Posted on

Journalist Report – February 24th

SOL 6 : A One in a Hundred Crew

“You are like my fox when I first knew him. He was only a fox like a hundred thousand other foxes. But I have made him my friend, and now he is unique in all the world.” – The Little Prince, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

This morning, waking up was rough for everyone, tiredness started to appear within the Crew! But everything works well, Lise prepared a core muscles workout session to refuel our energy for the day. Yves, Marie, and Lise performed an EVA this morning. Their goal was to solve the field mill’s problems we had during the last EVA, and to change atmospheric instrument’s batteries. Thanks to Crew members, the field mill is now fixed, but it is not collecting data yet. It will be a mission for the next EVA Crew, we already have an idea of how to launch it! From the outside, Marie also set down the drone in front of the Science Dome’s window. That way, when they were out in the Martian atmosphere, Mathurin was following them, piloting the drone from the inside of the Science Dome. This way, he could capture some images of Crew members on EVA and test the drone’s photogrammetry settings. Thanks to drone’s taken photos, we can generate 3D maps of the desert. It will be useful for future EVAs next week, in which photogrammetry will be the main purpose!

Before lunch, a lot of Crew members were working together in the Hab, while Yves was teaching me on how to use the EchoFinder tool, so that I could perform ultrasounds on Marie. We enjoyed once again a MELiSSA meal for lunch: a pasta gratin with vegetables and béchamel. These meals have a huge positive impact on the Crew’s mood, and as Leo said: “We eat better on Mars than we do on Earth!”. After lunch, everyone took a break. Some Crew members tried to rest by taking a nap, others read. This break at the beginning of the afternoon enabled us to be more efficient during the rest of the day.

In fact this afternoon, Yves and Mathurin started to work on photogrammetry, thanks to the drone’s taken images of the morning. They generated maps and located the places they want to perform photogrammetry for the next EVAs. With these 3D maps and regular 2D maps, we will compare performances of two teams which will try to find checkpoints. During this time, Leo helped Lise to set up some of the “anchors” which record our position for the Orbital Architecture experiment. They are spread all around the station, and linked to the sensors we wear, but some of them seemed to malfunction. In the Upper Deck, Léa read documentation to train herself on astrophotography. Indeed, her astronomy project was about the Sun, but the station’s solar observatory is damaged and not in service… She works a lot to be able to use the other observatory and to take pictures of celestial objects. At the end of the day, we allowed ourselves to take a break to end our last day of the week working on scientific experiments. Is it during these breaks that we feel how much our Crew is united and get along well together. Each one of us is very happy to spend time with the Crew, and we share a lot of activities and talks. This makes our life in the station very pleasant and isolation less difficult to endure!

Posted on

Sol Summary – February 24th

Crew 293 Sol Summary Report 24-02-2024

Sol: 6

Summary Title: A “One in a Hundred” Crew

Author’s name: Marie Delaroche, Crew Commander

Mission Status: Nominal

Sol Activity Summary:

This morning, I participated in my first post-training EVA, with the Crew HSO and Crew Scientist. After setting down the drone in sight of our pilot in the Science Dome, I headed back towards the rovers to join my crew members. We then headed down to the atmospheric instruments site to retrieve the data collected over the past two Sols, to change the batteries and to try troubleshooting the Field Mill. The latter objective was unfortunately not achieved, but after debriefing with us, the Crew Engineer and Crew Astronomer believe they have found the source of the problem. This will be addressed at the beginning of our first Photogrammetry EVA, programmed for Sol 8.

Today’s EchoFinder session was a success; our Crew Journalist managed to use the ultrasound aiding software to scan images of all five organs in record time ! The GreenHab Officer continued working on deploying the AI4U experiment, of which we will all be subjects starting next week. Preparations for photogrammetry are also well underway.

After a long first week, the Crew was starting to feel a bit weary; two hours of downtime were scheduled in the afternoon, for all crewmembers to rest, indulge in various artistic activities and a workout session. We are all looking forward to a good night’s rest, with a little extra sleep tomorrow morning: wake-up at 8:30 instead of 6:45 !

Look Ahead Plan: Sol 7 has been declared a rest day. Our Crew Scientist will also start his weekly station-wide data centralization for all experiments, and we will use the AMI interface for the entire Sol, as another test run. Next week, the first series of Photogrammetry EVAs will take place (Sols 8, 10, 12). The (tentatively) chosen location is North Ridge.

