Month: January 2025

[category science-report]

Crew 306 – Montes
Dec 22nd, 2024 – Jan 4th, 2024

Crew Members:
Commander: Jesus Meza-Galvan
XO and Crew Engineer: Keegan Chavez
Crew Geologist: Elizabeth Howard
Health and Safety Officer: Ryan Villarreal
Green Hab Officer: Adriana Sanchez
Crew Journalist: Rodrigo Schmitt

Crew Projects:

Title: LIDAR-Enhanced Drone Simulations for Mars EDL Operations
Author: Rodrigo Schmitt
Objective: Demonstrate the use of drone-based LIDAR operations to perform local mapping of the terrain.
Current Status: For the first half of the mission, the project has been focused on proof-testing the drone-LIDAR hardware integration and refining the data collection procedures with respect to software. The hardware assembly consists of the drone, the LIDAR system, a mount for the LIDAR, a Raspberry Pi, a battery powering the Pi and the LIDAR, and a total of three customized cables connecting the parts. Through the first two EVAs, to Kissing Camel and close to the HAB, important demonstrations of the hardware assembly were conducted, as the numerous equipment supports had to be fine-tuned based on drone performance at the MDRS environment. Using the results of the first two EVAs, the mount was successfully repaired and fixated to the assembly, and necessary adaptations were made to the wiring and landing surfaces to provide electromagnetic insulation and a smoother integration all around. Concurrently, we worked on streamlining the process of collecting data during EVAs, by developing automated scripts and a mobile hotspot in the Raspberry Pi that allows us to use our phones and minimal human input for the LIDAR scanning. This method was successfully demonstrated in the third EVA to Skyline Rim, where raw LIDAR data was obtained. Now, the software and scripts for capturing data are being further developed so that IMU and GPS data can also be captured during our EVAs, allowing the LIDAR data to be successfully transformed into visual mappings.
EVAs Completed: 1 to Kissing Camel 1, 1 at the HAB, 1 to Skyline Rim.
EVAs Still Required: 1 to Eos Chasma, 1 to Candor Chasma, 1 to Charitum Montes (Barranca Butte) or Aurorae Chaos (White House)
Next Steps: Three more EVAs are planned to Eos Chasma, Candor Chasma, and Barranca Butte or White House. The purpose of these EVA’s is to collect more LIDAR data using the drone, this time incorporating data from the GPS and IMU. Thus far, the absence of altitude and GPS data has made it impossible to convert the LIDAR readings into mappings of the terrain. If successful, the data collected will be integrated into a single digital mapping of the locations.

Title: Subsurface Magnetic Proper ties of the Martian Environment
Author: Elizabeth Howard
Title: Subsurface Magnetic Properties of the Martian Environment
Author: Elizabeth Howard
Objectives: Study geological magnetism to develop test procedures for future missions.
Current Status: Before going on EVAs, the EMF meter was put to the correct setting for logging data in the field, and so far, has collected enough data to fill approximately one third of its internal flash memory. Once the flash is full the data can be downloaded as an Excel file and compared to space environment data, including measures of solar activity. Overall solar activity is currently being noted using the f10.7 index, although it would be optimal to also find individual space weather satellites to take readings from. Taking individual satellite data would likely be more similar to the infrastructure that would be available to a Martian base than the f10.7 index, but if individual satellite data searches are not able to provide sufficient insight to the space weather environment during testing, then this will be a limitation that a Martian base would have to overcome that can be assessed during post-processing data analysis. One objective of this project being to gauge the challenges of studying the Martian magnetosphere from a Mars base and developing ways to overcome those challenges has offered several areas such as this for problem solving. Additionally, soil samples have been collected from the spots that the EMF meter has been left to log data during EVAs for analysis; this is so that the samples can be assessed for possible effects on EMF scan comparisons. Noting soil type and comparisons with Mars’ subsurface properties as a possible confounding factor will be considered during post-processing of EVA data for this project.
EVAs Completed: 1 to Kissing Camel 1, 1 to HAB Ridge, 1 to Skyline Rim.
EVAs Still Required: The internal flash is approximately a third of the way full, so it would be optimal to perform at least 3-4 additional EVAs in order to log sufficient amounts of data for robust post-processing analysis.
Next Steps: The next steps of this study are to continue collecting data on the EMF meter along with noting soil properties at data collection locations. Once EVAs are completed, the internal flash will be downloaded to the manufacturer software and analyzed against space environment data. While NOAA data from the f10.7 index has been taken for post-processing, satellite data tracking site Celestrak should still be searched for space weather satellites that can provide further information.

