Journalist Report – December 3rd

Sol #7
Title: Synergy in Science and SustenanceJournalist’s name: Sunny
Crew name: Alpha
Crew number: 287

On Sol 7, our day commenced with a leisurely start at 9 AM, breaking our fast with oatmeal, a shared exercise session, and a group meditation, collectively gearing up for the day’s tasks. Post-breakfast, the crew geared up for EVA #7, departing for White Rock Canyon to conduct reconnaissance, soil sampling, and drone footage.

Mealtimes were a highlight with Duluu preparing a varied lunch and Muggi serving up a spicy penne soup for dinner. These moments of communal dining underscored the unity and morale of our team, reinforcing the importance of shared experiences in maintaining crew spirit.

Scientific work pressed on with Davaa initiating his mud sample tests and Duluu tending to the Greenhab’s thriving plants. Despite a small hiccup in Tungaa’s microbiological research due to missing petri dishes, the crew’s productivity remained unhampered.

Muggi’s increasing drone piloting proficiency has greatly contributed to our surveying capabilities, while I continued to engage the public with our mission’s progress and day-to-day life. The crew’s anticipation for accessing the Musk Observatory remains, with hopes to integrate astronomical observations into our research soon.

As the Sol concludes, we reflect on a day marked by successful teamwork and scientific endeavor. Tomorrow’s plans include an out-of-sim excursion to further our exploration and documentation of this unique environment. The spirit of collaboration and discovery remains strong within Crew 287 as we look forward to the advancements and insights each new Sol brings.

Journalist Report – December 2nd

Sol #6
Title: A Day of Nutritious Balance and Advanced Exploration
Journalist’s name: Sunny
Crew name: Alpha
Crew number: 287

On Sol #6, the importance of nutrition and wellness was at the forefront of our morning routine. The day began with a log meeting with MARS-V Remote Control team lead Tulgaa, who showed great interest in our health and dietary habits. The provision of freeze-dried foods from Mongolia, courtesy of the MARS-V nutrition team, ensures that we maintain a healthy diet, a source of happiness and energy in this Mars simulation environment.

Post meeting, our morning continued with a delicious breakfast, followed by exercise and mindful meditation, setting a positive tone for the day.

The day’s main event was EVA #6, led by HSO Duluu. Team members Geologist Davaa, Psychologist Tunga, and Engineer Muggi, serving as CapCom, embarked on a mission to the Overlook. Their objectives were multifaceted: to collect soil samples and employ drone technology for remote reconnaissance and surveying. Favorable weather conditions further boosted the crew’s efficiency and morale. With each EVA, our team grows more adept and experienced in Martian exploration.

Back at the base, HSO Duluu engaged in vital work at the Green Hab, planting cucumbers using a new Hydroponic wick system. The sight of micro-greens, sprouted just three days ago, brought her immense joy and is a testament to our advancing agricultural capabilities on this simulated Martian landscape.

A highlight of Sol #6 was our team bonding game, a psychological exercise designed to enhance group dynamics. The game’s outcome was not only impressive but also highly recommended for fostering team cohesion and understanding.

As we conclude Sol #6, it’s evident that the balance of physical well-being, mental health, and team collaboration is pivotal to our success here. Each activity, be it a meal, meditation, EVA, or team game, plays a crucial role in our overall mission. These daily practices are shaping us into a more resilient and cohesive unit, ready to tackle the challenges of Mars exploration.

Sol Summary – December 7th

Sol: 11

Summary Title: Departure

Author’s name: Enkhtuvshin “Dono” Doyodkhuu

Mission Status: Completed

Sol Activity Summary: After a quick game night yesterday, the crew went to bed early and the sol started promptly at 7 AM. We had a couscous soup for breakfast, exercised, meditated, and headed out for our last EVA. We walked about 500m north of Hab and did photo shooting, portraits, and drone footage. Alas, this marked the end of our simulation.

We invited the on-site managers—Ben and Jewels—for lunch and got straight to working on reports and cleaning afterwards. Our plan tonight is to finish our final mission summary and cleaning, record a final crew log to be shared amongst the MARS-V members club, and run a comedy night. Tomorrow, we will receive the Netflix documentary crew on station and show them around. We will then complete the final check-out list in the evening, finish cleaning, and move out first thing in the morning.

This will be our final sol summary. It is bittersweet to have to say goodbye to Mars, but there is still much work to be done on Earth to support the next generation Martians, so that humankind may become multiplanetary species. Hopefully Earth will welcome us with open hands.

Onwards and upwards!

Look Ahead Plan: More collaborations amongst the Mars Society International Chapters! MARS OR BUST!

Anomalies in work: None.

Weather: Sunny. Minimal cloud cover. Very warm.

