jburk

January 3, 2022January 17, 2022

Sol Summary – December 21st

Crew 236 Sol Summary Report 21-DEC-2021

Sol: 2

Summary Title: A Slow Day

Author’s name: Kasey Hilton

Mission Status: Nominal

Sol Activity Summary: With no EVA scheduled for the day, the crew had a late wake up finished off with pancakes and Nutella for breakfast. With full bellies, everyone spent the afternoon working on research and outreach projects, processing images captured in the observatories, and harvesting a long awaited carrot and cucumber. By the end, everyone felt refreshed and recharged. Today was indeed a slow day in the Hab for crew 236.

Look Ahead Plan: There is an EVA planned for tomorrow for collecting rock samples. Everyone else at the Hab will be continuing to work on research and outreach from inside the Hab.

Anomalies in work: None

Weather: Partly overcast, temperature in the 30s

Crew Physical Status: Everyone is happy and healthy. However, crew journalist, Ben, is quoted saying that he “cannot be defeated by conventional weapons”, but I guess a metal stair to the shin does not fall into that classification. No physical injury occurred, just an injury to his pride and a short moment of pain.

EVA: No EVA today

Reports to be filed: Operations Report, GreenHab Report, EVA Request, Health and Safety Report, Sol Summary, and Journalist Report (with photos)

Support Requested: None

January 3, 2022January 17, 2022

Operations – December 28th

Crew 236 EVA Report 28-DEC-2021

EVA # 9

Author: Kasey Hilton

Purpose of EVA: Evaluation of soil and ground conditions for additional potential habitat locations

Start time: 10:30

End time: 14:00

Narrative: The crew entered the airlock at 10:35 and headed towards Candor Chasma shortly after. Once both rovers were parked on Galileo, the crew headed east toward the destination. After hiking down into Candor Chasma, 2 locations were measured to see if they were large enough for a habitat, but neither were, however the ground and soil conditions were acceptable. This leads Vladimir (GHO) to believe that further east into Candor Chasma, there could be locations large and solid enough for a potential habitat location. At 12:15, the crew turned around and headed back to the rovers. The crew arrived back at the Hab at 12:54. The EVA, although not producing the desired results, is still considered a success, since multiple sites were evaluated.

Destination: Candor Chasma/Region G

Coordinates (use UTM NAD27 CONUS): N4251000, W521000

Participants: Kasey (CMD), Vladimir (GHO), and Ben (JOU)

Road(s) and routes per MDRS Map: From the Hab, driving north on Cow Dung Rd to Galileo Rd and Galileo Rd to near area F; walking from area F east to Candor Chasma

Mode of travel: Driving and walking

January 3, 2022January 17, 2022

Operations – December 30th

Crew 236 Operations Report 30-DEC-2021

SOL: 11

Name of person filing report: Pavithra Ravi

Non-nominal systems: 1 radio and 2 suits didn’t function well on EVA.
It is possible they didn’t charge properly as they may have been
unplugged for part of yesterday (during power conservation).

ROVERS

Spirit rover used: Yes
Hours: 148.8
Beginning charge: 100%
Ending charge: 96%
Currently charging: Left unplugged after last EVA to save power. To be
charged by Shannon.

Opportunity rover used: No
Hours: N/A
Beginning charge: N/A
Ending charge: N/A
Currently charging: Left unplugged after last EVA to save power. To be
charged by Shannon.

Curiosity rover used: Yes
Hours: 157.8
Beginning charge: 100%
Ending charge: 99%
Currently charging: Left unplugged after EVA to save power. To be
charged by Shannon.

Perseverance rover used: No
Hours: N/A
Beginning charge: N/A
Ending charge: N/A
Currently charging: To be charged by Shannon.

General notes and comments: None

Summary of Hab operations: we received some extra water today (woo!)

WATER USE:
Water (static tank): approx. 130 gallons
Water (loft tank): 40 gallons
Water Meter: 01542971 units
Static to Loft Pump used – yes or no: Yes. It was filled from 12 to 50
gallons this morning.
Static tank pipe heater (on or off): On
Static tank heater (on or off) Off
Toilet tank emptied (no or yes): No

Summary of internet: Nominal

Summary of suits and radios: 1 radio and 2 suits died during the EVA.
It is possible they didn’t charge properly as they may have been
unplugged for part of yesterday (during power conservation).