Title: Waste Management Solutions for Space Habitats: Utilizing Mycoremediation
Author(s): Adriana Sanchez
Objectives: Advancing the TRL of mycoponics™ technology by accessing transportability, and survivability of blue oyster fungi (Pleurotus ostreatus var. columbinus).
Current Status: For the first half of the mission, I have been focused on feeding the mushrooms and minimizing contamination. Before flying out to Grand Junction, no contamination was observed. The morning after arriving at the hotel I observed contamination on 4 of the 7 tubes. Tubes 1-3 are fed a complete standard media and tubes 4-8 are being fed a plastic digested media with different concentrations ranging from 100%, 125%, 150% and 200%. So far, a higher surface temperature has been observed in the evening than in the morning by less than 10 degrees. Every two days exudates have been collected for testing upon return to Purdue University. On Sol 1 and Sol 5 we performed contamination control by spraying a diluted solution of hydrogen peroxide onto contaminated spots. Mycelium has been observed growing over the contaminated spots, this has not been observed in the past. A CO2 flux collection chamber has been made from two peanut containers and 2 Aranet sensors, one designated for the CO2 in and CO2 out. This will be used to observe the rate of respiration of the MycoponicsTM tube. For the past two days, we have collected time lapse videos of growth throughout the day. This will be used to observe how the mushrooms move and grow throughout the day. Each day, measurements of how much liquid media run off are collected, data is sporadic and cannot be linked to any one variable.
EVAs Completed: No EVA’s required for this project.
EVAs Still Required: None
Next Steps: Continued with data collection and set up a stronger humidifier in grow tent for optimized mycelial growth.

Title: Fabrication of photovoltaic cells using semiconductor material gathered In-Situ.
Author(s): Jesus Meza-Galvan
Objectives: Gather iron fillings and iron-oxide containing minerals from the environment to use as semiconducting material to fabricate a rudimentary dye-sensitized solar cell.
Current Status: For the first half of the mission the project has been focused on gathering materials from the environment surrounding the HAB. The target of our search is raw iron in the form of fillings gathered from the soil, and iron-oxide minerals in the form of hematite. Iron filings are detected and collected using a bar magnet. Soil samples gathered from Kissing Camel show minute traces of iron filings, primarily gathered in dry streambeds on the north side of the ridge. These filings seem to be concentrated in the surface sediment layer (sand) of the streambeds, rather than the sub surface soil which is made up of a red-clay. No iron filings were detected in samples of red-clay and white-clay collected from the surface of Kissing Camel West. No hematite samples were observed in this region. The region atop HAB ridge has also been explored with two EVA sites taking place atop the ridge. The first site is a rocky outcrop along the edge of the ridge to the south of the station. In this site we found red hematite concretions that are promising samples to construct our solar cells. The second site were the streambeds in the Amazonis Planitia along Sagan Street. These streambeds seemed to have a higher concentration of iron filings than the streambeds analyzed at Kissing Camel. Soil samples from the base of Skyline Ridge show a lower iron concentration than those taken from the stream beds of the planes. The samples collected from Eos Chasma have not been analyzed.
EVAs Completed: 1 to Kissing Camel, 1 to HAB Ridge, 1 to Skyline Ridge, 1 to Eos Chasma.
EVAs Still Required: 1 to Candor Chasma, and possibly 1 more to the EVA site with the highest observed iron concentration.
Next Steps: At least two more EVA sites are planned to fully canvas the area for hematite and raw iron fillings. Thus far, not enough raw iron has been gathered to perform controlled oxidation experiments to produce semiconducting FeO. The hematite samples collected will be processed into a fine powder to form the semi-conductive layer of the photo-voltaic cell. However, the composition of the hematite samples is likely to be a mix of iron-oxide species that may not be semiconductive. Therefore, direct oxidation of raw iron is preferred. Attempts to make our first Martian solar cell using ground hematite concretions are scheduled for Sol 7.