Crew Physical Status: All healthy.

EVA: Successfully performed one EVA today.

Reports to be filed: Mission summary, Sol summary report, Journalist report, Operations report, Greenhab report, EVA report, Photos.

Support Requested: We could use all the help we can get for tomorrow with the Netflix documentary crew on site.

Sol Summary – December 6th

Sol: 10

Summary Title: Regathering

Author’s name: Enkhtuvshin “Dono” Doyodkhuu

Mission Status: Nominal

Sol Activity Summary: I woke up feeling queasy in the morning today. The crew made a nutritious soup for me, and let me stay in bed until afternoon, for which I am very grateful. I was not able to use the observatory today and will not be submitting the Astronomy Report.

Everyone else started their day leisurely at 9 AM today, had breakfast, exercised, and headed out to EVA #9 in the afternoon. Led by HSO Duluu, accompanied by Geologist Davaa and Journalist Sunny, performed a test run for the geological mapping task that would later be performed in the Mongolian Gobi as part of the training program. Our goal is to come up with a guidance protocol for mapping out the surrounding area of the analog station.

Today’s meals featured garlic soup with dumplings for lunch, and Mongolian traditional dumplings called “buuz” for dinner, which usually takes extensive preparation, but the crew has gotten proficient at preparing meals in the Hab at this point. Our experiences here are sure to further the product development from freeze-dried recipes at the MARS-V project.

We had a meeting with the UCCS team currently working on the MARS-V analog helmet and was introduced to their final design concepts. Muggi and Davaa have finalized their ideas for the general structure of MARS-V analog station, and we plan to work on these further with the technology team back at the MARS-V project in the coming year.

Sunny, Duluu, and Tungaa are working on further developing the training programs to be implemented at the MARS-V analog station. The experiences we have gathered at MDRS during the rotation have given us a tangible handle on what being an analog astronaut is like.

We are incredibly grateful for the opportunity to have participated at the station as Crew #287, and we have had a great time and experience here that is sure to further the development of the MARS-V project going forward. Here’s to more future collaborations between Mars Society and Mongolian Aerospace Research and Science Association!

Look Ahead Plan: This is the last day of full sim for us. We’re planning on doing a bit of photo shooting and drone footage tomorrow morning, and we’ll end the sim in the afternoon. The day after that, we’ll receive the Netflix documentary crew on station, and show them around. We will then hold an online meeting with the team in Mongolia and recap the Alpha Mission. We plan to do the cleaning in the evening and head back out first thing in the morning on 9th of December.

Anomalies in work: None.

Weather: Sunny. Almost no clouds. Very warm.

Crew Physical Status: I seem to have caught a bit of cold today and stayed in bed until afternoon. Everyone else is completely healthy.

EVA: Successfully performed one EVA today.

Reports to be filed: Sol summary, Journalist report, Operations report, Greenhab report, EVA report, Photos.

Support Requested: None.

Sol Summary – December 5th

Sol: 9

Summary Title: The Case for Hot Spicy Curry

Author’s name: Enkhtuvshin “Dono” Doyodkhuu

Mission Status: Nominal

Sol Activity Summary: We had spicy beef curry for dinner which took the number 1 spot for the meal contenders, hence the title. Lunch was Korean beef bulgogi, which was also delicious. We had another harvest from the Greenhab today, and it really brings life to our palate.

We had a game night yesterday before bed, and the morning started leisurely for us a bit after 9 AM today. We decided to have brunch, after which we exercised until noon. I introduced the crew to the Musk Observatory afterwards. The crew then went onto individually work on their research and reports.

We noticed that the day was much more relaxed with no EVAs. We now have only two sols until our sim ends, and it feels like time blew past us too quickly. We’re trying to make time for team bonding every night after 8-9 PM to enjoy each other’s company, and hopefully afterwards when we return to Earth, we’ll positively reminisce about the time we shared a hot spicy curry on a distant, yet familiar planet.

Look Ahead Plan: Duluu’s hydroponic wick system has been working wonders in the Greenhab, and her newly sprouted plants seem fragile yet strongly willing to grow. Davaa has made two different types of bricks from the soil samples today—he mentioned that the clays were of such good quality that they can be used to make vases. He is now planning to make a geological map of the area around Cowboy Corner. I’ve encountered a solar prominence on the telescope today but haven’t managed to capture a good image of it. I’m planning to make use of all the programs on the astronomy laptop tomorrow and improve the quality of the pictures. Everyone is working on their respective reports to combine it at the end of the rotation. Hopefully we’ll see good results from these past two weeks.

Anomalies in work: None.

Weather: Sunny. Almost no clouds. Very warm.

