Martian mission “Ares-3” in the process of work was forced to urgently leave the planet because of an impending sandstorm. Engineer and biologist Mark Watney was damaged in a spacesuit during a sandstorm. Employees of the mission, considering it dead, were evacuated from the planet, leaving Mark alone.
Waking up, Watney discovers that there is no connection to the Earth, but the living module is fully functional. The protagonist begins to look for a way to hold out on existing supplies of food, vitamins, water and air for another 4 years before the arrival of the next mission, Ares-4.