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EVA Report – November 25th

 

 

Crew 272 EVA Report 12-01-2023

EVA # 9

Author: Arly Black

Purpose of EVA: 1) Geologic EVA to Cowboy Corner to investigate an inverted paleochannel identified by Clarke and Stoker (2011). 2) Test of 3D printed geologic tools.

Start time: 11:00 PM

End time: 2:15 PM

Narrative: It being Sol 11, Crew 272 is now old hat at getting ready and suited up for EVAs, and we were ready and out the door in no time. Megan and Adriana led the way in Curie, while Arly and Kenny followed in Oppy. It was a gorgeous, sunny day. The crew drove north along Cow Dung Road towards Cowboy Corner, parked the rovers, and walked west. We made our way to the inverted paleochannel — or giant mound for us non-geological folks — Adriana had identified for investigation. Our first task was to test the 3D printed rock hammers Megan created back at the Hab throughout our mission. One was a lovely pale green and made of PLA material, while the other was smaller, bright purple, and made of PETG material. Both contained 20% infill, which is a characteristic that dictates material strength, structure, and weight. Both hammers proved useful for digging and prying soft sediment, but neither were very beneficial for hammering hard rock as they lacked a certain heaviness in the hammer head. Adriana preferred the smaller hammer as it felt stronger, which aligns with the material strength specs of PETG. Adriana also enjoyed how light the hammers felt in her tool belt, relative to her bulky metal hammer.

We proceeded to walk around the large mound, exploring the many boulders and features of the area. Adriana dictated lithologic descriptions to Arly and collected hand samples that contained sedimentary structures. She documented more paleo flow indicators and compared it with findings from Kissing Camel Ridge. She noted that it looks to have a very similar depositional environment to KCR in terms of the sediment and paleo flow indicators. This makes her believe that they are a conjoined fluvial system – in other words, they are part of one system that existed at the same time. Adriana also thinks she found coal in both locations which further explains the depositional environment. “The story is slowly coming together!”, she announced excitedly, as the rest of the crew nodded, pretending to understand. And with that, Professor Brown’s Mars geology course came to an end. I think I speak for the rest of the crew when I say Adriana is going to make an incredible Professor one day.

Having accomplished all we came to do, we headed back to the Hab 15 minutes early. No alien sightings today. It’s really starting to feel like Mars out there.

Destination: Cowboy Corner

Coordinates (use UTM WGS 84): N518800, E4253000

Participants: Megan Rush (HSO), Adriana Brown (Crew Geologist), Arly Black (XO/Crew Scientist), Kenny Pritchard (Crew Journalist)

Road(s) and routes per MDRS Map: Drove north along Cow Dung Road until Cowboy Corner. Parked the rovers and walked west along the inverted paleochannel (0.5 km west of Cow Dung Road).

Mode of travel: Walking and driving

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Operations Report – January 12th

 

 

Crew 272 Operations Report 12-1-2023

SOL: 11

Name of person filing report: Mason Kuhn

Non-nominal systems: Oven light

Notes on non-nominal systems: No additional issues, just need a new bulb. The specifications of the light bulb type have been emailed to mission support in the Sol 10 Operations Report email chain.

ROVERS

Spirit rover used: No

Hours: 207.1

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: 100%

Currently charging: Yes

Opportunity rover used: Yes

Hours: 111.8

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: 66%

Currently charging: Yes

Curiosity rover used: Yes

Hours: 219.3

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: 61%

Currently charging: Yes

Perseverance rover used: No

Hours: 253.9

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: 100%

Currently charging: Yes

General notes on rovers: Curiosity and Opportunity were used on EVA. They performed nominally. The chargers were draped over the front bumper upon return to the Hab. Perseverance has been moved to the outpost temporarily per Mission Support’s notice.

Summary of Hab operations: The oven light was removed & inspected for its specifications. The oven currently has no bulb in it, but the bulb cover was put back on for electrical safety reasons. 1 shower was taken today, and several pasta dishes were made throughout the sol, so water usage was slightly above average. The crew has been aware that it has plenty of water left over, but in the Martian mindset, we have still been trying our best to conserve.

WATER USE: 26.2 gallons

Water (static tank): 154.6 gallons

Static tank pipe heater (on or off): On

Static tank heater (On or off): On

Toilet tank emptied: Yes

Summary of internet: Nominal

Summary of suits and radios: Suits 5, 8, 9, and 10 were used on the EVA. All suits performed nominally, and all are cleaned & currently charging. All radios have been charged to full, and they have been removed from the charging docks. The EVA crew had no communication issues.

Summary of GreenHab operations: Monitored and watered GreenHab crops. Collected relevant experimental data.

