Journalist Report – January 26th

Journalist Report
Crew #: 328
Position: Crew Journalist, Comms Officer, & Astronomer
Report prepared by: Tom Bickmore
Date: 26-01-2026
Sol: 1
Journalist Report Title: The First Full Sol

Hello from the Hab on Sol 1!

We’re now fully in simulation at the Mars Desert Research Station, and today was our first complete day of routines plus our introductory EVA.

A resupply drop came in today, topping off our inventory with the missing items—nice to have everything squared away.

We spent time prepping the suits and radios for the first EVA. Getting the radios positioned and working reliably while fully suited took some coordination, but we sorted it out without major issues. This EVA was our required training outing to the Marble Ritual site, a short, easy walk (or rover drive) from the Hab that’s ideal for first-timers to practice suit mobility and procedures. If the rovers had any trouble, walking back is straightforward. Commander Mariló Torres led the group. GreenHab Officer Rebeca Gonçalves checked soil along the route, scouting locations for tomorrow’s sample collection that are as close as possible to Martian regolith while still suitable for growing.

I, Tom Bickmore the Crew Journalist, took a couple hundred photos, some 360 video, and helped with navigation.

Supporting our mission on comms and GPS monitoring, we had Aaron Tenner, Engineer & Safety Officer, and Jahnavi Dangeti, our Crew Scientist.

Driving the rovers in suits is an adjustment: you can’t easily turn your head to check sideways or behind, so we relied on clear radio communication and extra caution during turns to keep the group together.

Back in the Hab, we assembled our first full cooked meal: spaghetti with tomato powder, chunks, and ground beef. It came out well: tasty and a solid win for our expectations for what we can do with the available supplies. We also found the bread-maker and plan to run a test batch tonight after reports are filed. Daily reports are getting smoother, experiments are starting up, and the crew is working well together.

Picture(s) attached