Summary of GreenHab operations: Nominal
WATER USE: 7 gallons were used today. This leaves about 151 gallons
in the tank.
Heater (on or off): On
Supplemental light (on or off): On
Harvest: 79g cucumber, 14g tomato, 3g basil
Summary of ScienceDome operations: Nominal
Dual split, Heat or AC (on or off): off

Summary of RAM operations: Tools used, work done
Nothing used.

Summary of any observatory issues: Nothing new to report.

Summary of health and safety issues: Nominal

Questions, concerns and requests to Mission Support:
None

January 3, 2022January 17, 2022

Operations Report- December 20th

Hello! We had a great first day. Thank you for your support!

SOL: 1

Name of person filing report: Pavithra Ravi

Non-nominal systems: Toilet at HAB

Notes on non-nominal systems: Toilet has a leak. A plastic container
is being used to collect the water, which is then sent down the
toilet.

Generator:

Hours run: Information provided by Outpost

From what time last night: Information provided by Outpost

To what time this morning: 7:20 AM

List any additional daytime hours when the generator was run: None

Solar— SOC % (Before generator is run at night): Information provided by Outpost

Station Propane Reading – % Information provided by Outpost

Ethanol Free Gasoline: Not in use

Water (loft tank): 55 gallons

Water Meter: 1539024 units

Water (static tank): approx. 415 gallons

Static to Loft Pump used – yes. Refilled at 7:21 PM from 21 to 55 Gallons.

Water in GreenHab: approx. 240.5 gallons

Water in ScienceDome: N/A

Toilet tank emptied: yes, emptied at 11:45 AM

Deimos rover used: No

Hours: N/A

Beginning charge: N/A

Ending charge: N/A

Currently charging: N/A

Sojourner rover used: ASSIGNED TO DIRECTOR

Hours: N/A

Beginning charge: N/A

Ending charge: N/A

Currently charging: N/A

Spirit rover used: Yes

Hours (before EVA 1): 146.3

Beginning charge (Before EVA 1): 100%

Ending charge (On return from EVA 1, before recharging): 99%

Rover was charged before EVA 2.

Hours (before EVA 2): 146.4

Beginning charge (Before EVA 2): 100%

Ending charge (On return from EVA 2, before recharging): 100%

Currently charging: Yes

Opportunity rover used: Yes, for EVA 2

Hours: 76.3

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: 100%

Currently charging: Yes

Curiosity rover used: Yes, for EVA 1

Hours: 154.6

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: 100%

Currently charging: Yes

Notes on rovers: None

ATV’s Used (Honda, 300, 350.1, 350.2, 350.3): None

Reason for use: N/A

Oil Added? N/A

ATV Fuel Used: N/A

# Hours the ATVs were used today: N/A

Notes on ATVs: N/A

HabCar used and why, where? No

CrewCar used and why, where? No

General notes and comments: None

Summary of internet: MOS-MOCC wifi network is no longer available.
Only the regular Mars Hab wifi is in use.

Summary of suits and radios: Nominal

Summary of Hab operations: Nominal. Small concern: the window above
the couch in the Hab does not fit and is letting air in.

Summary of GreenHab operations: Nominal

Summary of ScienceDome operations: Nominal

Summary of RAM operations: Nominal

Summary of any observatory issues: Problems with the dome movement
have been reported to the astronomy support team.

Summary of health and safety issues: Nominal

Questions, concerns and requests to Mission Support: None

January 3, 2022January 17, 2022

Operations Report – December 21st

Crew 236 Operations Report 21Dec2021

SOL: 2

Name of person filing report: Pavithra Ravi

Non-nominal systems:

Notes on non-nominal systems:

Generator:

