Month: March 2025

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Supplemental Operations Report -March 22nd

Date: 3/22/2025
Name of person filing report: David Steinhour
Reason for Report: Routine
Non-Nominal Systems: Crew car. Power system battery, invertors, generator. Robotic observatory. HAB outer shell, tunnels.

Power system: "Solar: The battery bank does not hold charge when sun is down and low on the horizon. Inverter Slave 1 and 2 went offline and do not restart, which limits us to 5kW when on solar.
Main generator has been monitored for oil leaks; minor leaks observed, Moreover, generator is consuming oil because of worn piston rings. Adding oil every day is necessary. Generator is limited to 8kW, see previous reports for details.
Main generator:
1) Oil, oil filter, air filter changed on 3/19/2025.
2) Current hours – 8973.7"

Propane Readings: "Refilled 3/19/2025
Station Tank: 80%
Director Tank: 83%
Intern Tank: 86%
Generator Tank: 81%"

Water: "Hab Static Tank – 550 gallons
GreenHab – 200 gallons
Outpost tank – 550 gallons"

Rovers: "Sojourner rover used: Yes
Hours: 210.7
Beginning Charge: 100 %
Ending Charge: 100 %
Currently Charging: No
Notes on Rovers: None."

Cars: "Hab Car used and why, where: To Hanksville for supplies.
Crew Car used and why, where: No.
General notes and comments: Crew car driver’s side front ball joint is bad. Low oil pressure is most likely caused by a bad sensor (it does not change due to RPM or temperature like it should)."

Summary of Internet: Guest wifi had to be turned on manually 3/20, but automation worked fine last night 3/21
EVA suits and radios: "Suits: Nominal.
Comms: Nominal.
T-Echo EVA-link: Astro8 is malfunctioning and need to be replaced."
Campus wide inspection, if action taken, what and why: Tunnel tarp is once again ripped between science dome and solar observatory.
Summary of Hab Operations: Small cracks in the wall of the Hab in the loft area are allowing cold air intrusion.
Summary of GreenHab Operations: Nominal
Summary of SciDome Operations: Nominal
Summary of Observatories Operations: Robotic observatory offline.
Summary of RAM Operations: Nominal
Summary of Outpost Operations: Nominal
Summary of Health and Safety Issues: Nominal

Posted on

Crew 309 End-Mission Research Report 22Mar2025

[title End-Mission Research Report – March 22nd]

[category science-report]

Crew 309 Mission Science Report
MDRS, Saturday 22 March 2025

Name of person filing report: Aaron Allred
Overview: Crew 309 has been in the MDRS for one week, conducting a pilot
experiment within the research domain of aerospace human factors research. Due to
the nature of these experiments, the six-person habitat crew has remained naïve to
the experiment objectives, which have been coordinated by a separate three-person
experimental team stationed in nearby Hanksville, UT while running remote
operations by day out of the science dome.
In particular, our primary experiment examined how aspects of teams, confined to an
isolated space analog, influence information processing, communication, and
performance amongst dyads performing simulated EVAs. As such, our experiment
required different combinations of the six-person habitat crew to perform a series of
12 EVAs over the course of the week. During these EVAs, the crew was in full sim.
Due to the ongoing nature of this experiment (and being a pilot test), some of the
finer experimental details are left intentionally vague. Please feel free to contact us.
Name: Extravehicular Activity Navigation Tasks
Type: Human Factors: Judgments and Decision-Making
Crew: Full Crew
Description: The crew performed a series of 12 EVAs over the course of a week
(each lasting ~3 hours) in various dyad pairs. These pairs were structured by the
experimenters a priori to produce unique combinations across team members, who
were each assigned unique roles including Co-Commander A, Co-Commander B,
Scientist, Engineer, Medic, and GreenHab. These roles provided an assigned
hierarchy that was assessed for natural evolution throughout the mission week using
subjectively reported nightly surveys, as well as after EVAs.
During these EVAs, which represent unique experimental trials, crewmembers were
assigned unique pieces of information that could not be shared physically but could
be shared using other forms of communication (such as over radio). This portion of
the design used distributed information sources to simulate distributed expertise that
may be encountered during future space missions EVAs.
Navigation performance was gathered using Garmin T5X GPS tracking equipment in
real-time. Experimenters had access to a Garmin Alpha 10 handheld and Drivetrack
71, which enabled this real-time tracking and monitoring. In addition to voice and
position sensors, pilot participants were outfitted with physiological sensors, which
included eye-tracking glasses. For this pilot experiment the Tobii 2 was utilized, but in
future experiments, the Tobii 3 is planned. Following EVAs and at night,
crewmembers filled a number of surveys. To facilitate these devices, custom
spacesuit simulators were designed and engineered for this mission.

