Category: Operations Report

Supplemental Operations Report 31-DEC-2022

Name of person filing report: Shannon Rupert
Reason for Report: Routine/ Last day of 2022!

Non-nominal systems: Power system, toilet, cabinet door under sink in Hab

Action taken for non-nominal systems: See notes below for toilet and power system. The cabinet door might not be replaceable and if it isn’t we will go forage through the storage and see if there is an extra one in the cabinets for the ScienceDome

Generator: Running from about 8 pm to 8 am. The generator was repaired on Thursday. The problem was the governor, which had lost a small plastic pin and as a result was unstable and the vibration of the engine was causing the surging. How crazy! We also needed the oil pressure sensor changed as it was faulty and we had the bushings replaced because they would have needed it soon. The technician was great and spent a lot of time showing us what things were commonly needed and how to replace them. I am very grateful to not have to worry every night about losing power! The oil pressure sensor will be mailed to us, but it is easy to replace. He did not have one with him.

Solar— Nominal but we have had some cloudy days and since the generator currently won’t charge the batteries, we have had to use the generator more hours than normal.

Solar— SOC Last 24 hours:
Max 100
Min 44
Avg 65.9
Power system notes: I reprogramed the router so SOC can again be monitored remotely. Yay, me!

Propane Reading, station tank – 73 % (all propane tanks were filled on Tuesday, the 27th, in anticipation of the storm

Propane Reading, director tank— 83 %
Propane Reading, intern tank— 81 %
Propane Reading, generator— 73 %

Ethanol Free Gasoline – 0 gallons

Water (static tank) – 550 gallons
Water in GreenHab – not noted gallons
Water in ScienceDome: 0 gallons
Water (Outpost tank) – 400 gallons

Hab toilet tank emptied: See crew operations reports. On the 31st, I did flush the tank three times: 1. Filled it up and emptied what was left from the crew. It smelled. 2. Added a bottle of dish soap and 5 gallons of hot water and emptied. 3. Filled it with fresh water and emptied, then added water and digester so it is usable. Each time I emptied it I still heard the glub, glub, meaning something is still wrong (how do you think my very professional words?)

Sojourner rover used: yes
Hours: not noted
Beginning charge: 100
Ending charge: 100
Currently charging: yes
Notes on rovers: nothing to report

ATV’s Used: (Honda, 350.1, 350.2, 300): none
Reason for use: n/a
Oil Added? no
ATV Fuel Used: 0 Gals
# Hours the ATVs were Used today: 0
Notes on ATVs: Nothing to report

HabCar used and why, where? Yes, to town
CrewCar used and why, where? Yes, to town and to Grand Junction

Luna used and why, where? No
General notes and comments: Nothing to note

Summary of internet: Nominal. HughesNet is being moved from my trailer and will be reinstalled in the Hab for crew use during simulation.

Summary of suits and radios: See crew operations reports.

EVA COMMS: Further changes to the COMMS system did not improve signal. They were: all radios with larger antenna, a rover mounted unit, and extending the repeater antenna by an additional eight feet. The decision was made to reinstall the system on the North Ridge, which was where it was when we tested it last season. Crew 271 did find a route to the top of the ridge, but it is going to take a huge effort to move it. We will do this as soon as we can, but it may be awhile before everything comes together.

Campus wide inspection, if action taken, what and why? RAM exterior needs some repainting.

Summary of general operations: It was so strange to have two external people on site in one week to work on systems. The crew mentioned this and I hadn’t thought about it, but I think I’m so lucky to have found people who can help when we really need it. We had the generator technician and then the electrician and the off-grid guy.

Summary of Hab operations: One of the bean bag chairs broke and the crew threw it away although I had planned to send it back. One of the two doors on the kitchen cabinet under the sink broke and is scheduled to be repaired tomorrow. We noted several things needing attention during the two week period at the end of January when we have no crew. The electrician was also briefed on where and what we wanted done with outlets, etc. He will determine where electrical rewiring needs to be done. The off-grid guy studied the power system and we shall see if he can solve the mystery of why the generator and the inverters won’t get along.

