Ten Thousand Ways / Red Storm

Ten Thousand Ways
Written by Tommy Shaw, Lawrence Gowan
Vocals by Styx

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Oooo, ten thousand ways to be wrong
Ten thousand ways to be wrong
Oooo, ten thousand ways to be wrong

Red Storm
Written by Tommy Shaw, Will Evankovich
Vocals by Tommy Shaw

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You know I never asked for this
Always knew there was a risk
Should have been easy

Storm is closing in
I can feel the grinding wind
The panic has calmed me now

Study and train for a worst-case scenario day
When clear thought and reason get tossed out and lost in the fray
Now the red storm is closing in
We can do this, let it begin

Everybody keep your head
Remember what we learned and read
Oh, we gotta get through this

Carry what you can
There's no turning back
Gonna make it to the mothership

Strap yourselves in, let the monstrous wind have its way
Only one way to go, when you can't fight the blows of the day
Now the red storm is closing in
If we make it, we'll be saved

Near yet so far
And I can't help but wondering where we might be
If we weren't where we are
In the whole universe we're no worse for the wear
And the stars shine so bright
Yet we're hardly aware of the scars our infinity bares

Interpretation:

A manned mission to Mars involves so much complexity, so many variables, pushing the envelope of ingenuity and engineering. There is enormous risk involved on such a long journey, so far away from the Earth. Astronauts must train for every scenario. There is too much at stake to be caught unprepared even in the worst case scenario. 

Martian dust storms can be quite intense. During a particularly intense storm in 2018, the Opportunity rover was lost in a storm. The dust particles will settle onto solar panels with an electrostatic charge that means it will build up instead of blowing off.  The particles can also get into mechanical systems.

With visibility hindered and automated landing systems unable to cope with the storm, Locomotive must abort the landing and return to the Khedive. Just as the astronauts of Apollo 13 flew by the moon rather than make their scheduled landing, the intrepid crew of the Khedive must wait for another attempt at landing once the storm passes.