WATER USE: 8 gallons

Heater: On

Supplemental light: 4 hours

Harvest: 5g beans, 15g carrots

Summary of Science Dome operations: GreenHab Officer data collection and recording took place at the center Sci Dome table. Geologist’s samples were re-organized and are being stored on a side table of the Sci Dome.

Dual split: On (from approximately 8:00 pm to 8:00 am)

Summary of RAM operations: Tools from the RAM that are still in the lower deck of the Hab are a tape measure and a Multimeter. They will be returned to the RAM on sol 12 after the last measurements are taken for final reports.

Summary of any observatory issues: N/A

Summary of health and safety issues: N/A

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

Best Regards,

Mason Kuhn

Crew 272 Engineer

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Sol Summary Report – January 12th

 

 

Crew 272 Sol Summary Report 12-01-2023

Sol: 11

Summary Title: The Cowboy Trip

Author’s name: Kshitij Mall

Mission Status: All nominal

Sol Activity Summary: After successfully playing Monikers, the team got a good-sol sleep and started the day energized except Crew Engineer Mason. A filled-up toilet served as the alarm clock for Mason, who was quick to act. After a brief morning exercise led by HSO Megan, the crew had a sweeter breakfast: cinnamon rolls prepared by Mason. I shared with the crew some rehydrated fruits and some cookies from Earth. After a quick briefing, the crew suited up to finally explore the Cowboy corner. The EVA crew comprised Crew Geologist Adriana, Megan, XO Arly, and Crew Journalist Kenneth and departed the Hab by 11 AM.

The EVA crew went to the Cowboy corner, walked west and collected samples at that spot. Megan tested the tools she 3D printed at the Hab and found that the smaller rock hammer was more useful for the EVAs. Adriana found that Cowboy Corner has great similarities with the Kissing Camel Ridge, and this matched with her intuition based on her previous EVA. The EVA crew was back by 2:15 PM. As per the traditions, the EVA crew completed the daily human-factors based cognitive performance tests and personal surveys for Arly and Andres. Mason also sent some important information about the oven light that needs some repairs. Our crew also received some outreach questions from Earth, which we will be answering through an offline video tomorrow.

At the Science Dome, for a change, the Greenhab Officer, Madelyn, was busy with the Great Harvest: The Martian Reaping. Madelyn collected over 700 data points regarding volume, mass, leaf length and sprout length of all the different Martian plans grown during our rotation. Kenneth and Mason helped her with the data collection as they are apparently good with rulers. I also went through the Hab and got some raw videos to share about the (amazing) MDRS facility and the grand goals of the Mars Society. Madelyn then asked us to do a survey after eating two samples: a normal micro green and a special fertilized micro green. Almost all the crew members chose the fertilized sample based on different features like color, taste, crispiness, vibrance, etc. The crew was not aware of the answer and was only disclosed about it after completing the survey. The crew indeed was surprised at the result. Dinner for tonight was an Indian dish called Aloo Gobhi (potato and cauliflower) prepared by me and assisted by Arly. We might again play Monikers card game tonight, which we have been procrastinating for several sols. Tomorrow we will retrieve (my electrical baby) the BTS from around the Gateway to Candor. Tomorrow we also launch back to Earth and end this rotation. I bet the crew members will be with mixed feelings of leaving Mars and going back to Earth, but we will aim at making the best of what we can do at Mars while we are here!

Look Ahead Plan: Conduct a geological EVA at the Cowboy corner and complete the Great Harvest at the Greenhab

Anomalies in work: None

Weather: Sunny, Calm Winds

Crew Physical Status: Good

EVA: One

Reports to be filed: Sol Summary, Operations Report, Journalist Report, EVA Report, EVA Request, Greenhab Report.

Support Requested: None

Posted on

Operations Report – January 11th

 

 

Crew 272 Operations Report 11-1-2023

SOL: 10

Name of person filing report: Mason Kuhn

Non-nominal systems: Oven light, Suit 7’s vent panel on the back of the suit (one of the screw holes in the wood)

Notes on non-nominal systems: Noticed the oven light today while cooking dinner. It is definitely not an urgent problem. 1 of 2 screw holes in the wood to secure the vent panel to suit 7 is too large for the washer and nut. Ideally, the wood should be repaired/replaced, but I can temporarily secure the vent panel with a larger diameter washer and nut.

ROVERS

Spirit rover used: No

Hours: 207.1

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: 100%

Currently charging: Yes

Opportunity rover used: No

Hours: 111.5

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: 100%

Currently charging: Yes

Curiosity rover used: No

Hours: 219.0

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: 100%

Currently charging: Yes

Perseverance rover used: No

Hours: 253.9

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: 100%

Currently charging: Yes

General notes on rovers: None were used on the EVA to Hab Ridge.

Summary of Hab operations: Suit 7 repairs were made on the lower deck, see suits summary for information. 4 showers were taken today, so the water usage was above our average.

WATER USE: 26.1 gallons

Water (static tank): 180.8 gallons

Static tank pipe heater (on or off): On

Static tank heater (On or off): On

Toilet tank emptied: No

Summary of internet: Nominal

Summary of suits and radios: Suit 7 has been repaired! There was a loose connection in terminal 3 of the toggle switch, and the wire-organizing zip tie was too tight. These items were resulting in spotty functionality. A new zip tie is still organizing the wires inside the suit back, but it is now a bit looser. The terminal 3 connection was retightened to the underside of the toggle switch, and Suit 7 electrical systems are now nominal. Suits 8,9,10,11 were used on the EVA. All suits are charging. All radios have been charged to full and removed from the charging docks.

Summary of GreenHab operations: Monitored and watered GreenHab crops and experimental crops. The door was propped open most of the sol due to warmer temperatures.

WATER USE: 7 gallons

Heater: On

Supplemental light: 4 hours

Harvest: 5g beans

Summary of Science Dome operations: N/A

Dual split: On (from approximately 8:00 pm to 8:00 am)

Summary of RAM operations: Placed the observatory and Science Dome items in their correct locations. Retrieved needle nose pliers, wrench, and screwdriver from the RAM, they will be returned to the RAM immediately.

Summary of any observatory issues: N/A

Summary of health and safety issues: N/A

Questions, concerns, and requests to Mission Support:

  • Please advise if you would like me to complete the temporary repair on suit 7’s vent panel, or if you would like me to leave it as-is. The vent panel is secure, but the left side of the panel has about 0.5 inches of undesired movement.

Best Regards,

Mason Kuhn

Crew Engineer

Posted on

EVA Report – January 11th

 

 

Crew 272 EVA Report 11-01-2023

EVA # 8

Author: Arly Black

Purpose of EVA: Exploratory EVA to Hab Ridge, initial scouting of geologic setting.

Start time: 2:00 PM

End time: 4:15 PM

Narrative: Due to unpredictability in the weather and rover charging mishaps, today’s EVA reverted to Plan B: hike to Hab Ridge and explore the area without any preconceptions of what to expect. This time, no rovers were harmed in the making of the EVA. The crew walked from the Hab along road 1103 towards North Ridge. They took a left and walked towards Hab Ridge Road. Along the way, the curious traveler stopped to collect samples and examine their surroundings. They then continued on towards Hab Ridge Road, which runs north and south and lies to the west of the Hab, where they found a ridiculous amount of “devil’s toenails” (a genus of extinct oysters, also known as Gryphaea). They walked until they reached the repeater (it’s still standing!) and were able to see our glorious Hab off in the distance. This was the goal of the mission and therefore mission success was achieved! The crew did note that this EVA required more skillful map reading than any other EVA so far.

As this was an exploratory mission, the crew used the experiences from this EVA to brainstorm ideas for future EVAs (but only two days of EVAs left ☹!!!). Adriana examined the geological environment and tried to see how well defined the strata were in that location and what kinds of fossils were present. She was not expecting to see that many toenails which is indicative of an ancient marine environment in that area (or many giants with nail clippers). She is interested in investigating what they have been preserved in. The strata are not well defined along Hab Ridge Road, and it is difficult to see the contact between formations.

On their way back to the Hab, Adriana did some more digging, as one does, and was excited to find even MORE toenails – who wouldn’t be?! Many photos were taken to document the area and they trundled on back to the Hab along the same route. Well done explorers! But leave those toe clippings off the kitchen table, would ya?

Destination: Hab Ridge

Coordinates (use UTM WGS 84): N517800, E4251500

Participants: Adriana Brown (Crew Geologist), Kshitij Mall (Crew Commander), Madelyn Whitaker (GreenHab Officer), Megan Rush (HSO Officer)

Road(s) and routes per MDRS Map: Walked on foot up Road 1103 until Hab Ridge, then returned on foot by Road 1103 to the Hab.

Mode of travel: Walking

Posted on

Journalist Report – January 11th

 

 

Crew 272 Journalist Report 1-11-2023
Sol: 10
Author: Kenny Pritchard, Crew Journalist
Title: Kissing Hab Ridge

We set off Arly’s CO2/air quality monitor early this morning thanks to breathing exercises led by Kshitij — Anulom, Vilom, and Pranayama, which had the entire crew huffing and puffing (and blowing our noses in between exercises). After the breathing exercises, we engaged in some yoga asans including Shav-asan (corpse-pose), which felt fitting considering the unfortunate quantity of sim-deaths to this point. For breakfast, Madelyn revisited the crew-approved egg casserole recipe from a previous sol. Due to an intense Martian dust storm and some unfavorable ground conditions, one of our two planned EVAs was cancelled today, but four lucky Martians still got to feel fresh air (or at least EVA-suit air) when a new plan was set.

With veteran experience in gearing up for EVA, Adriana, Madelyn, Megan, and Kshitij were out of the Hab in no time, and they followed a road northwest to reach an overlook called Hab Ridge. From this Ridge, they were able to overlook the Hab. Compared to Kissing Camel, this is nomenclature I can get behind! The trip was an exploratory EVA which the crew completed entirely on foot, employing their best map-reading skills to tirelessly traverse the tricky terrain (or masterfully maneuver the merciless ‘marrain?’). Along the way, they happened upon some Gryphaea fossils or ‘devil’s toenails’ – extinct oysters from several hundred million years ago. I reckon they collected enough for a hearty seafood dinner, but nobody seemed to have the appetite for it. From the top of Hab Ridge, the EVA crew had a great view of the Hab (as I mentioned) and the surrounding topography. They got some great pictures from the vantage point and a better navigational understanding of the area, and Adriana will use this practice to plan out the final EVAs for her research.

Once again among the Hab-rats, I took some video documentation of our crew and the Hab to be compiled later. Mason toiled away at fixing the air circulation system in EVA suit #7, to great success! On-site repairs are highly preferable to service shipments back to the manufacturer, which can take years to return. Arly packed out to the Science Dome to clean off petrified wood and other samples she’d gathered, then set to preparing a popular baked-feta pasta recipe from TikTok. With only two full sols remaining before we depart from MDRS, home is on everyone’s minds! Until then, we will make the most of the time we have here.

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GreenHab Report – November 25th

 

Crew 272 GreenHab Report 11-01-2023

GreenHab Officer: Madelyn Whitaker

Environmental control: heater, door propped open

Average temperatures: 74 F

Hours of supplemental light: 4 hours

Daily water usage for crops: 6 gallons

Daily water usage for research and/or other purposes: 1 gallon

Water in Blue Tank: 229 gallons

Time(s) of watering for crops: 1000

Changes to crops: Harvested beans. No new plantings.

Narrative: Monitored all experimental and GreenHab crops. Harvested beans for a snack. Door propped open most of the day due to warmer temperatures.

Harvest: (include which crop and mass in grams): Harvested 5g beans

Support/supplies needed: N/A

Posted on

Sol Summary Report – January 11th

 

 

Hello Mission Support,

Following is the Sol Summary Report.

Crew 272 Sol Summary Report 11-01-2023

Sol: 10

Summary Title: Hab Ridge: The New Frontier

Author’s name: Kshitij Mall

Mission Status: All nominal

Sol Activity Summary: After successfully completing watching the movie Lakshya (Objective), the crew got pumped up to achieve their Lakshya, which is to retrieve BTS possibly displaced by the heavy wind past night. We also planned to traverse the Hab Ridge and identify places of interest for geological experiments for Crew Geologist Adriana. To calm the team down from the sim-death experience last sol with the outer Hab door opening up by a wind blast, I shared Yog comprising some breathing exercises like Pranayama, Anulom, Vilom, some warmup exercises and some asans (poses) with the crew. As per the crew, it did benefit them after being on a streak of EVAs and living in their new isolated Hab Sweet Hab for quite some time. The breakfast for the sol included egg casserole, which was prepared by our Greenhab Officer Madelyn and supported by HSO Megan. A mistake on my part to not plug the chargers back into two of the rovers thinking that overcast conditions will drain the limited solar power we had followed by bad weather in the night made conditions not congenial for carrying out any EVA. But Mission Support recommended us for an exploratory mission to the Hab Ridge, which we were originally planning to be just a geological EVA instead of retrieving my electrical-Martian-baby, BTS. He will have to wait another day for the rescue, but I’m confident he is strong enough to handle more Martian winds for a few sols. The advice from the Mission Support indeed was handy as the sol unfolded. For exploratory missions we didn’t require extensive Earth Mission Support.

