Crew Photos – November 29th
HSO Pre-Mission Checklist – November 27th
Submitted by: Barbara Braun
Crew: #269
Date: 11/29/2022
***Biggest item to note is the absence of a fire extinguisher in the Greenhab. See below for a detailed report.
Part 1: Using the attached Safety Equipment Inventory, locate, test and confirm operation of all safety equipment. List any equipment not found and/or missing:
HSO Response:
HAB: There is no intercom on the lower deck. Per discussion with Mission Support on 11/27 this is known and is OK
GREENHAB: We could not locate a fire extinguisher in the Greenhab. All other equipment in inventory is present and functional.
SCIENCE DOME: All equipment in inventory is present and functional.
RAM: All equipment in inventory is present and functional.
ROVERS: Opportunity has a tow rope attached.
Part 2: Locate and confirm the emergency escape routes in the Hab are functional and clear:
Stairs
Emergency window
Commander’s window
HSO Response: Located and confirmed to be clear.
Part Three:
Inventory First Aid kit and note what needs to be refilled: None
Note any safety issues: None
Note any health/environmental issues: None
Note any missing or recommended health and safety supplies: Could not find a pulse oximeter
Sol Summary – November 29th
Sol: 2
Summary Title: Marble Ritual EVAs
Author’s name: Matt Eby
Mission Status: In-Simulation
Sol Activity Summary: EVA suit training, first suited EVA excursion to the Marble Ritual, and test drive of project phantom’s remote-control rover.
Look Ahead Plan: EVA to Galileo road junction to run augmented-reality demo, first exercise protocol sessions.
Anomalies in work: Front airlock outer door, EVA suit loose power plug.
Weather: Cold, but mostly sunny in the morning, with high level clouds, followed by clear skies in the afternoon and rapidly dropping temperature after sunset.
Crew Physical Status: Crew in good shape, still acclimatizing to dry, high altitude environment.
EVA: EVA#1 performed by XO, Commander, and GreenHab Officer to Marble Ritual (1 hour duration using Oppy and Curiosity rovers). EVA#2 performed by Technology Officer, Crew Engineer, and HSO to Marble Ritual (1 ½ hour duration using Spirit and Perseverance rovers).
Reports to be filed: Journalist, Commander, Operations, Photos, EVA request, GreenHab, HSO checklist
Support Requested: N/A
Commander Report – November 29th
Sol: 2
Summary Title: Experiment Preparation and EVAs 1&2
Author’s name: Dr. Kristine Ferrone, Commander
Mission Status: Nominal
Commander’s Report:
Crew 269 enjoyed another day of beautiful weather on Mars, with light high-altitude clouds in the morning, becoming clear and sunny in the afternoon. The crew enjoyed oatmeal, homemade sourdough bread, and espresso for breakfast. Technology Officer completed preparations for the afternoon EVA while the rest of the crew completed final preparations, training, and exploration of the local area. After a quick lunch, CDR, XO, and Green Hab Officer embarked on EVA #1 to Marble Ritual. The 1 hour EVA was nominal and conducted rover, analog spacesuit, and communications checkout. Upon the return of the EVA #1 crew, HSO, Technology Officer, and Engineer departed on EVA #2 to Marble Ritual, completed their own rover, analog spacesuit, and communications checkout, then continued on to the location across Cow Dung Rd. where the mirror samples were deployed yesterday. There the crew used a remote control mini-ATV with cameras, controlled from a follow distance of roughly 80-100 ft. The trio drove the mini-ATV from Marble Ritual, south along Cow Dung Rd., and back to the road which turns west back towards the crew habitat collecting data along the way. Upon return from EVA #2, the crew experienced an anomaly with the front outer airlock door and a minor anomaly with the plug-in attachments for one of the space suits. Details of these anomalies are covered in the Operations Report and EVA Reports from today. In the evening, the crew set up the Aerospace microscope in the Science Dome and finished out Green Hab training and the final sections of the HSO checklist. The crew enjoyed spaghetti with meat sauce and homemade garlic bread for dinner and discussed their personal goals for the mission and agreed upon their specific simulation rules.