Summary of Outpost operations: General cleanup in preparation for upgrading deck.

Summary of GreenHab operations: Supplemental light 10-2 pm.

Summary of ScienceDome operations: Standing desk was returned from the Hab.

ScienceDome Dual Split: on at 65 degrees overnight (when I remember).

Summary of RAM operations: We have a lot of used oil to recycle.

Summary of any observatory issues: Both observatories were used by Crew 271 and some issues were reported to Peter.

Summary of health and safety issues: Nothing to report

Questions, concerns, supplies needed and requests: Happy New Year and welcome to Donald Jacques, our new Site Manager, who arrived at MDRS this evening in his big black bus!

Name of person filing report: Shannon Rupert

Reason for Report: Routine/crew changeover

Non-nominal systems: Hab toilet has something wrong and it is not emptying correctly.

Action taken for non-nominal systems: We will be investigating tomorrow

Generator: Running from about 8 pm to 8 am. We looked into some of the issues surrounding the autostart last weekend and as usual, the power system decided to seek revenge. The router is showing as SOC connect for the generator but the online data is only showing VDC. Sooooo…. We need to figure out which parts of the system need reprogrammed.

ScienceDome Dual Split: on at 65 degrees overnight

Solar— Nominal (see generator notes for some issues with the power system as a whole)

Solar— SOC Last 24 hours:

Max

Min

Avg not showing the way it is currently operating

Propane Reading, station tank – filled Friday %

Propane Reading, director tank— filled Friday %

Propane Reading, intern tank— Filled Friday %

Propane Reading, generator— Filled Friday %

Ethanol Free Gasoline – 0 gallons

Water (static tank) – 550 gallons

Water in GreenHab – 200 gallons

Water in ScienceDome: 0 gallons

Water (Outpost tank) – 550 gallons

Hab toilet tank emptied: Yes, it has been emptied every two days this week as there is a blockage.

Sojourner rover used: no

Hours: not noted

Beginning charge: 100

Ending charge: 100

Currently charging: yes

Notes on rovers: nothing to report

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

Reason for use: n/a

Oil Added? no

ATV Fuel Used: 0 Gals

# Hours the ATVs were Used today: 0

Notes on ATVs: Nothing to report

HabCar used and why, where? Yes, to town and on SWB field trip to Salt Wash

CrewCar used and why, where? No. It has been in Grand Junction.

Luna used and why, where? Yes, to town

General notes and comments: Camera with alarm (to alert us to trespassers) was installed on the side of the Hab but was too far away to trigger the alarm so we are moving it soon to the old HughesNet mount near the GreenHab

Summary of internet: Nominal.

Summary of suits and radios: See crew operations reports.

Campus wide inspection, if action taken, what and why? Nothing to report

Summary of general operations: Conduit work delayed

Summary of Hab operations: As noted above the toilet has a problem that we need to investigate. I ordered a new humidifier for the upper deck. The one we had was not operational nor was it one I purchased.

Summary of Outpost operations: I broke one half of the handle to the output on my trailer’s wastewater pipes because it was frozen. It is still usable. Sergii’s hot water to the bathroom froze last night. It’s been very cold for this early in the season. I’m also using my wall unit to supplement the heat in my house.

Summary of GreenHab operations: Shade cloth was removed. Supplemental light 10-2 pm. Tomatoes all moved to the bed frame. We transplanted the ones from the herb garden into pots as they were not thriving. We removed some of the snow peas to do this, and I replanted snow peas in the herb garden. I thinned the carrots and we replanted microgreens in one of the two raised beds. We also replanted cilantro in clay pot bottoms as they grow better than way. Tomorrow I will clear out the cilantro pot and plant another microgreen.

Summary of ScienceDome operations: Used all week for SWBU. I will be removing the broken microscopes and taking them to WA for replace. One of the teachers who was here for SWBU has donated a new microscope that I will pick up in SLC as soon as possible.

Summary of RAM operations: Added a spark plug gap measuring device and a new ratchet handle to the tools.