Hours run: 13 hours 48 minutes

From what time last night: 18:07

To what time this morning: 07:55

List any additional daytime hours when the generator was run: None

Solar— SOC % (Before generator is run at night): Information provided by Outpost

Station Propane Reading – % Information provided by Outpost

Ethanol Free Gasoline: Not in use

Water (loft tank): 29 gallons

Water Meter: 1539449 units

Water (static tank): approx. 415 gallons

Static to Loft Pump used: No

Water in GreenHab: approx. 232 gallons

Water in ScienceDome: N/A

Toilet tank emptied: No

Deimos rover used: No

Hours: N/A

Beginning charge: N/A

Ending charge: N/A

Currently charging: N/A

Sojourner rover used: ASSIGNED TO DIRECTOR

Hours: N/A

Beginning charge: N/A

Ending charge: N/A

Currently charging: N/A

Spirit rover used: No

Hours (before EVA 1): N/A

Beginning charge (Before EVA 1): N/A

Ending charge (On return from EVA 1, before recharging): N/A

Hours (before EVA 2): N/A

Beginning charge (Before EVA 2): N/A

Ending charge (On return from EVA 2, before recharging): N/A

Currently charging: Yes

Opportunity rover used: No

Hours: N/A

Beginning charge: N/A

Ending charge: N/A

Currently charging: Yes

Curiosity rover used: No

Hours: N/A

Beginning charge: N/A

Ending charge: N/A

Currently charging: Yes

Notes on rovers: None

ATV’s Used (Honda, 300, 350.1, 350.2, 350.3): None

Reason for use: N/A

Oil Added? N/A

ATV Fuel Used: N/A

# Hours the ATVs were used today: N/A

Notes on ATVs: N/A

HabCar used and why, where? No

CrewCar used and why, where? No

General notes and comments:

Today the toilet leak worsened, requiring frequent dumping out of the
collected water. This has now been dealt with by keeping the water
valve closed, except for when flushing is required.

The exposed power outlets above the stove in the hab have been covered
with gorilla tape as a safety precaution.

The gaps surrounding the window above the couch in the hab have also
been blocked out with gorilla tape to minimize influx of (lethal)
martian atmosphere into our living area.

The temperature on the upper level of the hab has thankfully been
stabilized at around 70 F. The random bursts of cool air which we
received yesterday seem to have stopped (the trick was keeping the
thermostat at 70 instead of 75).

Summary of internet: Nominal

Summary of suits and radios: Nominal

Summary of Hab operations: Nominal.

Summary of GreenHab operations: Nominal

Summary of ScienceDome operations: Nominal

Summary of RAM operations: Nominal

Summary of any observatory issues: In correspondence with the
astronomy support team.

Summary of health and safety issues: Nominal

Questions, concerns and requests to Mission Support: None

January 3, 2022January 17, 2022

Sol Summary – Jannuary 2nd

Crew 238 Sol Summary Report 02-01-2022

Sol: 320

Summary Title: Arrival

Author’s name: Sionade Robinson, Commander

Mission Status: Training

Sol Activity Summary: We arrived at MDRS early afternoon and spent the rest of the day familiarising ourselves with the MDRS Mission Campus and beginning our training with MDRS Mission support.

Look Ahead Plan: We will complete our training and assessments tomorrow and seek to commence Sim on Tuesday morning.

Anomalies in work: None

Weather: Clear and crisp

Crew Physical Status: Nominal

EVA: TBC after training.

Reports to be filed: Sol and Operations

Support Requested: Training completion and sign off.