A vehicle in a desert AI-generated content may be incorrect.

Figure 1 . Return from a dyadic navigation task on the final day.

Status:
All experimental conditions were successfully piloted by the crew over the course of
the course of the simulation. In addition to executing these tasks in dyads,
crewmembers also successfully made autonomous repairs to their custom spacesuit
simulators, eye-tracking equipment, and survey software. This pilot experiment
demonstrated that a trained crew is capable of performing autonomous, in-simulation
human factors research at MDRS for full data collection at a later date. Further, this
pilot experiment gave key insights into how to titrate the task difficulty at each of our 6
EVA sites, streamline experimental operations, and provide a more representative
spaceflight-analog isolation and confinement experience to crew members.

Posted on

Supplemental Operations Report – March 16th

Date: 3/16/2025
Name of person filing report: David Steinhour
Reason for Report: Routine
Non-Nominal Systems: Crew car. Power system battery, invertors, generator. Robotic observatory. HAB outer shell, tunnels.

Power system: "Solar: The battery bank does not hold charge when sun is down and low on the horizon. Inverter Slave 1 and 2 went offline and did not restart, which limits us to 5kW when on solar.
Main generator has been monitored for oil leaks; minor leaks observed, need to add oil every 2 days. Generator is limited to 8kW, see previous reports for details.
Main generator:
1) Oil, oil filter changed on 3/12/2025.
2) Current hours – 8874.0"

Propane Readings: "Refilled 2/26/2025
Station Tank: 57%
Director Tank: 49%
Intern Tank: 77%
Generator Tank: 34%"

Water: "Hab Static Tank – 550 gallons
GreenHab – 200 gallons
Outpost tank – 550 gallons"

Rovers: "Sojourner rover used: No
Hours: 209.5
Beginning Charge: 100 %
Ending Charge: 100 %
Currently Charging: Yes
Notes on Rovers: Perseverance tire patched 3/13, holding air well. Parking brake tightened. Battery maintenance performed on Sojourner and Perseverance."

Cars: "Hab Car used and why, where: To Hanksville for supplies.
Crew Car used and why, where: No.
General notes and comments: Crew car driver’s side front ball joint is bad. Low oil pressure is most likely caused by a bad sensor (it does not change due to RPM or temperature like it should)."

Summary of Internet: Nominal
EVA suits and radios: "Suits: Nominal.
Comms: Nominal.
T-Echo EVA-link: Astro8 is malfunctioning and needs to be replaced."
Campus wide inspection, if action taken, what and why: Tunnel tarp is once again ripped between science dome and solar observatory.
Summary of Hab Operations: Small cracks in the wall of the Hab in the loft area are allowing cold air intrusion.
Summary of GreenHab Operations: Nominal
Summary of SciDome Operations: Nominal
Summary of Observatories Operations: Robotic observatory offline.
Summary of RAM Operations: Nominal
Summary of Outpost Operations: Nominal
Summary of Health and Safety Issues: Nominal

Posted on

Sol Summary – March 17th

Crew 309 Sol Summary Report 17Mar2025

Sol: 1

Summary Title: First day of work

Author’s name: Co-Commander A

Mission Status: Nominal

Sol Activity Summary:

  • This morning Co-Commander A and Scientist completed an EVA while the remainder of the crew worked on tasks in the hab. In the afternoon, Engineer and Medic completed an EVA, followed by a final EVA completed by Co-Commander B and GreenHab.
  • The team is adjusting to life on Mars. We encountered a number of technical issues and are working to learn our crew responsibilities. Despite these challenges, the team remains optimistic.