Crew Physical Status: All healthy.

EVA: No EVA was performed today.

Reports to be filed: Sol summary, Journalist report, Operations report, Greenhab report, EVA report, Photos.

Support Requested: None.

Operations Report – December 2nd

SOL: 06

Name of person filing report: Munkh-Erdene "Muggi" Altankhuyag

Non-nominal systems: No non-operational system

Notes on non-nominal systems: n/a

ROVERS

Spirit rover used: the rover is used for EVA-06

Hours: 235.7 (before EVA)

Beginning charge: 100% (Before EVA)

Ending charge: 32% (On return from EVA, before recharging)

Currently charging: unplugged

Opportunity rover used: the rover is used for EVA-06

Hours: 147.2

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: 31%

Currently charging: unplugged

Curiosity rover used: not used

Hours:

Beginning charge: %

Ending charge: %

Currently charging:

Perseverance rover used: not used

Hours:

Beginning charge: %

Ending charge:

Currently charging: unplugged

General notes on rovers: The rovers have been taken to Overlook.

Summary of Hab operations: Systems in the hab are operational.

WATER USE: 28.5 gallons

Water (static tank): 235.9 gallons

Static tank pipe heater (on or off): on

Static tank heater (On or off) on

Toilet tank emptied: yes

Summary of internet: Internet in the hab was disabled until 6:00 pm.

Summary of suits and radios: all radios are operational, and suits are operational and plugged in.

Summary of GreenHab operations: Systems are operational.

WATER USE: 6.8 gallons

Heater: On

Supplemental light: will be operated from 10pm to 2 am

Harvest: 40 gram

Summary of ScienceDome operations: The Dome systems are operational, EVA’s Cap Comm used the dome.

Dual split: Heat or AC, Off

Summary of RAM operations: Systems in RAM are operational.

Summary of any observatory issues: nothing to report

Summary of health and safety issues: nothing to report

Questions, concerns and requests to Mission Support: nothing to report

GreenHab Report – December 7th

Crew 287 GreenHab Report 07-12-2023

GreenHab Officer: Dulsaikhan Zorig

Environmental control: (heater- used, fan- not used, door open- 4 hours)

Average temperatures: 70.8

Hours of supplemental light: 10 pm to 2 am

Daily water usage for crops: 0.008 cubic meters / 8 liters /

Daily water usage for research and/or other purposes: All plants

Water in Blue Tank (200 gallon capacity): 0.6705 cubic meters / 670.5 liters /

Time(s) of watering for crops: 10.30 am and 8 pm

Changes to crops: The red cabbage, planted on December 4th, has successfully sprouted.

Narrative: As our simulation concludes today, I find myself already missing the vibrant and beloved greens from the GreenHab. Our Tereza is blooming. I affectionately named our tomato that way. And here is another beautiful cucumber called Holly. She is so calm and growing well in her big blue tank. Upon entering the GreenHab, they greet me with a cheerful "Hello, Cutie," eagerly anticipating the arrival of the next heartwarming GreenHab officer. Middle of the endless desert and mountains, they thrive alongside the Utah winter.

Over the 12-day period, we utilized approximately 86.5 liters of water. Our total harvest comprised 375 grams of microgreens, featuring varieties such as radish, kale, red cabbage, sunflower, and beans. The microgreens salad offered a delightful natural taste.

As part of our conservation efforts, we saved and rested the soil for the next crew.

Currently, the GreenHab is flourishing with a variety of crops, including kale, cress, arugula, parsley, dill, cucumber, carrot, mint, red cabbage, radish, broccoli, pea, sunflower, oregano, basil, sage, thyme, cilantro, chives, lettuce, lavender, rosemary, corn salad, Dutch lambs, and more. The newly planted microgreens are thriving and showing robust growth.

Harvest: None

Support/supplies needed: None

GreenHab Report – December 6th

Crew 287 GreenHab Report 05-12-2023

GreenHab Officer: Dulsaikhan Zorig

Environmental control: (heater- used, fan- not used, door open- 4 hours)

Average temperatures: 68

Hours of supplemental light: 10 pm to 2 am

Daily water usage for crops: 0.013 cubic meter / 13 liters /

Daily water usage for research and/or other purposes: All plants

Water in Blue Tank (200 gallon capacity): 0.6835 cubic meter / 683.5 liters /

Time(s) of watering for crops: 9.30 am

Changes to crops: Broccoli, planted on November 30th, has successfully sprouted. Radish planted on big blue tanks also sprouted.

Narrative: Tereza almost bloomed today. Beans and sunflowers have been planted.

Harvest: Red cabbage 187 g

Support/supplies needed: None

Copyright © The Mars Society. All rights reserved. | Main Site