Andy Weir is a stickler for accuracy.
But while he believes sending man to Mars could soon be possible, he has dismissed claims that aliens are trying to contact Earth as unrealistic.
'If aliens were attempting to contact us they would try to make it as easy as possible,' he told DailyMail.com. 'I don’t see why they would encrypt their data.'
His views contradict that of NSA whistleblower, Edward Snowden, who last month told Neil deGrasse Tyson he thinks aliens encrypt their communications.
We can't contact them because we don’t have the ability to detect or decode their messages, he said.
'I do not believe aliens are trying to contact us at all,' added The Martian author.
Arrogant SOB. To read more and view the video, click here.