Anomalies in work: Suits 3, 4, 5, 6, Solar observatory offline

Weather: Sunny, then mostly cloudy in the afternoon. Low -5°C, High 15°C

Crew Physical Status: Nominal

EVA: Atmospheric instruments

Reports to be filed: Sol Summary, Journalist’s Report, GreenHab Report, Operations Report, Photos (6-8 pics), EVA Report

Support Requested: NA

Posted on

Operations Report – February 23rd

Crew 923 Operations Report 23-02-2024

SOL: 5

Name of person filing report: Leo Tokaryev

Non-nominal systems: see “suit test.xcsx” sheet

Notes on non-nominal systems:

ROVERS

Spirit rover used:No

Hours: (before EVA)

Beginning charge: (Before EVA)

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

Currently charging:

Opportunity rover used:No

Hours:

Beginning charge:

Ending charge:

Currently charging:

Curiosity rover used: No

Hours:

Beginning charge:

Ending charge:

Currently charging:

Perseverance rover used:No

Hours:

Beginning charge:

Ending charge:

Currently charging:

General notes on rovers:none

Summary of Hab operations: put notes here

WATER USE: 2.85 gallons

Water (static tank): 405 gallons

Static tank pipe heater (on or off):On

Static tank heater (On or off)On

Toilet tank emptied: no

Summary of internet: none

Summary of suits and radios: The suits were tested, and the results can be seen on the “suit test” sheet. In short: the suits 3,4,5 and 6 clearly don’t pass the test (just a reminder: the suits were tested at their maximum air flow with maximum charge at the beginning of the test). Thus, we don’t recommend using these suits in EVA, and their battery should be changed. Since the battery of suit N°6 was already changed during the previous crew’s rotation, maybe the problem isn’t in the battery but in the circuit of the suit…

The attachment of suit 2 was fixed.

Summary of GreenHab operations: put notes here

WATER USE: 6 gallons

Heater: On

Supplemental light: 22h-2h automatic

Harvest: 4g of basil

Summary of ScienceDome operations: none

Dual split: Heat or AC, On

Summary of RAM operations: (Tools used, work done) I did some work in the RAM to build a sign for tomorrow’s EVA, I used 2 nails.

Summary of any observatory issues: none

Summary of health and safety issues: none

Questions, concerns and requests to Mission Support: About yesterday’s smell issue: it is better after emptying the toilet tank, but some smell still persists. We can conclude that the sensor that indicates the level of the tank isn’t functioning well.

Posted on

Supplemental Operations Report – February 25th

Date: 2/25/2024
Name of person filing report: Ben Stanley
Reason for Report: Routine
Non-Nominal Systems: Hab wall heater, solar observatory, perseverance parking brake

Power system:
Solar: Nominal.
SOC Last 24 hours: Max 100%; Min 65%; Avg 78.1%.
VDC Last 24 hours: Max 59.17V; Min 45.21; Avg 51.14V.
Generator run time: 5197.6 hours.

Propane Readings:
Station Tank: 73%
Director Tank: 73%
Intern Tank: 77%
Generator Tank: 62%

Water:
Hab Static Tank – 518.8 gallons
GreenHab – 153.9 gallons
Outpost tank – 440 gallons
Science Dome – 0 gallons
Septic Tanks emptied: No

Rovers:
Sojourner rover used: Yes, to chase off tourists disturbing an EVA
Hours: 196.6
Beginning Charge: 100 %
Ending Charge: 100 %
Currently Charging: Yes
Notes on Rovers: Perseverance parking brake non-functional

ATV:
ATV’s Used: None. Nothing to report.

Cars:
Hab Car used and why, where: To Hanksville for supplies.
Crew Car used and why, where: Not used
General notes and comments: N/A

Summary of Internet: All nominal.

EVA suits and radios:
Suits: Batteries in suits 3, 4, 5, and 6 to be replaced
Comms: All nominal

Campus wide inspection, if action taken, what and why: Nothing to report.
Summary of Hab Operations: Wall heater is not functioning. Diagnostic is pending.
Summary of GreenHab Operations: All nominal
Summary of SciDome Operations: All nominal

Summary of Observatories Operations: Solar observatory telescope diagonal has two snapped screws. Repairs pending. Assisted Peter in resetting system on robotic observatory on 2/21.