Summary of any observatory issues: Nothing to report

Summary of health and safety issues: Nothing to report

Questions, concerns, supplies needed and requests: n/a

Supplemental Operations Report 10-DEC-2022

Name of person filing report: Shannon Rupert
Reason for Report: Routine/crew changeover

Non-nominal systems: Nothing to report
Action taken for non-nominal systems: n/a
Generator: Running from about 8 pm to 8 am.
ScienceDome Dual Split: on at 65 degrees overnight

Solar— Nominal.
Solar— SOC Last 24 hours:
Max 100%
Min 59%
Avg 75.4%
Propane Reading, station tank – 55 %
Propane Reading, director tank— 57 %
Propane Reading, intern tank— 55 %
Propane Reading, generator— 61% (It’s pretty clear that the propane that was delivered last week was only to the generator tank, as it empties twice as fast as the other three.)
Ethanol Free Gasoline – 0 gallons
Water (static tank) – 550 gallons
Water in GreenHab – gallons
Water in ScienceDome: 0 gallons
Water (Outpost tank) – 250 gallons
Hab toilet tank emptied: check regular operations reports

Sojourner rover used: no
Hours: not noted
Beginning charge: 100
Ending charge: 100
Currently charging: yes
Notes on rovers: Oppy is no longer overheating

ATV’s Used: (Honda, 350.1, 350.2, 300): none
Reason for use: n/a
Oil Added? no
ATV Fuel Used: 0 Gals
# Hours the ATVs were Used today: 0
Notes on ATVs: Nothing to report
HabCar used and why, where? Yes, to town
CrewCar used and why, where? Yes, to town and to Grand Junction. Currently in Grand Junction for a week.
Luna used and why, where? Yes, to town
General notes and comments: We have started troubleshooting the power system issues.
Summary of internet: Nominal.
Summary of suits and radios: See crew operations reports.
Campus wide inspection, if action taken, what and why? Nothing to report
Summary of general operations: Conduit work delayed due to rain this week.

Summary of Hab operations: The crew reported that the humidifier on the upper deck was not working. We confirmed it wasn’t and in the process discovered that the humidifier was not actually one that we had purchased. Not really sure what happened there!

We fixed the door latch on the second stateroom door. This crew reported that they would have like some way to identify which door was theirs. Maybe we need to revisit the idea of numbers for the door.

We are set up and ready for the teachers of Spaceward Bound Utah Cohort 4 who arrive tomorrow.

Summary of Outpost operations: Sergii’s trailer now has carpet on the large tipout.

Summary of GreenHab operations: Plants were fertilized. Timer was installed but did not work. That was fixed today. I also realized that we still have the 90% shade cloth on so that will be removed tomorrow.

Summary of ScienceDome operations: Nothing to report.
Summary of RAM operations: Nothing to report
Summary of any observatory issues: Nothing to report
Summary of health and safety issues: Nothing to report
Questions, concerns, supplies needed and requests: n/a

SOL: 12

Name of person filing report: Ashley Kowalski

Non-nominal systems: Humidifier

Notes on non-nominal systems: Humidifier in kitchen is not working. Crew noticed it was not working during the beginning of the mission, but the Crew Engineer forgot to note it in the Operations Report.

ROVERS

Spirit rover used: No
Hours: N/A
Beginning charge: N/A
Ending charge: N/A
Currently charging: N/A

Opportunity rover used: No.
Hours: N/A
Beginning charge: N/A
Ending charge: N/A
Currently charging: N/A

Curiosity rover used: No
Hours: N/A
Beginning charge: N/A
Ending charge: N/A
Currently charging: N/A

Perseverance rover used: No
Hours: N/A
Beginning charge: N/A
Ending charge: N/A
Currently charging: N/A

General notes on rovers: No additional notes/comments.

Summary of Hab operations:
WATER USE: ~470 gallons used to-date (~50 gallons today)
Water (static tank): ~200 gallons (This is my best guess without a water gauge, but I am requesting Mission Support to let us know a more accurate value, if possible.)
Static tank pipe heater (on or off): On
Static tank heater (On or off): On
Toilet tank emptied: No.

