Dr. Capt. Ryland ★ Grace

"I COMMEND YOUR BODY TO THE STARS."

— RYLAND GRACE

PROJECT HAIL MARY ARCHIVE

PERSONNEL FILE 

A self-deprecating 8th grade science teacher, Grace was shunned from higher education and became the laughing stock of his scientific peers after releasing a paper on why water lacks importance for evolution. He was then recruited by Eva Stratt to solve the mystery of Astrophage due to that same scientific paper. His brilliance and knowledge on Astrophage makes him an unwilling member of the Hail Mary space expedition, where he's placed into a medically induced coma for four years. He awakens with no memory of his life, his cohorts are dead, and the only life form he encounters is an alien he calls Rocky.

Grace awakes aboard the Hail Mary spacecraft with no memories of who or where he is. His crew mates are revealed to have not survived their comas, and he is being cared for by robotic arms. The arms give him tests before allowing more freedom, such as simple math, and stating his own name. He receives access to the Hail Mary’s lab, which leads him to falsely conclude he was inside a quarantine facility. However, he later discovered evidence that allowed him to realize he was in space. After eventually unlocking enough memories to find his name, Grace unlocks the final hatch to discover the control room, where his true work finally begins.

PHM | MISSION LOG

PHM | COMMUNICATION LOG

CONTACT RECORDS

"The consensus here is that it would be preferable if you did not die.

Eva Stratt, mostly referred to as Stratt, is in charge of Project Hail Mary. She was granted power from the United Nations, allowing her to do anything necessary to save Earth from Astrophage, including immunity from the law. She recruits Ryland Grace because of his controversial thesis paper, and soon becomes one of the few people who believe he can save Earth.

"Rocky Grace save stars.

Rocky is an Eridian engineer from the planet Erid in the 40 Eridani solar system. He was sent to Tau Ceti with twenty-two other Eridian scientists/crewmates to save their star and planet from Astrophage. As an Eridian, he has no facial features and no sense of sight, instead using hearing and echolocation as his primary sense. He communicates using musical tones and chords. Rocky's true name in the Eridian language is a series of musical chords, but Grace calls him "Rocky" for his rock-like appearance.

PHM | SUPPLEMENTAL NOTES

WRITER NOTES & HEADCANONS