Summary of RAM Operations: All nominal
Summary of Outpost Operations: All nominal. Rat captured from intern trailer and released by Cathy into the wild far from the base. Bait left out shows no indication of additional rats.

Summary of Health and Safety Issues: All nominal.

Posted on

Operations Report – February 26th

Crew 293 Operations Report 26-02-2024

SOL: 8

Name of person filing report: Leo Tokaryev

Non-nominal systems: Suits 4 and 5

Notes on non-nominal systems:

ROVERS

Spirit rover used:No

Hours:

Beginning charge:

Ending charge:

Currently charging:

Opportunity rover used:Yes

Hours:164.4

Beginning charge:100

Ending charge:60

Currently charging:Yes

Curiosity rover used: yes

Hours: 268

Beginning charge:100

Ending charge:57

Currently charging:Yes

Perseverance rover used:No

Hours:

Beginning charge:

Ending charge:

Currently charging:

General notes on rovers:we first wanted to use perseverance instead of curiosity, but it was only 75% charged, so we went with perseverance instead.

Summary of Hab operations: put notes here

WATER USE: 8.13 gallons

Water (static tank): 380 gallons

Static tank pipe heater (on or off):On

Static tank heater (On or off)On

Toilet tank emptied: yes

Summary of internet: none

Summary of suits and radios: the batteries of the suits 4,5 and 6 were replaced, we did the same 4h test with air flow and voltage, see details in the “suit test” sheet(page 3, "SOL8 NEW TEST"). We do not recommend and won’t use the suits 4 and 5 even though the batteries were changed, but the suit 6 functions really well.

Summary of GreenHab operations: put notes here

WATER USE: 8 gallons

Heater: On

Supplemental light: 22h-2h automatic

Harvest: 104 g of radish

Summary of ScienceDome operations: none

Dual split: Heat or AC, On

Summary of RAM operations: none

Summary of any observatory issues: none

Summary of health and safety issues: none

Questions, concerns and requests to Mission Support: we had the same issue with the smell, but the sensor showed “E” as “Empty”. So it is clearly not functioning. Thus, we decided to empty the tank every 3 days(we noticed that the smell was coming back every 4 days) no matter what the indicator shows, is that ok?
About the suits, as mentioned before, we changed the batteries, but the suits 4 and 5 are still not functioning well. If you could order some new batteries, we could fix the suits and run the tests for the next crews.

Posted on

Sol Summary – February 26th

Crew 293 Sol Summary Report 26-02-2024

Sol: 8

Summary Title: Who runs the Hab: Girls !

Author’s name: Marie Delaroche, Crew Commander

Mission Status: Nominal

Sol Activity Summary:

Everyone was very excited for the beginning of the photogrammetry experiment this morning. This was the first of three EVAs scheduled this week to North Ridge. Using an Anafi AI Parrot drone, the GreenHab Officer performed a 3D scan of the entire North Ridge area, while the Crew Engineer and Scientist decided where they would place the checkpoints on the map. The EVA was successful; as soon as the team (composed of the three boys of the crew!) was back at the Hab, they started uploading the images and generating the map, which will be used by one of two teams to explore the area. Their performance in finding the checkpoints will be compared to that of a second team, given only a regular 2D map.

The morning EVA team also took advantage of their outing to change the atmospheric instruments’ battery, and troubleshoot the Field Mill. It is now fully operational!

This afternoon, we reached two milestones; all crewmembers are trained for the EchoFinder study, and the AI4U experiment is officially launched. Our Crew HSO also finished handling the data from the first week of Orbital Architecture, reaching a grand total of 25 GB !

A routine has slowly started to settle, bringing with it almost a sense of belonging. The whole team is invested, and putting the mission first. Nevertheless, we never miss an opportunity to remind each other to take care of ourselves.

Look Ahead Plan: Two EVAs are scheduled to take place at North Ridge this week, one with the 2D team (Sol 10) and one with the 3D team (Sol 12)

Anomalies in work: EVA suits 3,4,5,7,9

Weather: Sunny, low 5°C, high 19°C

Crew Physical Status: Nominal

EVA: Photogrammetry at North Ridge

Reports to be filed: Sol Summary, Journalist’s Report, GreenHab Report, Operations Report, Photos (6-8 pics), EVA Report

Posted on

EVA Report – February 26th

Crew 293 EVA Report 26Feb2024

EVA #006

Author: Yves Bejach (EVA Leader)

Purpose of EVA: Changing the batteries of the atmospheric instruments, creation of a 3D map by photogrammetry, choosing checkpoints to be reached during the next EVAs.

