Mission to Mars complete the sequence to pass a test, and the crew dispatches a robotic rover to reproduce the completed signal. Following the transmission, an opening appears in the side of the structure, which Jim, Terri, and Luke enter, while Phil remains at the repaired Earth return vehicle with orders to launch, with or without them, at the agreed time. The opening seals behind them, disrupting radio communication with Phil, and a three-dimensional projection of the solar system depicts the planet Mars, covered with water, being struck by a large asteroid and rendered uninhabitable. A recreation of a Martian then reveals that
Planet Nine perihelia also reached values where the objects would not be observed, requiring a population of Sednas significantly larger than current estimates. They then, after declining, fell to values low enough for the objects to enter planet-crossing orbits leading to their ejection from the Solar System, requiring an initial population inconsistent with current models of the early Solar System to explain current observations. Based on these challenges Shankman et al. concluded that the existence of Planet Nine is unlikely and that the currently observed alignment of the existing TNOs is a temporary phenomenon that will disappear as more objects are detected.