Day: May 5, 2026

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Journalist Report – March 31st

Report title: Journalist Report
Crew #: 333
Position: Crew Journalist
Report prepared by: Joanna Galloway
Date: 31-03-2026
Sol: 2
Journalist Report Title (if applicable): Gone with the wind

Pancake Day today! We woke up to the sweet smell of Marie making breakfast. Before eating, we cleaned up the upper hab and put away the mattresses we had laid out on the floor for yesterday’s movie night. The first EVA crew Joanna, Antoine, and Matthias began their decompression while Zahraa deep-cleaned the hab. This outing was at Compass Rock and allowed Antoine to start his research on the differences between astronauts’ perception of the terrain and drone perception. Marie was CapCom this time and made sure the team stayed safe during the EVA. Matthias also checked the headset from Comms Kit #2. The EVA team made it back by 11 a.m., debriefed, and then enjoyed lunch all together.

Later, Antoine went out again with Matías and Marie to Campus Rock, as he needed to continue gathering data from the crew’s perception of the terrain. They left at 2 p.m. During this time, Joanna ensured communication between the station and the EVA team. Matthias took care of the GreenHab and even managed to harvest some tomatoes and fennel. During the EVA, we had an issue with the front door, which blew open due to strong winds. The EVA crew had to return to secure it and ensure everyone’s safety before heading back out to continue their mission through the wind and the dust. Once they returned, we held a crew meeting to check in on everyone’s experiments and progress.

Matthias was in charge of dinner: chicken curry with rice while Joanna taught Antoine some dance moves. Tonight’s plan is to finish the film we started last night: Night at the Museum.

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Crew Photos – March 31st

Report title: Photos of the Day
Crew #: 333
Position: Crew Journalist
Report prepared by: Joanna Galloway
Date: 31-03-2026
Sol: 2

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GreenHab Report – March 31st

Report title: GreenHab Report
Crew #: 333
Position: GreenHab Officer
Report prepared by: Matthias De Groote
Date: 31-03-2026
Sol: 2

Environmental control (fan & heater): Yes, Fan max: 80, Fan min: 75, Heater : 70 F°
Average temperatures (last 24h): 85.2 F°
Maximum temperature (last 24h): 100.7 F°
Minimum temperature (last 24h): 69.7 F°

Hours of supplemental light: 5:30

Daily water usage for crops: 1.5 gal
Daily water usage for research and/or other purposes: 0 gal
Water in the Tank (160 gal useful capacity): 151 gallons remaining
Time(s) of watering for crops: 7:45 am

Changes to crops: Basil flowers were trimmed.
Harvest: Two fennels (38 g), three beetroots (tubers: 9 g, leaves 45 g), tomatoes (undamaged: 36 g, damaged 18 g, total: 54 g) and basil (26 g)

Support/supplies needed: No

Notes: Fennel stems may not be edible due to their precocious flowering hardening. Flowers will be eaten. The beetroot tubers are quite small probably due to crop density and early flowering, they might also be too fibrous to eat, the leaves will be used as a salad as well as the basil flowers. Three tomatoes were damaged, one seems edible and was the only one accounted for while weighing the tomatoes.

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Astronomy Report – March 31st

[category  astronomy-report]

Report title: Astronomy Report
Crew #: 333
Position: Crew Astronomer
Report prepared by: Matias Ballivian Ascarrunz
Date: 31-3-2026
Sol: 2

MDRS ROBOTIC OBSERVATORY
Robotic Telescope Requested: MDRS-WF
Objects to be Imaged this Evening: M81 Bode Galaxie & M44 Beehive Cluste
Images submitted with this report: Messier 44 image taken with RGB filters and then combined.
Problems Encountered: None

MUSK OBSERVATORY
Solar Features Observed: N/A
Images submitted with this report: N/A
Problems Encountered: N/A

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EVA Report – March 31st

Report title: EVA Report
Crew #: 333
Position: Astronomer
Report prepared by: Matias Ballivian Ascarrunz
Date: 31-3-2026
Sol: 2

EVA #: 3

Purpose of EVA: An outing for Antoine’s research. The goal is to observe the landscape from an astronaut’s perspective and then capture video footage and photos with the drone.

Start time: 9:00 AM
End time: 10:56 AM

Narrative: The team prepared their equipment for the EVA at 8:30 AM, after confirming everything was working smoothly, the headset of comms kit #2 was not repaired. They departed at 9:00 AM after the decompression, they took Opportunity and Curiosity rovers. They arrive at Compass Rock with no further problem at 9:30AM to start with the research from Antoine. After accessing the terrain by walking to a higher view point where one of the crew members had a small fall, they walked a little further than the rovers to start answering Antoine’s questionnaire. The team realised that Antoine forgot to take one of the drone cables but this wasn’t much of an issue as he is planned to go out later today in the afternoon. They answered the first part of the questionnaire then returned to their rovers. They came back to the Hab without issue at 10:49am and put their rovers to charge. They started decompression at 10:51 am with no issues.