Start time: 9:14

End time: 12:32

Narrative: The EVA objectives were to first retrieve data from the atmospheric instruments, change the batteries and hopefully start the third instrument that was silent until then, then go to North Ridge to create a 3D map of the area and choose checkpoints.

9:14: Depressurization started

9:19: Out on Mars

9:21: Rovers are loaded

9:22: Opportunity: 164.4h, 100%

9:23: Perseverance: 284.6h, 75% -> change rover to Curiosity

9:25: Curiosity: 269.0h, 100%

9:27: Leaving the station

9:30: Arrived to atmospheric instruments’ site

9:43: Data collected, change batteries and try to troubleshoot the field mill

9:45: Field mill started measurements

9:52: Back to the rovers

9:54: Leaving the atmospheric site

9:59: Arrived at North Ridge, leaving the rovers

10:04: Setting up the drone

10:20: Start Scan Photogrammetry, mark checkpoints

10:33: Drone has landed, go to another hill

10:40: Drone flight again

11:04: Drone landed, change battery and will fly one more time

11:13: Moving to final destination

11:20: Beginning of the last flight of the drone

11:31: End of checkpoints, waiting for the end of photogrammetry

11:47: Drone has landed, going back to the rovers and taking pictures

11:58: Leave North Ridge with the rovers

12:02: Stop to take photos

12:13: Going back to the rovers

12:16: Leave the photo site with the rovers

12:22: Curiosity end charge: 57%, Opportunity end charge: 50%

12:23: Rovers plugged, unloading them

12:27: Pressurization started in the airlock

12:32: Pressurization over, Crew members back in the Hab

Destination: Atmospheric site: between the Hab and Marble Ritual and then East flank of North Ridge

Coordinates (use UTM WGS 84): Atmospheric Site: 518500,4251000 ; North Ridge: 518750,4251750

Participants: Yves Bejach, Leo Tokaryev, Mathurin Franck

Road(s) and routes per MDRS Map: Cow Dung Road, North direction

Modes of travel: Curiosity Rover and Opportunity Rover and walking

Additional notes: A car parked near our rovers at some point during the EVA and someone went out of it to take pictures of North Ridge. He was quite far and left before we came back to the rovers so not a problem.

Posted on

Journalist Report – February 26th

SOL 8: Who run the Hab? Girls!

« The boy felt jealous of the freedom of the wind, and saw that he could have the same freedom. There was nothing to hold him back except himself. » – The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho

This morning the first EVA of photogrammetry took place. Particularity: it was a 100% masculine EVA! All the boys went out on the Martian atmosphere, letting the Hab free for the four girls of the Crew. Outside, Mathurin piloted the drone and took photos of North Ridge with it, to later generate a 3D map of the site during the data handling session that they did this afternoon. Winds blew this morning; the drone could hardly take off. As the HabCom of the EVA, I told them information every 10 minutes about wind speed thanks to our weather station, installed during a previous EVA. In the Hab, girls were working on experiments: Marie was dealing with the AMI interface, Léa kept training on astrophotography, Lise watered the GreenHab’s plants while Mathurin was out of the station and, as I said, I was HabCom for the boy’s EVA. Despite it all, we were very happy to get the Crew reunited at the end of the morning.

During the afternoon, Yves finished teaching the Crew about the EchoFinder experiment, by teaching Leo and Léa. Now, everyone can perform ultrasounds on Marie and knows how to use the experiment’s software. At each session, we are searching for five organs, like the carotid for example, helped by augmented reality and artificial intelligence to take good quality images of the organs. Operators of the experiment take notes about remarks they want to share with the researchers for them to perfect the software, in order for it to be used one day during space missions.

Finally, Lise retrieved last week’s data for the Orbital Architecture experiment. This experiment, which was brought to the ISS three weeks before the beginning of our mission, aims to study the impact of the station’s architecture and environment on the analog astronauts. We perform three cognitive assessments per Crew member per week in different modules, we wear location tracking sensors and polars to measure our heart rate. The results of the tests, of the location tracking sensors, and of questionnaires that we fill enable the researcher from the University of KTH to analyze our performances!