Summary of internet: No issues with the internet. Connection is good.

Summary of suits and radios: All suits are functioning well and are fully charged.

Summary of GreenHab operations: Additional information can be found in the GreenHab Report.
WATER USE: ~59 gallons (~5 gallons today)
Heater: On
Supplemental light: On
Harvest: 11 grams of carrot tops

Summary of ScienceDome operations: Aerospace media crew performed interviews of Crew 269 in the ScienceDome.
Dual split: Per Mission Support’s message, the heat is on in the ScienceDome and set to 65 F.

Summary of RAM operations: No RAM operations today.

Summary of any observatory issues: No observatory issues.

Summary of health and safety issues: No health and safety issues.

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

SOL: 11

Name of person filing report: Ashley Kowalski

Non-nominal systems: N/A

Notes on non-nominal systems: N/A

ROVERS
Spirit rover used: No
Hours: N/A
Beginning charge: N/A
Ending charge: N/A
Currently charging: N/A

Opportunity rover used: No.
Hours: N/A
Beginning charge: N/A
Ending charge: N/A
Currently charging: N/A

Curiosity rover used: No
Hours: N/A
Beginning charge: N/A
Ending charge: N/A
Currently charging: N/A

Perseverance rover used: No
Hours: N/A
Beginning charge: N/A
Ending charge: N/A
Currently charging: N/A

General notes on rovers: No additional notes/comments.

Summary of Hab operations:
WATER USE: ~420 gallons used to-date (~45 gallons today)
Water (static tank): ~250 gallons (This is my best guess without a water gauge, but I am requesting Mission Support to let us know a more accurate value, if possible. Please note that the crew received a 120 gallon water resupply today since they needed to use additional water sources to empty the toilet tank again last night, which is more often than normal.)
Static tank pipe heater (on or off): On
Static tank heater (On or off): On
Toilet tank emptied: Yes, toilet tank was emptied last night after the Operations Report was sent.

Summary of internet: No issues with the internet. Connection is good.

Summary of suits and radios: Suit #3 was experiencing a low air flow. Because our GreenHab Officer already had Suit #3 fitted exactly to him, we decided to just switch the batteries from Suit #6 (the suit the Crew Engineer put a new battery in a few days ago) into Suit #3 and he was good to go for the EVA today. In the meantime, the Crew Engineer tested the original battery in Suit #3 and it was <12 V. She then put this battery into Suit #6 to charge it, and it seemed that the issue was with the power strip again. There is a button on the power strip that needs to be in the “reset” position and not the “off” position in order for the suits to charge. When it is in the “off” position, the chargers still shine green, giving the false illusion that the suits are charging. When the power strip is in the “reset” position, you can see that the chargers change to red when charging and green when fully charged. It must be in this position to ensure proper charging. Once the EVA ended, I switched the batteries back into their original suits. All suits are charging properly now and ready to use.

Summary of GreenHab operations: Additional information can be found in the GreenHab Report.
WATER USE: ~54 gallons (~5 gallons today)
Heater: On
Supplemental light: On
Harvest: N/A

Summary of ScienceDome operations: Mirror sample inspections were performed by the Crew Engineer and Health and Safety Officer in the ScienceDome this evening after the EVA. We had to break for dinner and daily evening reports, so we will complete our inspections by 10 PM tonight since we have one more mirror sample to inspect.
Dual split: Per Mission Support’s message, the heat is on in the ScienceDome and set to 65 F.

Summary of RAM operations: No RAM operations today.

Summary of any observatory issues: No observatory issues.

Summary of health and safety issues: No health and safety issues.

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

SOL: 10

Name of person filing report: Ashley Kowalski

Non-nominal systems: Toilet odor has returned

Notes on non-nominal systems: The odor from our toilet has returned. The water level in the toilet is getting high, so it needs to be emptied. However, since we had previous toilet issues, I would like to hear from Mission Support regarding the best plan of action. Should I empty the toilet system per normal guidelines, or do we need to do another full flushing out of the system as was performed two days ago? Please advise. We would like to perform this procedure tonight, but we will await your response before proceeding.