Destination per MDRS Map: Compass Rock
Destination Coordinates (use UTM WGS 84): 519900E 4263000N

EVA Participants:
Antoine, Executive officer (Team lead)
Joanna, Journalist
Matthias, Greenhab Officer

Road(s) and routes per MDRS Map: Cow Dung road and Galileo road
Mode of travel: Driving and walking

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Operations Report – March 31st

Report title: Operations Report
Crew #: 333
Position: Executive Officer / Crew Engineer
Report prepared by: Antoine Dubois
Date: 31-03-2026
Sol: 2

Non-nominal systems: EVA radio headset & pressurised tunnels

Notes on non-nominal systems: Pressurised tunnels: Repaired the pressurised tunnel using zip ties.

EVA radio headset:

Problems found:

  • The 3.5 mm plug of the headset connector should be connected to the speaker. Using a tester, we do not detect any current flowing through it (neither positive nor negative). Possible open circuit in the cable.

  • The 2.5 mm plug is for PTT and microphone. We detected that the speaker and this plug appear to be connected. Possible short circuit in the cable. However, one side seems to be working correctly, as one ring of the plug is properly connected to one microphone wire.

Possible solutions:

  • Solder a new cable. This could permanently damage the headset if not done carefully.

  • Re-solder the existing connections using the current cable, in case the issue is caused by faulty or loose connections.

ROVERS

Spirit rover used: EVA #4

Hours (before EVA): 301

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: 38%

Currently charging: No

Opportunity rover used: EVA #3

Hours: 264.7

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: 43%

Currently charging: No

Curiosity rover used: EVA #3

Hours: 353

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: 49%

Currently charging: No

Perseverance rover used: EVA #4

Hours: 401.8

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: 31%

Currently charging: No

General notes on rovers: Nothing to report

Summary of Hab operations:

Water Use: 13.15 gallons

Main tank level: 327 gallons

Main water tank pipe heater (ON or OFF): OFF

Main water tank heater (ON or OFF): OFF

Toilet tank emptied (NO or YES): NO

Summary of internet: Connection used for research, sending reports, translation and music.

Summary of suits and radios:

  • Matthias De Groote, Greenhab Officer: Suits and radio 5

  • Matias Ballivian, Astronomer: Suits and radio 4

  • Marie, Commander: Suits and radio 1

  • Antoine, Executive officer: Suits and radio 2 (headset 4 & 3)

  • Joanna, Journalist: Suits and radio 6

Summary of GreenHab operations:

Water use: 6 gallons

Heater (ON or OFF): ON, 70 F°

Supplemental light (hours of operation): 6:00 pm to 11:30 pm

Harvest (name, weight in grams): Two fennels (38 g), three beetroots (tubers: 9 g, leaves 45 g), tomatoes (undamaged: 36 g, damaged 18 g, total: 54 g) and basil ( 26 g)

Summary of ScienceDome operations: None

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

Summary of RAM operations:

  1. EVA radio headset: Using a multimeter to test headphones

  2. Pressurised tunnels: Use of 6/7 zip ties to secure the pressurised tunnels and cutting pliers.

Summary of any observatory issues: None

Summary of health and safety issues:

  • The main door opened during the EVA but was closed by the crew members after they returned to the spacecraft to resolve the issue.

  • Left posterior lower rib pain improved by about 50% after 2 g paracetamol and 800 mg ibuprofen; monitoring ongoing.

  • One crew member experienced a minor fall during EVA with no pain, only a mild bruise appearing 4 hours later.

Questions, concerns and requests to Mission Support:

  • Is it possible to install Home Assistant on our laptop?

  • What is recommended by Mission Support for headset 4? Are there any specific instructions on how to proceed?

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Operations Report – March 30th

Report title: Operations Report
Crew #: 333
Position: Executive Officer / Crew Engineer
Report prepared by: Antoine Dubois
Date: 30-03-2026
Sol: 1

Non-nominal systems: EVA radio headset.

Notes on non-nominal systems: Radio headset No. 2 was not working. The crew must endeavour to resolve this issue as soon as possible.

ROVERS

Spirit rover used: EVA #2

Hours (before EVA): 300.7

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: 64%

Currently charging: Yes

Opportunity rover used: EVA #1

Hours: 264.2

Beginning charge: 83%

Ending charge: 41%

Currently charging: No

Curiosity rover used: EVA #1

Hours: 352.5

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: 54%

Currently charging: No

Perseverance rover used: EVA #2

Hours: 401.4

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: 55%

Currently charging: Yes

General notes on rovers: Nothing to report

Summary of Hab operations:

Water Use (see notes): 13.35 gallons

Main tank level (remaining gallons, see notes): 345 gallons

Main water tank pipe heater (ON or OFF): OFF

Main water tank heater (ON or OFF): OFF

Toilet tank emptied (NO or YES): NO (but they were emptied during SOL 0)

Summary of internet: Connection used for translation, research, reporting, and music.