After getting an approval from the Mission Support, an exploratory EVA to the Hab Ridge was then conducted at 2 PM by Adriana and me as the primaries for the geology and exploration part, respectively, with Madelyn and Megan as the supporting EVA crew. Good map reading skills were the need of the hour for this EVA. Our EVA crew had great success in reaching the newly established Repeater Station by Crew 271. We also took some great pictures of the EVA crew at the Hab Ridge with Hab Sweet Hab and our rovers in the backdrop. The remaining boilermaker engineers and scientists were busy doing their rock souvenir shopping on Mars while I was taking pictures and videos that could be used by future EVA crews, who plan to visit the Hab Ridge. I too collected some Gryphaea or the Devil’s toenails as Martian omiyage (souvenirs) for my Earth-based families including my 10-month-old son, Hiro.

After coming back from the EVA at 4:15 PM, Adriana and I debriefed the EVA to Arly. In the meantime, Crew Engineer Mason attempted fixing suit #7 that had connection issues and had a great success in fixing suit #7. We also completed the daily human-factors based cognitive performance tests and personal surveys for Arly and Andres. Dinner duties for the sol are handled by Arly and Mason, who are preparing TikTok Pasta. We might play Monikers card game tonight, which we have been procrastinating for several sols. Tomorrow, we plan to conduct a geological EVA to the Cowboy corner to study the paleo flow indictors and do some tool test of 3D printed hammers. Madelyn would be helped tomorrow during her Great Harvest at the Greenhab by the rest of the crew based on their availabilities during the sol.

Look Ahead Plan: Conduct a geological EVA at the Cowboy corner and complete the Great Harvest at the Greenhab

Anomalies in work: None

Weather: Very Sunny, Calm Winds

Crew Physical Status: Good

EVA: One

Reports to be filed: Sol Summary, Operations Report, Journalist Report, EVA Report, EVA Request, Greenhab Report.

Support Requested: None

Thanks
Kshitij

Posted on

Operations Report – January 10th

 

 

Crew 272 Operations Report 10-1-2023

SOL: 9

Name of person filing report: Mason Kuhn

Non-nominal systems: Wiring in EVA Suit 7

Notes on non-nominal systems: Due to the RAM being closed to the crew this morning, EVA, Hab operations, and time-sensitive personal items, I did not have time to repair Suit 7. This will be completed during sol 10.

ROVERS

Spirit rover used: Yes

Hours: 207.1

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: 69%

Currently charging: Yes

Opportunity rover used: No

Hours: 111.5

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: 100%

Currently charging: Yes

Curiosity rover used: No

Hours: 219.0

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: 100%

Currently charging: Yes

Perseverance rover used: Yes

Hours: 253.9

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: 58%

Currently charging: Yes

General notes on rovers: Spirit and Perseverance were used on the EVA. After returning to the Hab, per mission support request, all 4 rover positions were slightly adjusted back to their correct parking spots. A crewmate noticed that the rear-left taillight on Perseverance was non-nominal.

Summary of Hab operations: Around 8:00 pm, despite already being roped shut, the outer front airlock door flew open. The crew was prepared and scrambled to get ready with EVA Suits, boots, and other essential items. The problem was very promptly addressed, and all crew members are safe.

WATER USE: 19.6 gallons

Water (static tank): 206.9 gallons

Static tank pipe heater (on or off): On

Static tank heater (On or off): On

Toilet tank emptied: No

Summary of internet: Nominal (with the exception of a ~15-minute anomaly last night around 8:40 pm)

Summary of suits and radios: Suits 1, 8, 9, and 10 were used during the SAR EVA to Kissing Camel Ridge. All suits performed nominally with airflow and minimal fogging. All suits have been cleaned and are currently charging. There were no issues with radios or headsets on the EVA. All radios that were used have been charged and removed from the charging dock.

Summary of GreenHab operations: Monitored and watered GreenHab crops and experimental crops. Placed new shovels and broom in the GreenHab.

WATER USE: 7 gallons

Heater: On

Supplemental light: 4 hours

Harvest: 10g beans, 80g carrots

Summary of Science Dome operations: No crew activity, there was Mission Support activity.

Dual split: On (from approximately 8:00 pm to 8:00 am)

Summary of RAM operations: The items that were dropped off on Mars were retrieved from the RAM and put into their proper location (GreenHab, Kitchen, EVA Suit Cabinet). The items that were not retrieved and are still in the RAM are the goggles for the Sci Dome and the Observatory Items. After the supply trip was made, the Hab had an emergency situation of a blown open airlock door. This was promptly taken care of and all crew members are safe, but the storm prohibited a crew member from going to back to retrieve the remaining items. They will be taken care of when the weather permits.

Summary of any observatory issues: N/A

Summary of health and safety issues: N/A

Questions, concerns, and requests to Mission Support:

  • Where is the proper location for Observatory items?

Best Regards,

Mason Kuhn

Crew Engineer