ROVERS

Spirit rover used: No
Hours: N/A
Beginning charge: N/A
Ending charge: N/A
Currently charging: N/A

Opportunity rover used: No.
Hours: N/A
Beginning charge: N/A
Ending charge: N/A
Currently charging: N/A

Curiosity rover used: No
Hours: N/A
Beginning charge: N/A
Ending charge: N/A
Currently charging: N/A

Perseverance rover used: No
Hours: N/A
Beginning charge: N/A
Ending charge: N/A
Currently charging: N/A

General notes on rovers: No additional notes/comments.

Summary of Hab operations:
WATER USE: ~375 gallons used to-date
Water (static tank): ~175 gallons (This is my best guess without a water gauge, but I am requesting Mission Support to let us know a more accurate value, if possible.)
Static tank pipe heater (on or off): On
Static tank heater (On or off): On
Toilet tank emptied: No.

Summary of internet: No issues with the internet. Connection is good.

Summary of suits and radios: We tested out the GreenHab Officer’s headset (headset #3) again today. It seemed to be working intermittently today. Please advise if there is anything you would like for us to test with the headset.

Summary of GreenHab operations: Additional information can be found in the GreenHab Report.
WATER USE: ~49 gallons (~5 gallons today)
Heater: On
Supplemental light: On
Harvest: 9 grams of microgreens and 21 grams of carrot tops (part of effort to thin carrot plot).

Summary of ScienceDome operations: N/A
Dual split: Per Mission Support’s message, the heat is on in the ScienceDome and set to 65 F.

Summary of RAM operations: No RAM operations today.

Summary of any observatory issues: No observatory issues.

Summary of health and safety issues: No health and safety issues.

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

SOL: 9

Name of person filing report: Ashley Kowalski

Non-nominal systems: N/A

Notes on non-nominal systems: N/A

ROVERS

Spirit rover used: Yes
Hours: 203.2 (Start), 203.4 (End)
Beginning charge: 100%
Ending charge: 90%
Currently charging: No

Opportunity rover used: Yes
Hours: 107.3 (Start), 107.9 (End)
Beginning charge: 100%
Ending charge: 69%
Currently charging: No

Curiosity rover used: Yes
Hours: 215.6 (Start), 216.2 (End)
Beginning charge: 100%
Ending charge: 63%
Currently charging: No

Perseverance rover used: No
Hours: N/A
Beginning charge: N/A
Ending charge: N/A
Currently charging: N/A

General notes on rovers: No additional notes/comments.

Summary of Hab operations:
WATER USE: ~350 gallons used to-date
Water (static tank): ~200 gallons (This is my best guess, but I am requesting Mission Support to let us know a more accurate value, if possible.)
Static tank pipe heater (on or off): On
Static tank heater (On or off): On
Toilet tank emptied: No

Summary of internet: No issues with the internet. Connection is good.

Summary of suits and radios:

The Crew Engineer replaced the battery in EVA Suit #6 today. She wore this suit out on the long afternoon EVA today, and the suit’s air flow system worked well. Please let us know what to do with the old battery.

Additionally, the Crew Engineer’s headset (headset #4) seemed to be working normally today and had no issues. However, the GreenHab Officer’s headset (headset #3) seemed to be experiencing issues today. The GreenHab Officer could hear his crewmates speaking, but his crewmates could not hear him. We switched his headset and he used headset #5 for his EVA today instead. We will monitor and report back on its status.

Summary of GreenHab operations: Additional information can be found in the GreenHab Report.
WATER USE: ~44 gallons (~5 gallons today)
Heater: On
Supplemental light: On
Harvest: N/A

Summary of ScienceDome operations: N/A
Dual split: Per Mission Support’s message, the heat is on in the ScienceDome and set to 65 F.

Summary of RAM operations: No RAM operations today.

Summary of any observatory issues: No observatory issues.

Summary of health and safety issues: No health and safety issues.