Summary of suits and radios:

  • Matthias De Groote, Greenhab Officer : Suits and radio 5

  • Matias Ballivian, Astronomer : Suits and radio 4

  • Zahraa Al-bayati, HSO : Suits and radio 3

  • Marie, Commander : Suits and radio 1

  • Antoine, Executive officer : Suits and radio 2

  • Joanna, Journalist : Suits and radio 6

Summary of GreenHab operations:

Water use: 1.26 gallons

Heater (ON or OFF): OFF

Supplemental light (hours of operation): 6pm – 11:30pm

Harvest (name, weight in grams): None

Summary of ScienceDome operations: None

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

Summary of RAM operations: Nothing to report

Summary of any observatory issues: Out off service

Summary of health and safety issues: None

Questions, concerns and requests to Mission Support: N/A

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EVA Report – March 30th

Report title: EVA Report
Crew #: 333
Position: Astronomer
Report prepared by: Matias Ballivian Ascarrunz
Date: 30-03-2026
Sol: 1

EVA #: 1

Purpose of EVA: We are heading out to scout the area and check that all the equipment is functional in the field.

Start time: 9:00 AM
End time: 11:00 AM

Narrative: We performed a dry test of the EVA equipment, the EVA comms kit #2 had the headset not working we replaced it with the one from the kit #4. The rest of the equipment was working just fine. The EVA team performed 5 min of decompression and did the check of the rover and state of battery. The team moved to Pooh’s corner to try the drone and assured the good function of it, then they went to the cowboy corner with the rover and explored the area by foot. After sometime they came back/, with no further news.

Destination per MDRS Map: Pooh’s Corner and Cowboy Corner
Destination Coordinates (use UTM WGS 84): E 577700, N 4254200 (Zone 12N); E 519981, N 4252143 (Zone 12N)

EVA Participants:
Marie, Commander, Team Lead
Antoine, Executive officer
Joanna, Journalist

Road(s) and routes per MDRS Map: Cow dung Road to the North

Mode of travel: Driving and walking

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Journalist Report – March 30th

Report title: Journalist Report
Crew #: 333
Position: Crew Journalist
Report prepared by: Joanna Galloway
Date: 30-03-2026
Sol: 1

Journalist Report Title: A small step for Crew 333

We woke up today for our first day of simulation. After having porridge for breakfast, it was soon time for our first EVA. During the suit-up, we realized there was an issue with the headset in Com’s kit #2, so we switched to the one in Com’s kit #4. Joanna, Antoine, and Marie headed out to explore the surroundings, while Matias stayed back as Com’s officer with help from Zahraa. Meanwhile, Matthias started potting plants for his experiments. The EVA went mostly smoothly. We briefly lost contact with the drone, which meant returning to Pooh’s Corner to retrieve it before continuing on to Cowboy Corner. After taking in the Martian-like landscape and testing the drone, we returned to the Hab for lunch: fried rice prepared by Matias and Zahraa. Matthias also fixed a technical issue he had with the GreenHab data on the Mac.

After eating, we debriefed and shared our thoughts on the first EVA, then finished our EVA report. As the clock approached 2pm, the second group began preparing for their EVA. This time, Matthias, Matias, and Zahraa went out to explore and better understand the subtleties of an EVA. They came back in awe of what they had seen. Their EVA went smoothly and they had no issue finding their way around the martian terrain. During their EVA, Antoine served as Com’s officer, while Marie and Joanna took some time to exercise on the bike. Once everyone was back, we had a small get-together and worked on our reports. Antoine and Matthias later did some exercise together. Tonight’s dinner is shepherd’s pie, and we’re planning to end the day with a movie night.

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Sol Summary – March 30th

Report title: Sol Summary Report
Crew #: 333
Position: Crew Commander
Report prepared by: Marie Jansen
Date: 30-03-2026
Sol: 1

Summary Title: First day on Mars

Mission Status: Exploring the area

Sol Activity Summary:

Today we woke up at 7:30 AM and had breakfast. We started getting ready at 8:00 AM, with departure at 9:00 AM for the EVA with Antoine, Joanna and Marie. Matias served as our CAPCOM at the base, while Matthias and Zahraa worked on their experiments. The EVA crew returned at 11:00 AM. We then had lunch and worked on our reports.

There was then a second EVA by the other group of the team (Matias, Matthias and Zahraa). The remaining crew members worked on their reports and exercised. We then had dinner at 7:00 PM.

Look Ahead Plan:

Tomorrow our program is based on an EVA to continue exploring the area. Our crew will keep advancing in their research and further discover the surroundings to establish their landmarks. We will also be putting together a menu for the coming days.

Anomalies in work:

In kit COM 2, the microphone is not working.

Weather:

Sunny and high winds

Crew Physical Status:

Physically fit and well, just a bit tired. Only a previous injury that reappeared for one crew member, but it was well taken care of.

EVA:

EVA 1 and 2 conducted successfully.

Reports to be filed:

  • Sol Summary

  • Operations Report

  • Greenhab Report

  • Journalist Report

  • EVA Report

  • EVA Requests

  • Daily photos

Support Requested: None

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