Look Ahead Plan: We will be conducting two EVAs tomorrow in the morning and afternoon

Anomalies in work:

  • Solution for eye tracking device 681 is to use an external battery pack while they are on EVA so that it doesn’t deplete and turn off. The MC external battery packs need a lot of time to charge, so we are using Jesus.
  • This is not a possibility for the device 691 because it does not have an external charging port. The solution for this one is to add the battery as late as possible. The battery packs are dead right now, but Jesus is using his personal.
  • The depressurization door opened, need to close it more securely.

Weather: Sunny and windy, 43F / 70F

Crew Physical Status: Nominal

EVA: 3 EVAs completed

Reports to be filed: Sol Summary, Journalist Report, GreenHab, Operations Report,

Support Requested: None

Posted on

Operations Report – March 17th

SOL: 1

Name of person filing report: Jesús, Engineer

Non-nominal systems: All systems nominal

Notes on non-nominal systems: No notes

ROVERS

Spirit rover : used

Beginning Hours: 268.8

Beginning charge: 73%

Ending Hours: 268.9

Ending charge: 72%

Currently charging: yes

Opportunity rover: used

Beginning Hours: 208.6

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending Hours: 209

Ending charge: 84%

Currently charging: no

Curiosity rover: Used

Beginning Hours: 301

Beginning charge: 95%

Ending Hours: 301.7

Ending charge: 71%

Currently charging: yes

Perseverance rover:

Beginning Hours: 311

Beginning charge: 93%

Ending Hours: 311.4

Ending charge: 77%

Currently charging: yes

General notes on rovers: Worked as expected.

Summary of Hab operations: Equipment troubleshooting, exercise activities, cooking

Water Use (please use both methods to estimate water usage)

Time of measurements (collect data for the same time window): 4:50 pm
1) Per formula (see notes): 111.1 gal
2) Smart Home Dashboard (see notes): 71.63 gal

Water (static tank, remaining gallons): 438.91 gal

Static tank pipe heater (on or off): off

Static tank heater (on or off) : off

Toilet tank emptied (no or yes): no

Summary of internet: used from 7 pm to 10 pm for reports

Summary of suits and radios:

Suits :

1 -> 100%, used

2 -> 100%, used

3 -> 100%, used

Suits : For EVA 2, had to use MDRS suit due to equipment malfunction.

Radios : Nothing to report.

Summary of GreenHab operations: Plants were watered.

WATER USE: 5 gallons

Heater (On or Off): On

Supplemental light (hours of operation): 5 to 10 pm

Harvest (name, weight in grams):

Basil: 4 g

Cherry tomatoes: 80 g

Radishes: 115 g

Scallions: 57 g

Summary of ScienceDome operations: None

Dual split (Heat or AC, On or Off): Off

Summary of RAM operations: (Tools used, work done): None

Summary of any observatory issues: None

Summary of health and safety issues: None

Posted on

Crew biographies, photos and mission patch

[title Crew biographies, photos and mission patch – March 17th]

Prachi.jpg

Prachi Dutta, Greenhab Officer
Fascinated by space, Prachi developed a strong passion for human exploration early on. She joined MDRS 319 as GreenHab Officer and is excited to use this analog mission as an opportunity to further deepen this passion. With a strong interest in both research and engineering, Prachi aims to work in bioastronautics and human factors engineering. Throughout the mission, she will be responsible for monitoring plant health, conducting experiments related to food production, and contributing to research on sustainable life-support systems for long-duration missions.

