Author: jburk

Posted on

Journalist Report – February 6th

Crew 204 Journalist Report 06-FEB-2019

Title: Eat to live or live to eat?

Author: Sonal Baberwal (HSO and Crew Journalist)

Good Morning Earthlings! Have you ever lived on a salad for a month and missed all exotic food? This is exactly opposite to what we are feeling! We miss fresh salad! I wish salad could be available on Mars! But it will surely as soon as our plants grow older! Meanwhile, let’s experiment with different powders and make good food!

Another day starts with a lot of discussions on the table served with hot chocolate and experimental brunch! The day further continued with a regular routine and research everyone have been doing and short EVA performed by Commander and GreenHab Officer. Dear weather, please get well soon! Because we really miss long EVAs with rover!

It was really a great experience to 3D print the bricks with the Martian clay and help Commander, Avishek Ghosh. Who knows maybe Commander is planning to make a mini Habitat? And then he might use magnifying energy just like superheroes and magicians and make it large! I never know what exactly goes in his mind! Let me share with you, my area of interest lies in Human-Machine Interaction and Brain Waves. I wish I can make a mind-reading technology pretty soon and read what exactly goes into his mind.

Our GreenHab officer Cosmos Patil has been involved in taking care of the plants as we have been facing lack of sunlight and cold weather. I believe after returning back home definitely he is going to miss the GreenHab and would be making a kitchen garden as he has started making plants as his friends! After lunch, he goes to the GreenHab to have a walk and music with his friends!

You will find our Crew Engineer Space Bot taking readings for his reports, filling up the water tank and similar things! Sometimes it becomes difficult to know exactly where he belongs to! Sometimes you will find him sitting up the deck to fill the water and sometimes setting temperature of the Upper deck. Sometimes in the Engineering Lab and sometimes smiling and talking with the rover!

You might be thinking what exactly I do? Well let me tell you, whether it might be the crew using sanitizer on their hand after using the toilet or washing their hand with water and handwash, I observe all of them minutely and share their deep secrets with all of you every day! I help the crew whenever and wherever they need assistance. Sometimes you will find me plugging earphones and listening to music, sometimes observing this world from the little window and sometimes putting loud Bollywood music and dancing by myself!

This is Sonal Baberwal, Health and Safety Officer and Crew Journalist reporting live from the Upper deck of the habitat just before the communication with the mission support. Stay tuned for the next sunrise and our bunch of stories!

Posted on

Greenhab Report – February 6th

Crew 204 Green Hab Report – 6-FEB-2019

GreenHab Officer: Patil (Cosmos)

Environmental control: Heating and Cooling w/ ambient air (5 hrs)

Shade Cloth (40%)

Average temperatures:

Low: 18.3°C

High: 27.8°C

Hours of supplemental light: 5 Hours

Daily water usage for crops: 12 gallons

Water in Blue Tank: ~ 195 gallons

Time(s) of watering for crops:

TIME NOTED TEMPERATURE (° C) / HUMIDITY (%)
[AT TIME OF WATERING]

1) 09.00 AM 20.4° C / 36 %
2) 12.00 PM 20.0° C / 31 %
3) 15:00 PM 23.9° C / 21 %
4) 18:00 PM 23.0° C / 25 %

Changes to crops: None

Narrative: The cloudy and windy weather reports again. Plants are growing as expected. While looking at growth, we are learning that the first principle of success is desire. It is knowing what you want to do. Desire is the planting of your seed to harvest later.

Harvest: None

Support/supplies needed: None

Posted on

Operations Report – February 6th

Crew 204 Operations Report 06-FEB-2019

SOL: 9

Name of person filing report: Kunal Naik (Space_bot)

Non-nominal systems: None

Notes on non-nominal systems: N/A

Generator (hours run): Turned on this evening by 1630 (6th Feb),
Stopped by this morning 0930 (6th Feb)