January 1, 2022

Final Mission Summary – Crew 236

Mars Desert Research Station

Mission Summary

Crew 236 – Cradle of Martians

December 19, 2021 – January 1, 2022

Crew Members

Commander: Kasey Hilton

Executive Officer and Health and Safety Officer: Dr. Cesare Guariniello

Crew Scientist: Tyler Nord

GreenHab Officer: Vladimir Zeltsman

Crew Astronomer: Dylan Dilger

Crew Engineer: Pavithra “Pavi” Ravi

Crew Journalist: Benjamin “Ben” Durkee

Acknowledgements

The entire Crew of MDRS 236 would like to express their gratitude to the many people who made this mission possible: our deepest thanks to Dr. Robert Zubrin, President of the Mars Society; Dr. Shannon Rupert, MDRS Director and Program Manager, who managed and supported our mission, and helped us troubleshoot any issues; Atila Meszaros, Assistant Director, who also managed and supported our crew and served as CAPCOM many times during the rotation; Dr. Peter Detterline, Director of Observatories, who trained and assisted our Crew Astronomer before and during the mission; David Murray, GreenHab Manager; Michael Stoltz, The Mars Society Liaison, Media and Public Relations; Scott Davis and NorCal Chapter, responsible for Spacesuits; the amazing and friendly Mission Support CAPCOM who served during our rotation: Bernard Dubb, Andrew Foster, Graeme Frear, Asma Akhter, and MJ Marggraff; Purdue MARS; all the departments and people at Purdue University who supported this mission; Kathy Celestine and Estelle Scott, for writing Christmas cards to the crew; and all the unnamed people, friends, and family, who supported and worked behind the scenes to make this effort possible, and who gave us a chance to be an active part of the effort towards human exploration of Mars.

Mission description and outcome

MDRS 236 “Cradle of Martians” is the fourth all-Purdue crew at MDRS. This mission encountered different challenges, one of the biggest being COVID-19, which delayed the original mission from the 2020-21 field season to the 2021-22 field season. Other challenges included wind and technical malfunctions making EVAs more difficult and non-nominal systems affecting heating and plumbing in the Hab. Even the logistics of the mission preparation was a challenge, with crew members being spread across the United States and even into Europe. However, the crew continuously rolled with the punches and pushed forward with optimistic attitudes. This is what we at crew 236 like to call “making do”. Making do isn’t about merely surviving life on Mars, but using the ups and downs of this Red Planet to revive our spirit of adventure and spontaneity, and to learn and adapt in order to make giant leaps for humankind. As commander, this is what I’m the most proud of my crew for. Their ability and effort to continue living the Martian life with full hearts, smiles on their faces, and a joke or two always up their sleeves. The research and outreach of the crew reflects that attitude. All crew members performed to very high standards and made substantial progress on their research projects and outreach. As described in the rest of this summary, the crew collected useful and interesting data during their time at MDRS and have plans to use the data after the completion of the mission, as well as ideas for laying foundations for further collaboration of Purdue crews with the MDRS program.

Figure 1. MDRS 236 posing in front of the Hab with a Purdue flag. Left to right: (top row) Executive Officer and Health and Safety Officer Cesare Guariniello, Crew Journalist Ben Durkee, Crew Scientist Tyler Nord, Crew Astronomer Dylan Dilger, (bottom row) Commander Kasey Hilton, Crew Engineer Pavi Ravi, and GreenHab Officer Vladimir Zeltsman

Summary of Extra Vehicular Activities (EVA)

After being trained in the use of rovers and in the safety protocols for EVA, the crew had eleven excursions during rotation 236. Two were training EVA to Marble Ritual, 6 more being successful, and another three being shortened or cancelled due to weather or system malfunctions. The EVA served three research projects: scouting additional habitat locations, collection of geological samples, and heat mapping of geological features. The crew optimized the time on the field, limiting the driving time to less than 22% of the entire EVA duration.

Figure 2. Two-dimensional view of the EVAs performed by MDRS 236 crew

Science Summary

Crew 236 had 10 separate projects that covered a range of topics. Four projects were EVA related and all but one desired EVA was completed. These EVA related projects evaluated additional habitat locations, created heat maps of different geological locations, and categorizing geological samples for use on Mars. The indoor projects evaluated the robustness of MDRS, used the observatories to capture pictures of different celestial bodies, optimized the layout of the Hab, and created content for outreach to the general public and school aged children. Overall, each project uniquely highlighted each crewmember’s strengths, and brought light to necessity of bringing humans to the surface of Mars for both scientific and engineering related research and outreach.

Figure 3. Image taken and processed by Crew Astronomer, Dylan Dilger, of the Orion Nebula (M42)

December 29, 2021January 1, 2022

Journalist Report – December 29th

Journalist Report
Ben Durkee, Crew 236 Journalist

Sol 10

I’m starting to think that we’re the problem children of Mars. Under our watch, the Hab’s toilet, heater, and power system have independently acted up. I’m not superstitious, but I could be convinced that we’re cursed. Maybe I’m a little superstitious.

I won’t go into the details of the toilet issue – reliving it in my head triggers my gag reflex. Just know that these Martian boys are making do.