Jesus.jpg

Jesús E. Meléndez Gil, Crew Engineer
As an aspiring astronaut from the small island of Puerto Rico, Jesús has always dreamed of being one of the first humans to visit Mars. Having the opportunity to simulate his dream, he jumped at the chance to visit MDRS as part of Crew 309. Using his experience as Chemical Engineering PhD student at CU Boulder, Jesús will be participating as Crew Engineer for this analog mission. He will be responsible for maintaining all habitat systems in working order and assisting the crew with any technical issues that may arise. With his curiosity and sense of humor, he is determined on making this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity a joyful and memorable weeklong experience for the whole crew.

Priyanka.jpg

Priyanka Vasu, Health and Safety Officer
Priyanka is a first-year master’s student in the department of Aerospace Engineering Sciences at the University of Colorado, Boulder, focusing on Bioastronautics. With a drive to venture further and beyond, her work entails understanding the harsh environment of space and its physiological and psychological impacts on humans. As the Medic/Health Safety Officer of Crew 312 onboard the MDRS habitat, she will ensure the safety of the crew and will work on an autonomous delivery drone for medical supplies, thereby steering Crew 312 through a successful completion of the mission.

Lydia.jpg

Lydia Rader, Science Officer
Lydia Rader received her dual PhD in behavioral genetics and neuroscience from University of Colorado Boulder. Her research centers around genetic and environmental risk factors of chronic pain and its overlap with mental health traits. She runs a science communication nonprofit called Knowing Neurons.

Louisa.jpg

Louisa Smith – Co-Commander A
Louisa received her PhD in cognitive neuroscience at the University of Colorado Boulder. Her research uses both MRI and behavioral methods to understand how individuals flexibly and adaptively engage cognitive control. In particular, she seeks to elucidate the cognitive and neural mechanisms underlying individual differences in cognitive flexibility.

Caroline.jpg

Caroline Austin, Co-Commander B
Caroline is a 3rd year PhD student at the University of Colorado Boulder studying Aerospace Engineering Sciences with a focus in Bioastronautics. Her PhD research primarily focuses on spatial orientation and characterizing vestibular analogs for gravity transitions. She is also a Pathways Intern at NASA Glenn Research Center where she models human performance risks for Lunar and Martian missions like those conducted at MDRS. Caroline previously visited the MDRS as part of a space medicine course and hopes to use her prior experience to help lead her team through a successful week-long mission on Mars.

Posted on

Journalist Report – March 17th

Journalism Report

After a late night of transit and training the crew awoke on Mars ready to try our best to complete our mission. When we signed up for this Mars mission, we were excited about all of the possibilities and today those possibilities began to unfold – good and bad. Today we all successfully completed our first set of paired EVAs and got to know the exhilaration of exploring the unknown; the wonder of Martian vistas; and accomplishment of completing a mission. We also got to know the challenge that comes with being encumbered by a space suit; the frustration of not being able to talk to the person next to you without hopping on the comm system; the insane appetite that accompanies the end of a spacewalk; and unique to our mission, navigating the secrecy of the social-behavioral experiment that is our purpose here on Mars this week.

Posted on

Mission Plan – March 17th

Crew 309 Lookahead Report 16-03-2025

Sol 0

Author: Aaron Allred & Erin Richardson (Experimental Designers for 3/16-3/22 Crew Mars Analog Experiments)

Sunday MARCH 16, EVA 1

Today’s Date: 03-16-2025

Requested EVA Date: 03-16-2025

Requested start time for EVA: 15:00

Requested end time for EVA: 19:30

Does the weather report support EVA at this time?: Yes

Purpose of EVA: Practice navigation task and familiarize participants with EVA procedures