Questions, concerns and requests to Mission Support: The Crew Engineer replaced the heat furnace air filter today. Also, the Crew Engineer acknowledges the email that was sent to the crew yesterday regarding batteries for the walkie talkies. The large sharpies work well. Finally, the toilet seems to now be functioning well. No problems today.

SOL: 8

Name of person filing report: Ashley Kowalski

Non-nominal systems: Toilet Issues

Notes on non-nominal systems:

The Health and Safety Officer, Barbara Braun, performed troubleshooting of the toilet. The holding tank for the toilet has been filling more quickly than expected and smelling bad for longer than expected after emptying. Upon advice of Tier 1 support, the HSO first emptied the holding tank into the septic tank, then flushed the holding tank with approximately two gallons of water. Then the HSO examined the inside of the tank with a headlamp and used a stick to estimate the level of material remaining in the tank after flushing. There were approximately two inches of watery sludge in the bottom of the holding tank even with the valve to the septic tank open. Upon the advice of Tier 1 support, the HSO then closed the septic valve, filled the tank full of fresh water until the water came up to the level of the bowl, and emptied the holding tank again by opening the septic valve. The results were essentially the same; approximately 1-2 inches of watery sludge still remained in the bottom of the holding tank even after the full water flush. Tier 1 support then advised the HSO to fill the tank with approximately five gallons of fresh water and add triple the usual amount of digestive. HSO accomplished this. Note that this activity used up one of the remaining jugs of digestive; we still have a full jug available. Tier 1 support will investigate further and consider servicing the holding tank in a break between rotations.

ROVERS

Spirit rover used: No
Hours: N/A
Beginning charge: N/A
Ending charge: N/A
Currently charging: N/A

Opportunity rover used: No
Hours: N/A
Beginning charge: N/A
Ending charge: N/A
Currently charging: N/A

Curiosity rover used: Yes
Hours: 215.3 (Start), 215.6 (End)
Beginning charge: 100%
Ending charge: 70%
Currently charging: No.

Perseverance rover used: Yes
Hours: 250.5 (Start), 250.7 (End)
Beginning charge: 100%
Ending charge: 56%
Currently charging: No.

General notes on rovers: No additional notes/comments.

Summary of Hab operations:
WATER USE: 300 used (~250 gallons remaining – This is my best guess, but I am requesting Mission Support to let us know a more accurate value, if possible.)
Water (static tank): The anomalous toilet situation today caused the crew to use additional water resources. Tier 1 support provided an additional 120 gallons to make up for this loss.
Static tank pipe heater (on or off): On
Static tank heater (On or off): On
Toilet tank emptied: Yes. Special instructions that were provided to the crew by Mission Support for the anomalous toilet situation were followed. Please reference the “Non-nominal systems” section for details.

Summary of internet: No issues with the internet. Connection is good.

Summary of suits and radios:

The Crew Engineer performed the additional steps that were suggested to her by Mr. Scott Davis from the EVA suit support team. The Crew Engineer fully charged suits 3, 4, and 6 so that all battery charges were >12 V. She then ran each of those suits for about an hour. Suits 3 and 4 maintained a voltage >12 V. However, Suit 6 dropped to about 10.41 V. She left Suit 6 recharging for several hours, yet the battery did not charge up again to >12 V. In fact, after several hours of charging, the suit only charged to ~10.47 V. The suit seemed to still be running normally at that voltage. Thus, the suit seems to still be functional, but there might indeed be a slight battery issue with Suit 6. Please advise.

Finally, the two walkie talkies mentioned previous reports (one from the upstairs set and one from the downstairs set) are still not working.

Summary of GreenHab operations: Additional information can be found in the GreenHab Report.
WATER USE: ~39 gallons (~5 gallons today)
Heater: On
Supplemental light: On
Harvest: 17 grams of microgreens and 11 grams of volunteer plants

Summary of ScienceDome operations: Microscope analysis of the mirror samples were performed using The Aerospace Corporation microscope in the ScienceDome today.
Dual split: The heat is on in the ScienceDome and set to 65 F. Please note that as the Crew Engineer was performing mirror sample inspections today in the ScienceDome, it was quite cold still.