The heater has occasionally been blowing cold air whenever we look away from it, like a playful thermal Weeping Angel. Explains why everyone’s staterooms have been comfortable at night while the loft becomes a cryogenic chamber. I always thought that heat rises, but maybe physics work differently on Mars.

The sun has been playing a one-sided game of hide-and-seek, proliferating our power predicament primarily produced by a perturbing propane paucity. I am so sorry about that sentence. I think I blacked out for a few seconds – probably from thinking about the sewage again.

But at the same time, maybe this crew’s dysfunction is our strength! We powered down all non-necessary systems and had breakfast in the dark, brought together by the camaraderie of our new Amish lifestyle. It was kinda like when you were a kid and the power went out, so you gathered around a flashlight with your family and chowed down on the ice cream before it could melt. Man, I miss ice cream. Maybe my family too, just an ounce. But mostly ice cream.

We also had our first EVA composed of all Martian rookies today! And it went off without a hitch. Take that, curse!

In the meantime, we veterans had a day at home, in which the others helped me with my outreach. By outreach, I mean me belting out ABBA’s Mamma Mia in various locations across the station. It’s hard work, you know.

Eventually, the sun overcame its cowardice and we were able to return to business as usual. We played some card games in the Hab. Dylan showed us some gorgeous photos he’s taken of various celestial bodies with the observatory. We wound down with a delicious Filipino stew made by Chef Vlad and Chef Pavi.

Later, we’ll be celebrating our newfound electricity by finishing Apollo 13. We’ve been trying for a few nights in a row now, but always get rudely interrupted by that pesky curse. Third time’s the charm, I hope.

Oh, I know what the problem is! Mars must be in retrograde – that’s gotta be it. I’ll be speaking with the crew astronomer to get this remedied right away. I bet he’s a Taurus. Classic Taurus.

December 29, 2021January 1, 2022

Operations Report – December 29th

Crew 236 Operations Report 29-DEC-2021

SOL: 10

Name of person filing report: Pavithra Ravi

Non-nominal systems: None

ROVERS

Spirit rover used: No
Hours: N/A
Beginning charge: N/A
Ending charge: N/A
Currently charging: Left unplugged after last EVA to save power. To be
charged by Shannon.

Opportunity rover used: Yes
Hours: 77.8
Beginning charge: 100%
Ending charge: 89%
Currently charging: Left unplugged after EVA to save power. To be
charged by Shannon.

Curiosity rover used: Yes
Hours: 157.3
Beginning charge: 100%
Ending charge: 100%
Currently charging: Left unplugged after EVA to save power. To be
charged by Shannon.

Perseverance rover used: No
Hours: N/A
Beginning charge: N/A
Ending charge: N/A
Currently charging: To be charged by Shannon.

General notes and comments: None

Summary of Hab operations: The toilet flush is not functioning and
there is about an inch of waste stuck to the bottom of the tank that
we have not been able to flush away. In the past 24 hours, we have
flushed the toilet about 4 times (by filling buckets in the shower and
emptying it into the toilet), to no avail. Flushing the toilet for
individual use with a little bucket has not been too rough, so we can
make it work till the end of our rotation, after which a new toilet
will be installed.

We were in power conservation mode today due to cloud cover limiting
the available solar power.

WATER USE:

Water (static tank): approx. 100-150 gallons after all that flushing!
Water (loft tank): 21 gallons
Water Meter: 01542759 units

Static to Loft Pump used – yes or no: Yes. It was filled from 32 to 55
gallons this afternoon.
Static tank pipe heater (on or off): On
Static tank heater (on or off) Off

Toilet tank emptied (no or yes): yes, around 14:30

Summary of internet: Nominal

Summary of suits and radios: Nominal

We ran out of one can of plexiglass cleaner and are onto a second one.

Summary of GreenHab operations: Nominal

WATER USE: 7 gallons were used today. This leaves about 158 gallons
in the tank.

Heater (on or off): On

Supplemental light (on or off): On

Harvest: 5g of parsley, 2g of wheatgrass, 1g Thai hot pepper

Summary of ScienceDome operations: Nominal

Dual split, Heat or AC (on or off): off

Summary of RAM operations: Tools used, work done