What happened to the pod during those seconds when communication was lost?

Answer it orbits high above earth to gain clearer images of light, it magnifies images relative to the human eye, it records most of the universe as it was in the past, not as it is now;

Ray 2 should cross through the focal point on the right side of the lens.

Answer;

hot magma rises and pushes up toward the lithosphere, and as it cools it cycles back down toward the core to be heated again.

explanation; convection currents are the circular pathways taken by a fluid that enhances heat transfer by the process known as convection which occurs in fluids.convection currents transfer heat from one place to another by mass motion of a fluid. earth mantle is in a semi-liquid state and behaves like any other fluid, rising up from the bottom of the mantle after becoming hotter and less dense from heat of the earth's core, as the rock loses heat into the earth's crust it becomes cooler and more dense, then sinking back down to the core, then repeating the cycle.