Solar— SOC % – Turned off Gen (6th Feb) 100%, Turned on Gen (6th Feb) 76%

Diesel Reading – 35%

Propane Reading – ~ 60%

Ethanol Free Gasoline – 10 gallons

Water (Auxillary tank) – Not in use gallons

Water (Static tank) – around 65%, ~ 325 gallons

Auxiliary to Static tank transfer – No

Gallons transferred: Not Applicable

Water in GreenHab – ~ 195 gallons

Water (loft) – 12 marked level

Static to Loft Pump used – yes

Water Meter: 01408509 units

Toilet tank emptied: No

Deimos rover used: No, still not functional
Hours: N/A
Beginning charge: N/A
Ending charge: N/A
Currently charging: N/A

Sojourner rover used: ASSIGNED TO DIRECTOR

Hours: Not Applicable
Beginning charge: Not Applicable
Ending charge: Not Applicable
Currently charging: Not Applicable

Spirit rover used: Not Used

Hours: 72.1
Beginning charge: Not Used
Ending charge: Not Used
Currently charging: Yes

Opportunity rover used: Not Used
Hours: 47.6 hours
Beginning charge: Not Used
Ending charge: Not Used
Currently charging: Yes

Curiosity rover used: Not Used
Hours: Not Used
Beginning charge: Not Used
Ending charge: Not Used
Currently charging: Not Used

Notes on rovers: None

ATV’s Used: Yes

Reason for use: For general exploration and for internship project.

Oil Added? N/A

ATV Fuel Used: Nope

# Hours the ATVs were Used today: 30 minutes

Notes on ATVs: Used by Mission Support

HabCar used and why, where? Not used

Crew Car used and why, where? Off-Campus

General notes and comments: None

Summary of internet: Nothing to report

Summary of suits and radios: Nothing to report

Summary of Hab operations: Nothing to report.

Summary of Green Hab operations: Nothing to report

Summary of Science Dome operations: Nothing to report

Summary of RAMM operations: Used some engineering tools for Rover.

Summary of any observatory issues: Nothing to report.

Summary of health and safety issues: Nothing to report.

Questions, concerns and requests to Mission Support: None

Posted on

Sol Summary – February 6th

Crew 204 Sol Summary Report 06-FEB-2019

Sol: 9

Summary Title: The Old Paso Nacho Fusion

Author’s name: Kunal Naik (Space_Bot)

Mission Status: Nominal

Sol Activity Summary: The food gives the energy to work. The delicious taste and savory give a satisfactory psychological effect which makes an individual happy plus productive and efficient work. This theory is
proven actually and on the fun part, we tested it today. The roaring Martian gust has stopped but bit chilly weather.

The crew woke up as per their assigned schedule; hot chocolate and crackers are the good starts of the day. Today’s round table topic of discussion was Intercultural exchange and Interdisciplinary! It’s good to know about different culture.

Pre-Lunch, SpaceBot was working on organizing the remote test of child rover from India. He was setting up software on the mobile device to operate remotely. Lunch was prepared by MarsBag and SpaceBot. A Taco with seasoned mashed potatoes, kidney bean gravy, layered with hot Mexican cheese and onion flakes was an experimental Tex-Mex lunch which was savored and loved by all.

Instead of resting post lunch, all crew members started working on their projects and assigned task. Carbon flight printed few bricks for Martian habitat from his 3D Clay Printer. These bricks will be dried and baked for Martian Habitat structure. The positive news from the Green Hab, the newly planted seeds are sprouting well.

The EVA around the hab was done by Carbon Flight and Cosmos. The purpose of the EVA was for general exploration. The crew is still planning for some recreational activities post dinner.

Look Ahead Plan: The rover will be operated from India and will test the local connection and delay in operation. The 3D clay printer has printed some bricks out of Martian soil composition which will be dried and baked to test the inner dynamic structure and possibility to use for future habitat. Finger crossed on weather and servers for an outdoor remote test. The sprouts and mix seeds have already started showing good results. Hoping to observe proper growth.