Title: Sensor-based Team Performance Monitoring in Isolated, Confined, and Extreme Environments
Author(s): Ryan Villarreal
Objectives: To take team-level measurements of team dynamics in isolated, confined, and extreme environments.
Current Status: Data collection of daily team cohesion and efficacy questionnaires is ongoing, including prior to and following EVA missions. This will measure crew members’ perceptions of team effectiveness throughout the mission, and how they change from performing critical tasks. The crew has also now completed two of the three puzzle task sessions, in which geometric shapes must be arranged by the crew to perfectly fit a template. In this task, the crew works together synchronously to solve one puzzle. The crew enjoyed these tasks despite the difficulty of the puzzles. These data collection sessions occurred on Sol 1 and Sol 6. Due to the large file sizes of the physiological data collected, analysis will not begin until returning from the mission.
EVAs Completed: No EVA’s required for this project.
EVAs Still Required: None
Next Steps: Daily cohesion and efficacy questionnaires will continue to be filled out each day prior to and following critical tasks, and a final puzzle task session will be held on Sol 12.

Title: EVA Crew Monitoring System
Author(s): Keegan Chavez
Objectives: The project will extend the MDRS Monitoring System project to include a network of Raspberry Pis to measure and record crew member biometrics while on an EVA, specifically body temperature and CO2 levels.
Current Status:
After studying the data collected by crew 288, 289 and 305 and comparing it to the installed Smart Home monitoring system it was determined that the Smart Home system was had already accomplished all scientific objectives of the previously proposed MDRS Monitoring Project. The goal of the new work is to use the collected sensors and Raspberry Pis to monitor biometric data of crew members out on EVA. It was determined that only the temperature and CO2 data would be useful. A new system will be developed that includes the Raspberry Pi, temperature sensor, CO2 sensor, LED indicator light and battery pack. This new system will fit fully inside the EVA suit, with the CO2 sensor inside the suit helmet and temperature sensor inside the body of the suit. The raspberry Pi will monitor and record data continuously while on EVA and the indicator light will illuminate when either sensor is outside of acceptable levels set by the crew member. Once returned to the Hab, the data can be downloaded from the Pi to the Purdue ADAFruit Dashboard for analysis. Monitoring, recording, and uploading scripts can be replicas of the code used by crew 288, 289 and 305 for the MDRS Monitoring Project. Only the Crew Engineer will test the system inside of the suit during the EVA to avoid needing an IRB. Three systems will be developed for future missions.
EVAs Completed: No EVAs have been completed
EVAs Still Required: 1-2 EVAs for hardware testing and data collection
Next Steps: Develop schematic, build prototype and bench top test of prototype system.

Title: Wearable-Based Autonomic Profiles for Real-Time Cognitive Monitoring in Spaceflight
Author: Peter Zoss, Ryan Villarreal
Objective: This study will longitudinally quantify individual changes in autonomic nervous system (ANS) status via a wearable sensor in MDRS crew members to understand how our autonomic activity is associated with sequential measures of cognitive performance for predictive model development.
Current Status: Data collection using the VR system for eye tracking and tablet for administering the cognitive test is now halfway complete. Due to issues with the VR software, data collection occurred on Sol 2 and 4 instead of Sol 1 and 3. To get back on schedule, a data collection session was also run on Sol 5. The data collected so far seems to be complete and provide sufficient evidence to support the objective of cognitive monitoring from autonomic response. However, due to the large file sizes of the data collected, analysis will not begin until returning from the mission.
EVAs Completed: No EVA’s required for this project.
EVAs Still Required: None
Next Steps: Data collection sessions will continue Sol 7, 9, and 11 to complete all planned data collection sessions.