Summary of RAM operations: The multimeter from the RAM was used to check the voltages of the two-piece EVA suits during today’s inspections. Additionally, a large wooden paint stick (to assist with the toilet issues), the pulse oximeter, rubbing alcohol, and several sharpies were retrieved from the RAM.

Summary of any observatory issues: No observatory issues.

Summary of health and safety issues: No health and safety issues.

Questions, concerns and requests to Mission Support: Heat furnace filter has not yet been installed. Please advise if this is something that the Crew Engineer needs to do.

SOL: 7

Name of person filing report: Ashley Kowalski

Non-nominal systems: N/A

Notes on non-nominal systems: N/A

ROVERS

Spirit rover used: No
Hours: N/A
Beginning charge: N/A
Ending charge: N/A
Currently charging: N/A

Opportunity rover used: No
Hours: N/A
Beginning charge: N/A
Ending charge: N/A
Currently charging: N/A

Curiosity rover used: No
Hours: N/A
Beginning charge: N/A
Ending charge: N/A
Currently charging: N/A

Perseverance rover used: No
Hours: N/A
Beginning charge: N/A
Ending charge: N/A
Currently charging: N/A

General notes on rovers: No additional notes/comments.

Summary of Hab operations:
WATER USE: ~270 gallons remaining
Water (static tank): The crew was informed that one load of water resupply was delivered today (120 gallons). Yesterday, we were told we had 175 gallons left. Today, we estimate we used ~25 gallons. So, before the water resupply, we likely had ~150 gallons. Thus, once the resupply was delivered, we now have about ~270 gallons.
Static tank pipe heater (on or off): On
Static tank heater (On or off): On
Toilet tank emptied: No.

Summary of internet: No issues with the internet. Connection is good.

Summary of suits and radios:

The Crew Engineer and Health and Safety Officer performed the suggestions provided to the crew by Mission Support. We realized that the problem actually was with the power strip that all of the chargers were plugged into. This is the process of elimination that we went through in order to get to that conclusion:

We first opened EVA suits #3, #4, and #6 and inspected the wiring and the fuses. All of the wiring looked good. The Crew Engineer replaced the blown fuse in EVA Suit #4. We also confirmed that all of the chargers worked. They all read >13 V.

Next, we swapped batteries between suits. We took a battery from Suit #1, one of the known functional suits, and put it into each of the non-functioning suits (#3, #4, and #6). When we did this, each one of the suits turned on and the air flowed normally. Thus, we could conclude that there was nothing wrong with the suits themselves, but rather the problem lay with the batteries we took out of those suits.

Then, we put each of the batteries from the non-functioning suits into Suit #1 (the functioning suit) to see if those batteries would increase from their low values to a value >12 V. The interesting part here is that the battery would not increase its charge even in the good suit. In fact, it was losing charge. So, we still thought the problem must be with the battery.

However, we decided to try one last thing. We thought that perhaps the problem was with the power strip that all the chargers were plugged into. The lights on those chargers did not consistently shine red or green (depending on if the battery was charger or fully charged), so we plugged in EVA suits #3, #4, and #6 with their original batteries (the ones that were reading low voltage values) into a different power strip that was found on the table shelf directly under where the two-piece suits stand and left them to charge for a bit. When we came back, the battery for suit #3 read 13.3 V, the battery for suit #4 read 13.76 V, and the battery for suit #6 read 12.33 V.

Thus, we can confidently conclude that the power strip was the actual issue. All two-piece suits now have charged, are reading the correct voltage values, and are ready for use. Please let us know what you would like us to do with the power strip having issues. We have labeled it indicating that it is having issues.

Finally, the two walkie talkies mentioned previous reports (one from the upstairs set and one from the downstairs set) are still not working.

