Crew 314 Sol Summary Report 11-04-2025
Sol: 5
Summary Title: Life Between Red Dust and Blue Skies
Author’s name: Arnaud de Wergifosse (Crew executive officer)
Mission Status: ongoing
Sol Activity Summary: Early in the day, an EVA was carried out to collect soil samples for Bérengère’s GreenHab experiment and to check on the equipment for Antoine’s ongoing engineering project. Both tasks were completed successfully, despite the hot conditions outside.
Back in the station, Bérengère planted new seeds in the GreenHab: radish sprouts, arugula, cress, and other fast-growing greens. She also took time to water the existing plants and monitor their development.
Meanwhile, Antoine downloaded the meteorological data, crucial for tracking environmental changes and ensuring the safety of future EVAs.
Batoul, our journalist, spent the afternoon programming a new experiment which simulates the effects of Martian microgravity.
Our daily scientific protocols continue steadily, as each team member follows their assigned experiment schedules with precision and focus.
Life at the MDRS is a constant balance between routine and the unexpected, and today was a perfect example of that.
Look Ahead Plan: One EVA is scheduled in the morning to conduct Antoine’s experiment. Throughout the day, we will continue working on our individual experiments. Béatrice and Arnaud will carry on their research while collecting data with their wearables and with a questionnaire about stress and sleep evaluation. Louis will continue his work in the Observatory.
Anomalies in work: None was notified.
Weather: Sunny without clouds in the morning and the afternoon. Temperatures varied between 44°F and 90°F for the lowest and highest temperatures of the day.
Crew Physical Status: Everyone was in good health today, with no issues reported.
EVA: The EVA team exited the Hab at 09:31 after a 5-minute decompression. Batoul and Odile took Curiosity, while Bérengère and Antoine drove Opportunity. The team passed Cowboy Corner and arrived at the Special Region by 10:05, where they collected two soil samples for Bérengère’s experiment.
Due to poor signal near the region, contact with CapCom was unsuccessful until arrival at the site. Afterward, the team skipped the Overlook due to battery considerations (Opportunity at 58%) and reached the Galileo Road & Cow Dung Road intersection by 11:15. There, they inspected Antoine’s equipment and deployed the drone for additional data.
On the way, they retrieved a fallen rover camera piece. The return began at 11:34 with a driver switch, and the rovers were parked at the Hab by 11:41. Decompression ended at 11:47, marking a successful and efficient EVA.
Reports to be filed: Sol Summary, Journalist Report, Greenhab Report, Operations Report, Crew Photos, EVA Report, EVA Request, Astronomy Report.
Support Requested: Crew requested from the mission support to bring them packages needed for the crew journalist’s experiment