Anomalies in work: None Encountered

Weather: Cloudy, Strong Winds

Crew Physical Status: Nominal

EVA’s location: Hab Ridge Road (518100 E; 4250750 N)

Reports to be filed: 1) Operations Report 2) Green Hab Report 3)
Journalist Report 4) EVA Report 5) Photos

Support Requested: None

Posted on

Operations Report – February 4th

Crew 204 Operations Report 04- FEB – 2019

SOL: 7

Name of person filing report: Kunal Naik (Space_bot)

Non-nominal systems: None

Notes on non-nominal systems: N/A

Generator (hours run): Turned on this evening by 1730 (4th Feb),
Stopped by this morning 0800 (4th Feb)

Solar— SOC % – Turned on (4th Feb) 100%, Turned off (4th Feb) 76%

Diesel Reading – 38%

Propane Reading – ~ 65%

Ethanol Free Gasoline – 10 gallons

Water (Auxillary tank) – Not in use gallons

Water (Static tank) – around 70%, ~ 350 gallons

Auxillary to Static tank transfer – No

Gallons transferred: Not Applicable

Water in GreenHab – ~ 219 gallons

Water (loft) – 12 marked level

Static to Loft Pump used – yes

Water Meter: 01407956 units

Toilet tank emptied: Yes

Deimos rover used: No, still not functional
Hours: N/A
Beginning charge: N/A
Ending charge: N/A
Currently charging: N/A

Sojourner rover used: ASSIGNED TO DIRECTOR
Hours: Not Applicable
Beginning charge: Not Applicable
Ending charge: Not Applicable
Currently charging: Not Applicable

Spirit rover used: Not Used
Hours: 72.1
Beginning charge: Not Used
Ending charge: Not Used
Currently charging: Yes

Opportunity rover used: Not Used
Hours: 47.6 hours
Beginning charge: Not Used
Ending charge: Not Used
Currently charging: Yes

Curiosity rover used: Not Used
Hours: Not Used
Beginning charge: Not Used
Ending charge: Not Used
Currently charging: Not Used

Notes on rovers: None

ATV’s Used: None

Reason for use: N/A

Oil Added? N/A

ATV Fuel Used: Nope

# Hours the ATVs were Used today: N/A

Notes on ATVs: N/A

HabCar used and why, where? Used to go to the town

Crew Car used and why, where? Off Campus

General notes and comments: None

Summary of internet: Nothing to report

Summary of suits and radios: Nothing to report

Summary of Hab operations: Nothing to report.

Summary of Green Hab operations: Nothing to report

Summary of Science Dome operations: Nothing to report

Summary of RAMM operations: Used some engineering tools for Rover.

Summary of any observatory issues: Nothing to report.

Summary of health and safety issues: Nothing to report.

Questions, concerns and requests to Mission Support: None

Posted on

Journalist Report – February 4th

Crew 204 Journalist Report 04 FEB 2019.

Title: Are We Alone?

Author: Sonal Baberwal.

Good morning from Mars. Last night has been a noisy night as we could sense the winds trying to say us something by knocking the doors throughout the night! The feel of isolation was at its best as all we could hear was the noise of the wind which leaves us with a question, are we alone out here in the middle of nowhere? Perhaps nature won’t ever leave you alone. Another day started with looking out from the window and observing the beautiful view of the clouds and the mountains.

The day continues with yummy brunch cooked by Kunal Naik and Avishek Ghosh. We were actually discussing how much we are missing the EVAs due to unsupported weather conditions. The day had been engaged in working on the usual routines where our GreenHab officer had been working on regular care of the GreenHab.

Kunal Naik and Avishek Ghosh had been working on their projects related to the rover and the 3D printing. The day had been an ordinary day just like the others, but the best part of this ordinary day was the extra-ordinary outputs everyone had received.

Very firstly, heartiest congratulations to our baby plant from the sprouts that have grown one day old and he is observing Mars with us! All the fruitful efforts and care of our GreenHab Officer Patil (Cosmos) have turned to be worthy. The new soil compositions prepared by our commander looks promising with some reasonable or unexpected results.

The rover is finally assembled where it can crawl on the Martian terrains and capture its unforgettable moments. The commander has prepared the clay mixture which is ready to be molded into pots from this soil.

The day had been really interesting in terms of the activities we have been performing. Looking forward to a new sunrise with a hope in better weather conditions to support the EVA. This is Sonal Baberwal, HSO and Crew Journalist reporting live from the upper deck of the Habitat! Stay connected to know more about the application of our results.