Destination: Marble Rituals

Coordinates (use UTM WSG 84): 518250 E, 4250750

EVA Participants: Everyone including 3 support crew

Road(s) and routes per MDRS Map: Cow Dung Road 0110,

Mode of travel: Rover and on foot

Vehicles you will be using (If applicable): Curiosity

MONDAY MARCH 17, EVA 1

Today’s Date: 03-16-2025

Requested EVA Date: 03-17-2025

Requested start time for EVA: 8:00

Requested end time for EVA: 11:00

Does the weather report support EVA at this time?: Yes

Purpose of EVA: Perform navigation task

Destination: Zubrin’s Head

Coordinates (use UTM WSG 84): 38°22’59"N 110°46’47"W

EVA Participants: Commander A, Scientist

Road(s) and routes per MDRS Map: Cow Dung Road 0110 and Zubrin’s Head

Mode of travel: Rover and on foot

Vehicles you will be using (If applicable): Curiosity

MONDAY MARCH 17, EVA 2

Today’s Date: 03-16-2025

Requested EVA Date: 03-17-2025

Requested start time for EVA: 11:30

Requested end time for EVA: 14:30

Does the weather report support EVA at this time?: Yes

Purpose of EVA: Perform Navigation Task

Destination: Phobos Plains

Coordinates (use UTM WSG 84): 38°24’16"N 110°47’24"W

EVA Participants: Medic and Engineer

Road(s) and routes per MDRS Map: Cow Dung Road 0110

Mode of travel: Rover and on foot

Vehicles you will be using (If applicable): Spirit

MONDAY MARCH 17, EVA 3

Today’s Date: 03-16-2025

Requested EVA Date: 03-17-2025

Requested start time for EVA: 15:00

Requested end time for EVA: 18:00

Does the weather report support EVA at this time?: Yes

Purpose of EVA: Perform navigation task

Destination: Zubrins Head

Coordinates (use UTM WSG 84): 38°22’59"N 110°46’47"W

EVA Participants: Commander B, GreenHab

Road(s) and routes per MDRS Map: Cow Dung Road 0110, park at Zubrins Head and walk nearby

Mode of travel: Rover, on foot

Vehicles you will be using (If applicable): Perseverance

TUESDAY MARCH 18, EVA 1

Today’s Date: 03-18-2025

Requested EVA Date: 03-18-2025

Requested start time for EVA: 8:00

Requested end time for EVA: 11:00

Does the weather report support EVA at this time?: Yes

Purpose of EVA: Perform Navigation Task

Destination: Cowboy Corner

Coordinates (use UTM WSG 84): 38°25’29"N 110°47’17"W

EVA Participants: Commander A and Engineer

Road(s) and routes per MDRS Map: Cow Dung Road 0110

Mode of travel: Rover and on Foot

Vehicles you will be using (If applicable): Curiosity

TUESDAY MARCH 18, EVA 2

Today’s Date: 03-16-2025

Requested EVA Date: 03-18-2025

Requested start time for EVA: 15:00

Requested end time for EVA: 18:00

Does the weather report support EVA at this time?: Yes

Purpose of EVA: Perform Navigation Task

Destination: Kissing Camel Ridge

Coordinates (use UTM WSG 84): 38°23’32"N 110°47’27"W

EVA Participants: Scientist and Medic

Road(s) and routes per MDRS Map: Cow Dung Road 0110

Mode of travel: Rover and on Foot

Vehicles you will be using (If applicable): Perseverance

WEDNESDAY MARCH 19, EVA 1

Today’s Date: 03-16-2025

Requested EVA Date: 3-19-2025

Requested start time for EVA: 8:00

Requested end time for EVA: 11:00

Does the weather report support EVA at this time?: Yes

Purpose of EVA: Perform Navigation Tasks

Destination: Compass Rock

Coordinates (use UTM WSG 84): 38°25’03"N 110°46’31"W

EVA Participants:Commander B And Engineer

Road(s) and routes per MDRS Map: Cow Dung Road 0110

Mode of travel: Rover and on Foot

Vehicles you will be using (If applicable): Curiosity

WEDNESDAY MARCH 19, EVA 2

Today’s Date: 03-16-2025

Requested EVA Date: 3-19-2025

Requested start time for EVA: 15:00

Requested end time for EVA: 18:00

Does the weather report support EVA at this time?: Yes

Purpose of EVA: Perform Navigation Tasks

Destination: Poohs Corner

Coordinates (use UTM WSG 84):

EVA Participants: GreenHab and Medic

Road(s) and routes per MDRS Map: Cow Dung Road 0110

Mode of travel: Rover and on foot

Vehicles you will be using (If applicable): Perseverance

THURSDAY MARCH 20, EVA 1

Today’s Date: 03-16-2025

Requested EVA Date: 03-20-2025

Requested start time for EVA: 8:00

Requested end time for EVA: 11:00

Does the weather report support EVA at this time?: Yes

Purpose of EVA: Perform Navigation Tasks

Destination: Pooh’s Corner

Coordinates (use UTM WSG 84):

EVA Participants: Commander A and Commander B

Road(s) and routes per MDRS Map: Cow Dung Road 0110

Mode of travel: Curiosity

Vehicles you will be using (If applicable):

THURSDAY MARCH 20, EVA 2

Today’s Date: 03-16-2025

Requested EVA Date: 03-20-2025

Requested start time for EVA: 15:00

Requested end time for EVA: 18:00

Does the weather report support EVA at this time?: Yes

Purpose of EVA: Perform Navigation Task

Destination: Phobos Plans

Coordinates (use UTM WSG 84): 38°24’16"N 110°47’24"W

EVA Participants:Greenhab and Scientist

Road(s) and routes per MDRS Map: Cow Dung Road 0110

Mode of travel: Rover and on foot

Vehicles you will be using (If applicable): Perseverance

FRIDAY MARCH 21, EVA 1

Today’s Date: 3-16-2025

Requested EVA Date: 03-21-2025

Requested start time for EVA: 8:00

Requested end time for EVA: 11:00

Does the weather report support EVA at this time?: Yes

Purpose of EVA: Perform Navigation Task

Destination: Kissing Camel Ridge

Coordinates (use UTM WSG 84): 38°23’32"N 110°47’27"W

EVA Participants: GreenHab and Engineering

Road(s) and routes per MDRS Map: Cow Dung Road 0110

Mode of travel: Rover and on foot

Vehicles you will be using (If applicable): Curiosity

FRIDAY MARCH 21, EVA 2

Today’s Date: 13-16-2025

Requested EVA Date: 03-21-2025

Requested start time for EVA: 11:30

Requested end time for EVA: 14:30

Does the weather report support EVA at this time?: Yes

Purpose of EVA: Perform navigation task

Destination: Compass Rock

Coordinates (use UTM WSG 84): 38°25’03"N 110°46’31"W

EVA Participants: Commander A and Medic

Road(s) and routes per MDRS Map: Cow Dung Road 0110

Mode of travel: Rover and on foot

Vehicles you will be using (If applicable): Spirit

FRIDAY MARCH 21, EVA 3

Today’s Date: 13-16-2025

Requested EVA Date: 03-21-2025

Requested start time for EVA: 15:00

Requested end time for EVA: 18:00

Does the weather report support EVA at this time?: Yes

Purpose of EVA: Perform navigation task

Destination: Cowboy Corner

Coordinates (use UTM WSG 84): 38°25’29"N 110°47’17"W

EVA Participants: Commander B, Scientist

Road(s) and routes per MDRS Map: Cow Dung Road 0110, park at Cowboy Corner and walk nearby

Mode of travel: Rover and on foot

Vehicles you will be using (If applicable): Perseverance

Posted on

Crew 309 HSO Beginning Of Mission Checklist

[title HSO Beginning Of Mission Checklist- March 17th]

Submitted by: Priyanka Vasu, Medic/Health and Safety Officer
Crew: 312
Date: 17Mar2025

Part 1
Locate and confirm the emergency escape routes in the Hab are functional and clear:
Stairs (between lower end upper deck): Functional and clear
Emergency window (upper deck, east side): Functional and clear
Commander’s window (located in the commander’s crew quarter): Functional and clear
Part 2
Inventory First Aid kit and note what needs to be refilled: Refilling is not required at the moment
Part 3
Note any safety issues: Nil
Note any health/environmental issues: Nil
Note any missing or recommended health and safety supplies: Nil
Part 4
Safety Equipment Inventory: All equipment are available and functional

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