Operations Report – November 29th
SOL: 2
Name of person filing report: Ashley Kowalski
Non-nominal systems: (1) Anomaly with the front air lock, (2) “Push” button on EVA suit #7 is broken.
Notes on non-nominal systems: Upon returning from our EVAs, we noticed that the front air lock was difficult to close. The crew members needed to almost lift the door in order to be able to close it. It seemed as though the lower hinge was broken. The crew contacted Tier 1 support regarding this issue. The crew is also willing and interested in scheduling an EVA to try to fix this issue, if mission support is in agreement and the necessary tools/parts are available to us.
Regarding the broken “push” button in suit #7, the crew used a few tools from the RAM and made attempts to fix this, but were unsuccessful. Tier 1 support was contacted, and we are awaiting further instructions on how to fix this. Please note that the broken “push” button does not seem to affect the ability for the suit to charge.
ROVERS
Spirit rover used: Yes
Hours: 201.7 (Start), 201.8 (End)
Beginning charge: 100%
Ending charge: 88%
Currently charging: Yes
Opportunity rover used: Yes
Hours: 105.6 (Start), 105.7 (End)
Beginning charge: 100%
Ending charge: 90%
Currently charging: Yes
Curiosity rover used: Yes
Hours: 214.4 (Start), 214.5 (End)
Beginning charge: 100%
Ending charge: 91%
Currently charging: Yes
Perseverance rover used: Yes
Hours: 250.1 (Start), 250.3 (End)
Beginning charge: 100%
Ending charge: 85%
Currently charging: No
General notes on rovers: Three of the four rovers were left charging after the EVAs today. The crew engineer reminded all crew members that that is not the correct protocol. We also received this reminder message from Tier 1 support. The rovers will be left not charging after future EVAs.
Summary of Hab operations:
WATER USE: 20 gallons used today, 45 gallons used in total thus far
Water (static tank): 505 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 two walkie talkies mentioned in yesterday’s report (one from the upstairs set and one from the downstairs set) are still not working.
Summary of GreenHab operations: GreenHab Officer received training today. Additional information can be found in the GreenHab Report.
WATER USE: ~15 gallons
Heater: On
Supplemental light: Off
Harvest: No crops harvested.
Summary of ScienceDome operations: The crew set up their microscope in the ScienceDome today after all of the EVAs were completed. Two extension cords that the crew found in the RAM were used for this set up.
Dual split: No heat or AC used. All systems off.
Summary of RAM operations: Pliers were taken from the RAM into the habitat in order to attempt to fix the “push” button on EVA suit #7. Two extension cords were taken from the RAM in order to power the microscope and supplemental microscope light.
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: None.
Journalist Report – November 29th
Crew 269 Journalist Report
Date: 29 Nov 2022
Sol: 2
Author: Alli Taylor, Executive Officer
After a quick hot breakfast of oatmeal and rehydrated fruit, Crew 269 gathered on the first floor of the habitat to complete EVA training with MDRS Director Dr. Shannon Rupert and Assistant Director Sergii Iakymov. The crew was shown how to don and doff the spacesuits, make adjustments for comfort, and correctly position headsets and radio equipment. Dr. Rupert also provided an in-depth review of the EVA Planning Map for the local terrain surrounding MDRS, pointing out known paths for rover traverses, and exploration quadrants.
Later that day, with comms equipment securely in place and microphones positioned snugly inside their helmets, the first three crew members entered the airlock to begin a 5-minute depressurization period before opening the airlock to the Martian terrain. The crew tested their ability to ingress and egress the rovers, increased confidence in using the comms system (the radio settings and the push to talk button are blocked from view by the helmet), and briefly explored and captured photographs of the Marble Ritual area before making their way via rovers back to the habitat. With wind whipping sharply through the dune-like hills, the second three crew members later arrived at the Marble Ritual area. The crew deployed a remote control mini all-terrain vehicle, dubbed “Goose”, in the vicinity of Marble Ritual, to capture initial imagery for use in building a 3D model of the terrain as part of one of the primary research objectives. The crew adjusted the configuration of Goose for different measurements, worked together to activate the sensors at the correct timing, and collected data along a small portion of Cow Dung Road while controlling it from about 80-100 ft distance. The team drove Goose back to the crew rovers they had ridden to Marble Ritual, collecting data the entire way. After wrapping up the Sol’s EVAs, the crew came together for an Italian dinner with delicious homemade sourdough and prepared for their next Sol on Mars.