Summary of GreenHab operations: Additional information can be found in the GreenHab Report.
WATER USE: ~34 gallons (~3 gallons today)
Heater: On
Supplemental light: Lights were checked at 11:15 AM, and appear OFF as expected. The GreenHab Officer will check that they are on after 10 PM tonight.
Harvest: N/A

Summary of ScienceDome operations: No operations performed today by the crew in the Science Dome.
Dual split: N/A

Summary of RAM operations: The multimeter from the RAM was used to check the voltages of the two-piece EVA suits during today’s troubleshooting/inspections.

Summary of any observatory issues: No observatory issues.

Summary of health and safety issues: No health and safety issues.

Questions, concerns and requests to Mission Support: The odor from the toilet area has dissipated. There is no longer an issue with smell.

SOL: 6

Name of person filing report: Ashley Kowalski

Non-nominal systems: N/A

Notes on non-nominal systems: N/A

ROVERS

Spirit rover used: Yes
Hours: 202.0 (Start), 203.2 (End)
Beginning charge: 100%
Ending charge: 53%
Currently charging: No

Opportunity rover used: Yes
Hours: 106.2 (Start), 107.3 (End)
Beginning charge: 100%
Ending charge: 50%
Currently charging: No

Curiosity rover used: Yes
Hours: 214.5 (Start), 215.3 (End)
Beginning charge: 100%
Ending charge: 54%
Currently charging: No

Perseverance rover used: No
Hours: N/A
Beginning charge: N/A
Ending charge: N/A
Currently charging: N/A

General notes on rovers: No additional notes/comments.

Summary of Hab operations:
WATER USE: 175 gallons remaining (375 gallons used)
Water (static tank): A “Supplemental Operations Report” was received by the crew today from Dr. Shannon Rupert. She informed us that our water tank is at 175 gallons, and that a water resupply vessel will arrive tomorrow to add water to the tank.
Static tank pipe heater (on or off): On
Static tank heater (On or off): On
Toilet tank emptied: Yes. The tank was emptied this morning at ~7:45 AM.

Summary of internet: No issues with the internet. Connection is good.

Summary of suits and radios:

The Crew Engineer and Commander inspected all six of the two-piece EVA suits today by opening the backpacks and checking the battery voltage with the multimeter. Three of the six suits were reading a voltage much lower that ~12 V despite being plugged in properly (switch was in the “off” position) and charging all night.

Thus, we believe that the three two-piece suits reading low voltages need new batteries. Please advise if you would like the Crew Engineer to locate and replace the batteries on EVA Suits #3, #4, and #6.

Furthermore, we decided to test out the performance of one of the functional suits to ensure that it could withstand a three-hour EVA. To that end, we turned on EVA Suit #2 at 3:28 PM and let it run for three hours. The suit remained functional for the full three-hour time block. Thus, we can confidently conclude that EVA Suits #1, #2, and #5, the suits which had > 12 V readings, are suitable for EVA use.

Finally, the two walkie talkies mentioned previous reports (one from the upstairs set and one from the downstairs set) are still not working.

Summary of GreenHab operations: Additional information can be found in the GreenHab Report.
WATER USE: ~31 gallons (~3 gallons today)
Heater: On
Supplemental light: In the “Supplemental Operations Report” we received today from Dr. Shannon Rupert, she said that the supplemental lighting will now be activated from 10 PM to 2 AM. We will inform Mission Support if we notice the supplemental light on at any other times.
Harvest: N/A

Summary of ScienceDome operations: No operations performed today by the crew in the Science Dome.
Dual split: In the “Supplemental Operations Report” we received today from Dr. Shannon Rupert, she said that she is turning on the heat in the Science Dome beginning today. We acknowledge the note to not adjust the settings in any way.

Summary of RAM operations: N/A

Summary of any observatory issues: No observatory issues.

Summary of health and safety issues: No health and safety issues.

Questions, concerns and requests to Mission Support: There is a lingering odor coming from the bathroom. The Crew Engineer, with the assistance of the GreenHab Officer, emptied the tank at ~7:45 AM this morning, yet the odor is still present ~11 hours later. The handbook mentions that we should consult with Mission Support if this is the case. Please advise us on how to improve this odor situation. We look forward to receiving your suggestions.