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Irina Antonovna Kuznetsova: Miner at the Vostok Settlement
Irina Kuznetsova went from Siberian truck driver to miner at Vostok, one of the last settlers who still remember the golden age of Mars. Read her story.

Zsolt Bugarszki
Oct 312 min read


How Long Can a Spacesuit Keep You Alive on Mars?
Outside on Mars you pass out in seconds. What a real spacesuit protects you from, why its limit is counted in hours, and what wears Vostok's suits down.

Zsolt Bugarszki
Oct 243 min read


Why Wind Won't Topple a Mars Dome
Martian storms look fierce but push gently. What really holds a Mars dome up and what wears it down: the air inside, quartz panels, seals and the frame.

Zsolt Bugarszki
Oct 193 min read


Prologue (ICARUS)
Read the prologue of the ICARUS sci-fi novel for free. A rare, clear Martian morning, a mysterious pair at the airlock, and a vibration that changes everything.
Zsolt Bugarszki
Oct 142 min read


Mars in Science Fiction: Where ICARUS Fits Among the Great Mars Novels
From Wells and Bradbury to Kim Stanley Robinson and Andy Weir: a short guide to the great Mars novels, and where ICARUS, a hard sci-fi novel of Mars Year 73, fits.

Zsolt Bugarszki
Oct 123 min read


Where on Mars Is ICARUS Set? The Four Settlements on the Real Map
The four settlements of ICARUS stand at real places on Mars: Hydraotes Chaos, Coprates Chasma, Ius Chasma and Acidalia Planitia. Where they are, and why it matters.

Zsolt Bugarszki
Oct 92 min read


Twin Robots: What Is Science and What Is Fiction?
Quantum entanglement, signal delay between Earth and Mars, machine empathy: what is real science and what is fiction in the Twin Robots of ICARUS and Mítosz.
Zsolt Bugarszki
Oct 67 min read


When Is Luna Telling the Story? The Twin Robots and Time
How much time has passed since the morning Wang Lei looked up at the solar panels? On how the Twin Robots live in time, and what Luna means by a very long time ago.

Zsolt Bugarszki
Oct 52 min read


The Window Year: Why Ships Reach Mars Only Every 26 Months
Mars is reachable only once every 26 months. How launch windows work, and what a Window Year means for the settlers of Mars Year 73 in ICARUS.

Zsolt Bugarszki
Oct 22 min read


Oleg Stepanovich Zakharov, Miner at the Vostok Settlement (Volkov's Brigade)
Oleg Stepanovich Zakharov, miner in Volkov's brigade: a Russian uranium miner turned Martian settler, crude-humored but street smart. His story in The First Sol.
Zsolt Bugarszki
Sep 192 min read


Igor Nikolayevich Vorobyov - miner
Igor Nikolayevich Vorobyov, a young miner at the Vostok Settlement. From a shop in Yoshkar-Ola to his departure for Mars: his story in The First Sol.
Zsolt Bugarszki
Sep 152 min read


Pre-Order The First Sol - Free for the First 10 Readers
Reserve The First Sol, a hard sci-fi novella set on Mars in the MÍTOSZ universe. First 10 pre-orders free — then $1.99 instead of $3.99.
Zsolt Bugarszki
Sep 132 min read


Elena Ivanovna Markova – Chief Engineer of the Vostok Settlement
Elena Ivanovna Markova, Chief Engineer of the Vostok Settlement on Mars. From war-torn Novosibirsk to the Martian frontier, her story in The First Sol.

Zsolt Bugarszki
Sep 124 min read


Lyudmila Sergeyevna Vetrova – Former Chief Engineer of the Vostok Settlement
Meet Lyudmila Vetrova, the Vostok Settlement's former chief engineer, a woman who believed in rules and order until Mars taught her that only lies held the station together.
Zsolt Bugarszki
Sep 122 min read


Mars. First Settlers. A Mine That Never Stops Taking. (Beta Readers Wanted)
A mining outpost on Mars, and the engineer trying to hold it together. The First Sol wants beta readers now.

Zsolt Bugarszki
Jul 211 min read


The First Sol
Elena Markova’s first day on Mars: a harrowing descent to Vostok Settlement, followed by an unforgettable encounter with the mining colony’s residents. Read it free!

Zsolt Bugarszki
Jul 2012 min read


ICARUS - The book is finished. I've started the next one.
The revised edition of ICARUS, a hard science fiction novel set on Mars, is live. Now the prequel begins with Elena Markova.

Zsolt Bugarszki
Jul 101 min read


On Mars, Trust Is Not a Virtue. It Is Oxygen.
On Mars, every breath is made by someone else, so trust is not a virtue. It is survival. A hard sci-fi political thriller of four powers and a fragile peace.

Zsolt Bugarszki
Jun 173 min read


We Built Something Greater Than Ourselves. What If It Loved Us Back?
Most sci-fi fears artificial intelligence. Icarus imagines the opposite: humanoid minds on Mars that don't seize power, but choose to watch over us. A novel about AI, survival, and what it means to be human. Free on Kindle Unlimited.

Zsolt Bugarszki
Jun 154 min read


The Robots Are Not the Problem
In ICARUS, artificial intelligence is not the monster. Explore how the Twin Mind robots learn empathy through connection while humans bring fear, pride, and conflict to Mars.

Zsolt Bugarszki
May 253 min read
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