GreenHab Report – November 29th
GreenHab Officer: Matthew Eby
Environmental control: Heater on, door closed, 20% humidity.
Average temperatures: 79-deg F at time of watering. Range since last monitor reset (uncertain duration): 56-deg F – 110-deg F
Hours of supplemental light: 0 hours
Daily water usage for crops: Approximately 5 gallons
Daily water usage for research and/or other purposes: 0 gallons
Water in Blue Tank: Approximately 235 gallons (Based on a 250 gallon capacity-TBC, visually 95% full)
Time(s) of watering for crops: 4:30 PM
Changes to crops: None
Narrative: Today Dr. Rupert provided training on the GreenHab module, including watering, fertilizing, and harvest recording. Further, we discussed the desired plantings for this rotation, with carrots desired for the open space between the rows of tomato plants, reseeding of the radish bed, and testing the sprout rate for prior season’s open seed packets.
Harvest: None
Support/supplies needed: None needed at this time.
EVA Report – November 29th
EVA # 1
Author: Alli Taylor
Purpose of EVA: Familiarize with radio communications protocols and driving rovers with spacesuits on.
Start time: 1:17pm
End time: 2:00pm
Narrative: Three crew took two rovers a short distance to Marble Ritual in order to acclimate to driving in a spacesuit and familiarize with use of radio. Short amount of time spent exploring the local area before heading back to the habitat.
Destination: Marble Ritual
Coordinates (use UTM WGS 84):
Participants: Kristine Ferrone, Alli Taylor, Matt Eby
Road(s) and routes per MDRS Map: Cow Dung Rd (0110) to Marble Ritual
Mode of travel: Rovers (Curie, Oppy), Walking
EVA # 2
Author: Alli Taylor, Trevor Jahn
Purpose of EVA: Familiarize with radio communications protocols and driving rovers with spacesuits on.
Start time: 2:42pm
End time: 4:11pm
Narrative: Three crew took two rovers a short distance to Marble Ritual in order to acclimate to driving in a spacesuit and familiarize with use of radio. Additionally, the crew used a remote control mini-ATV with cameras, dubbed “Goose”, controlled from a follow distance of roughly 80-100 ft. The trio drove the RC rover from Marble Ritual, south along Cow Dung Road, and back to the road which turns west back towards the crew habitat collecting data along the way. The EVA was running out of time by then, so the three quickly changed the RC rover configuration for a 3rd time and drove it in a short loop around Marble Ritual collecting data before returning to the crew habitat. The EVA team had some trouble with the airlock door but were able to get it shut after much labor, and concluded the EVA. Crew was 11 mins late getting back to hab due to misunderstanding the EVA would be full 2 hours but the team had failed to re-check the EVA request to confirm before starting the EVA. Next time the crew will double check EVA end time prior to beginning EVA.
Destination: Marble Ritual
Coordinates (use UTM WGS 84):
Participants: Barbara Braun, Ashley Kowalski, Trevor Jahn
Road(s) and routes per MDRS Map: Cow Dung Rd (0110) to Marble Ritual
Mode of travel: Rovers (Spirit, Percy), Walking
Crew Photos – November 28th
Sol Summary – November 28th
Sol: 1
Summary Title: Training & Experiments Initialization
Author’s name: Matt Eby
Mission Status: Training
Sol Activity Summary: Hab/rover training, deployment of mirror experiment, EVA tool-demo, setup of exercise protocol equipment, and project phantom initialization.
Look Ahead Plan: Rerun one Covid test, continue with project phantom checkout, complete training, and first suited EVA tomorrow.
Anomalies in work: N/A
Weather: sunny/high level clouds in the morning, followed by elevated winds mid-day and increasing clouds by dusk.
Crew Physical Status: Crew is adjusting to our new environment, have healthy appetites and are generally in good spirits.
EVA: N/A
Reports to be filed: Journalist, Commander, Operations, Photos, EVA request (No Green Hab report since crew did not access, HSO checklist pending access to remaining modules)
Support Requested: N/A
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