Posted on

Greenhab Report – February 4th

Crew 204 Green Hab Report – 4-FEB-2019

GreenHab Officer: Patil (Cosmos)

Environmental control: Heating and Cooling w/ ambient air (5 hrs)

Shade Cloth (40%)

Average temperatures:

Low: 18.3°C

High: 24.2°C

Hours of supplemental light: 5 Hours

Daily water usage for crops: 12 gallons

Water in Blue Tank: ~ 219 gallons

Time(s) of watering for crops:

TIME NOTED TEMPERATURE(° C ) / HUMIDITY(%)
[AT TIME OF WATERING]

1) 09.00 AM 18.3° C / 36 %
2) 12.00 PM 20.6° C / 33 %
3) 15:00 PM 22.3° C / 38 %
4) 18:00 PM 19.1° C / 62 %

Changes to crops: None

Narrative: Today was the day of "the hub garden germination". We were observing planted sprouts in a garden soil tray and other composites of soils. Seed coat has ruptured, root has grown in ground and crop has started taking its shape. We could see good growth in sprouts planted in a tray, and promising growth in sprouts planted in various composites of soil.

Harvest: None

Support/supplies needed: None

Posted on

Sol Summary – February 4th

Crew 204 Sol Summary Report 04- FEB – 2019

Sol: 7

Summary Title: The Herb Garden Germination

Author’s name: Kunal Naik (Space_bot)

Mission Status: Nominal

Sol Activity Summary: The most selfless living things are the plants. They just believe in giving essentials. For any interplanetary travel or living on other planet. They are the critical part of the life support system. They provide food, water, and oxygen, which are one of the essentials to sustain our self. Maintaining the Green Hab is a big task and an important one.

The crew woke up little late as EVA was cancelled due to strong winds. The roaring gust, the strong winds striking the hab is the only sound the crew is listening from last day on repeat mode. Sipping of Hot Chocolate and discussion over Veganism, MDRS Green Hab, Growing of Herbs via Aquaponic system escalated by an hour. The crew had brunch on Monday morning which is quiet a strange thing but its Mars! Anything, Anytime. The lunch was cooked earlier by Space Bot and Carbon flight as per the rotation while the other members cleaned the kitchen. The crew is facing some internet issues from last day which can be due to the weather but not a big problem.

Post lunch the crew started to work on their assigned projects. All the rover issues were solved, and the bot is ready to test offside with streamed AV. While Crew Commander, Crew Health and Safety Officer (Mars Bag) which were assisted by the Green Hab Officer (Cosmos) looking after old plants as well observing the new plants which were sowed recently in 8 different soil compositions.

A positive news from the Green Hab, the newly planted seeds are coming to life. The EVA was cancelled due to windy conditions, so its time was utilized for recreational activities. The crew has planned to watch a movie post dinner.

Look Ahead Plan: The 3D clay printer will be tested manually using different soil composition and printing some samples. The work on the child rover will be to test the complete system outdoor during a short EVA.

Finger crossed on weather and servers. The sprouts and mix seeds have already started showing good results. Hoping to observe proper growth.

Anomalies in work: None Encountered

Weather: Cloudy, Strong Winds

Crew Physical Status: Nominal

EVA’s location: Cancelled due to strong winds

Reports to be file: 1) Operations Report 2) Green Hab Report 3)
Journalist Report 4) Photos

Support Requested: None.

Posted on

Science Report – February 03rd

Title: The Martian experimental benefactor.

Author: Avishek Ghosh

1. Processing and preparation of soil

Team: Sonal Baberwal, Avishek Ghosh

Various soil composition (8 variations) have been prepared from MDRS soil, JSC-MARS-1, Charcoal and garden soil stored in Greenhab. Another material is also added with existing soil composition to prevent compaction. Water has been poured into all the prepared soil samples and left overnight. The complex compositions have soaked water quickly even got dried till morning. Other basic compositions were holding the moisture.

2. Experimental Greenhab preparation

Team: Pranit Patil, