]

- Whoa-whoa-whoa-whoa--

- Whoa--oh-ohh.

[ship whooshes]

[brakes screech]

[comic fanfare] [all grunt]

Oh. Ah.

[sighs]

Looks like we finally made it to Mars.

- [chuckles] You see, it worked.

Jet, you were right. Think positive.

- Did we make it to Valles Marineris?

Are we at the bottom of the canyon?

- Could be. It's hard to say.

It's so dark out there.

We seem to have landed on the night side of Mars.

- Well, at least we made it to Mars.

A dry, desert-y, rocky planet with no sign of life.

[suspenseful music]

- [screams] What is that?

[dramatic sting]

- The Sun's the brightest object in the sky.

And, of course, you should never look directly at the Sun

because it's so bright it could burn your eyes.

Hi, I'm astronomer Amy Mainzer.

If I set the Sun down on the end line of this soccer field,

we can start to get an idea of

just how huge our solar system is.

Let's start with the Earth.

The Earth is incredibly far away from the Sun,

it's million miles away.

That's farther than you would ever drive in your life.

And we call that distance Astronomical Unit,

or AU.

Of course, the Earth isn't really this big.

Compared to the Sun, it's really more like

the size of this dime here or even a little smaller than that.

Now, let's go to the most distant

planet in the solar system, Neptune.

[upbeat music]

♪ <span> ♪

This is Neptune.

It's the most distant planet in the solar system.

It orbits the Sun about times the distance

between the Earth and the Sun, or AU away.

And it orbits all the way out here,

in the coldest, darkest outer reaches of the solar system.

Uranus is ..

Saturn is ..

Jupiter, . AU from the Sun.

Mars is / AU away from the Sun.

So the next time you're running around the soccer field,

just pretend you're going from planet to planet.

And keep in mind just how huge our solar system really is.

Sol!

♪ <span> ♪

[chuckles] Whoop.

[playful music]

- How can this be?

Is there life on Mars?

[eerie music]

- I didn't think so,

but there's something alive out there.

♪ ♪

- Wow, can you believe this, Sunspot?

both: Sunspot?

- [chittering]

[eerie music]

all: Sunspot.

[comic fanfare] [all sigh]

[both laugh]

- Ah, just as we thought,

there's nothing living on Mars.

So shall we start exploring the surface for our travel article?

- But if we fire up the saucer and fly to

the sunny side of the Red Planet,

we'll have more light to do our travel reporting.

[beeps] [engine sputtering, grinding]

Oh. What?

Ooh, ah. [engine clanking]

Ahh, ooh. [engine clanking]

[engine sputtering]

That doesn't sound right.

- Jet, Mom and I need to deal with

the Bortronian Tech Support robot

so we can get the saucer working right.

- Hey, while you do that,

can I do some reporting for the Mars travel piece?

Please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please,

please, please?

- Well, Mom and I are behind schedule on this piece,

so that would be great!

- Wow!

I get to be a real intergalactic travel reporter.

- Do your best, Jet.

both: We're counting on you.

- Now, our travel piece is called

"Three Surprising Things About Mars."

- So you and Sunspot can help look for surprising Mars things

that are large or even teeny-tiny.

- Got it.

- Just stay in this area near the saucer.

And this'll help.

- Ha.

Thanks for letting me help, Mom and Dad.

Sunspot, let's roll!

- Good luck. - Good luck, honey.

[beeps] - Please hold.

[disco music plays]

We value your time and appreciate your business.

Please stand by.

- This machine-made music is the opposite of enjoyable.

♪ ♪

[sighs]

- [grunting] Sorry.

- Tech Support here.

Are you in your vehicle?

Are you near your vehicle?

Have you called technical support

for technical support questions?

[both groan]

[ethereal music]

- Ah, Mars.

The Red Planet.

Now, remember, Sunspot,

we need to focus and try to get Mom and Dad

back on schedule for this travel article.

I see red Mars dirt,

a starry sky,

and no living anything on the land.

Not surprising. It's Mars.

Oh, wait.

What's that? [wind whipping]

It's obviously a Mars dust-devil.

You know, like a mini-tornado?

- [chitters]

[photo snaps]

- So, let's look for something big

or some surprising, teeny-tiny...

- [chitters]

- What is it, Sunspot?

I'm not done with my long explanation of--

[gasps]

[dramatic music]

What is that weird-looking Mars creature?

Oh, no! It's attacking us!

[screams]

[dramatic music eases]

[chimes]

[creature skitters]

Okay, then. Where were we?

Oh, right. I was saying, nothing lives here

and then that little, wrinkly creature ran by.

Let's investigate.

- As we said, yes, the software is downloaded

and the fernambulator is switched on.

[disco music playing] - If it helps,

I kind of like your retro- techno-galactic hold music.

- Many thanks. My cousin composed it.

[metal clanks] - Whoa!

Wow, other life forms

in a large, Mars glowing boulder of some kind.

- [chitters] [helmet clanks]

- Oh, right.

That's our saucer.

And Mom and Dad are inside, of course.

Hi, parental units!

both: Hi!

- Okay, back to tracking that weird, little creature.

[seedy music]

We both saw it, right?

- [chitters]

♪ <span> ♪

[chittering]

- This is amazing news.

But we've been here before and never seen anything living.

Will we see more living things?

- [mews]

- Whoa.

Who is this guy?

There's all kinds of life on Mars.

Let's approach him carefully.

♪ ♪

Hello.

And by "hello," I mean,

"Greetings."

My name is Jet. [slowly] Juh--ett.

Jet. I am a visiting alien

from another planet.

And this is my alien pet...

[slowly] Sunspot.

- [mews]

♪ ♪

- Fist bump?

[needle thwacks] Ouch!

Huh. Not a very friendly Mars person.

[clears throat] So, Mister Mars,

do you like living here?

Do you speak this language?

- So, how's the Mars reporting going?

- Well, I do have news.

We saw some kind of tiny, wrinkled creature running by.

And we're trying to talk to this tall, green Mars giant

with many arms.

- Ooh. Interesting.

[winks chime]

Any signs of water on the planet?

- Nope. No sign of water.

Except for this water bottle.

Wow. - Water, huh?

- And it seems that Martians sometimes

forget to pick up their trash, just like on Earth.

- This makes no sense, especially on Mars.

It's dry and red, and there's no plants growing anywhere.

Well, except for those yellow flowers

in the definitely un-red and very brown dirt.

Wait a minute.

[helmet pops]

[deep breath]

Breathable air, not freezing,

a water bottle, tall, unfriendly plant.

This isn't Mars, it's Earth!

- Oh, h*-h*! We're proud of you, Jet.

You kept asking questions and came to the right conclusion.

- Yeah, this Earth place where we landed tricked us.

It looks like Mars before you start exploring.

- Right! Earth almost tricked us.

But we're Bortronians.

It's hard to get anything past us.

We notice everything!

[motor vehicle whooshes by]

- You got that right, Jet.

Okay, let's try to go to the real Mars.

[disco Muzak playing]

- You are number , waiting for help.

We applaud your patience.

- Face ready to assist you.

all: [gasps] Face!

You're back!

- [chitters]

- But wait, it's your day off.

- I heard you were having some saucer trouble,

and I'm always available to help my Propulsion Family.

both: Aww, thanks.

- Face, we uploaded the new dashboard software.

- Ah.

The new software is annoying

as is that Bortron Tech Support weekend robot.

Plus, their hold music is the worst.

[rimshot] - [chuckles]

- But I see your main problem here is that

your new touch screen is upside-down.

[machinery adjusts] [comic fanfare]

Now it should work.

- Ah, wonderful!

Now, let's see, this should make the headlights blink.

- Face, you have saved this -hour time period.

- I think Earthies say,

"You saved the day!"

- Right. Yeah, that too.

Well, now that we've figured out the new dashboard,

I say let's fly to Mars!

- While there, Propulsions, you can include

in your travel story a comparison of the Red Planet

with the Earth desert you're in now.

[all laugh]

- "Desert." What a hilarious Earth word.

- [laughs] Yeah, it makes me think about dessert.

- [laughs] Me too.

Ah, dessert, such a wonderful Earth invention.

Cookies, cakes, pies made of pumpkin.

- [clears throat] I think comparing Mars

to the Earth's desert is a great idea.

Thanks, Face.

- Absolutely. But of course.

Buh-bye. Enjoy.

Ta-ta. Au revoir.

- Well, let's hope our new-old dashboard works.

Jet, would you like to push the button?

- So long, Earth,

with your deserts and cars.

The Propulsion Family is off to Mars!

all: Excelsior!

[triumphant tone]

[ship whooshing]

[solemn music]

♪ <span> ♪

Whoo-hoo! Mars!

- Hey, look, there's Valles Marineris.

- Ah, just another Sunday drive in space.

[ethereal music]

- Now, this looks like Mars.

And we're in the largest canyon in the whole solar system,

Valles Marineris.

- [chittering]

- [chuckles]

Not now, Sunspot.

We're on important travel writing business.

- [chitters]

[chomps] [gulps]

- Ah, here's some real red Mars dirt.

- Remember, we said it's bitter cold on Mars?

Well, I'm feeling it.

- Oh, there are no signs of plants or animals here,

or any big signs of water.

Very different than the Earth desert.

Now, to compare.

[beeps]

Remember the tall, green plant you saw?

It's called a "cactus."

Oh, and that small Earth creature is a "lizard."

And of course Sunspot found the water bottle.

- [laughing]

"Lizard" and "cactus."

Ha, Earth words are the best.

- [chuckles] Speaking of water,

the shapes of this grand canyon indicate that water

once flowed through it. Look.

- Huh, cool.

That should definitely go in the travel report.

- We have tons of cool information

to fill up our surprising travel article.

Let's get writing. Then how about some dessert?

- Yes!

- [chuckles] You know,

if our saucer hadn't malfunctioned

and flew us to that Earth desert by mistake,

we couldn't have done this comparison today.

- Huh, yeah.

Sometimes a mistake can lead to

even more surprising discoveries.

- Oh, h*, h*, you know,

if you're not making mistakes,

you're not learning.

[upbeat music]

[sighs]

What a tasty, healthy Earth meal.

- Congratulations, Jet.

You get credit on your parents' travel article,

"The Surprises of Comparing Mars to an Earth Desert."

- Oh, we're so proud of you, Jet.

- Oh, and Sunspot's photo made it in too.

♪ ♪

- [chitters]

- And now, speaking of comparisons...

- We can compare different desserts.

[cheering and laughter]

- Boy, is that great! - I do like the pie.

Ooh... - Oh, that's good...

- On a normal warm day on Earth,

a racquetball ball like this just bounces.

♪ ♪

But what if I could take this racquetball to Pluto?

Hi, I'm astronomer Amy Mainzer.

And today, we're gonna have some fun with temperature.

I've got a way to change the temperature

to make it colder than any place on Earth,

even your freezer.

But first, I've got to put on

some very special protective gear,

and definitely do not try this at home.

This bowl has ultra-cold liquid nitrogen in it.

Let's see what happens when we drop this racquetball in.

Watch this.

[pieces clatter]

[chuckling]

Wow, what happened?

By soaking the little racquetball in liquid nitrogen,

we made it so cold that it basically shattered

like a piece of glass when I hit it with the hammer.

That wouldn't happen if the racquetball was warm.

But by lowering its temperature,

we can make it very, very brittle.

But there's one last little thing I want to try

since we got all this liquid nitrogen here.

♪ <span> ♪

The flower froze because it contains a lot of water.

And liquid nitrogen is so cold that it freezes water

instantly, making the flower brittle as an ice cube.

So the next time you see a rose,

just remember,

if it's at a low enough temperature,

it can shatter like glass.

- ♪ Jet Propulsion ♪

[together] Ready! Jet! Go!

[upbeat music]

♪ ♪

- Jet Propulsion! - Jet Propulsion!

- Jet Propulsion!

[together] Ready! Jet! Go!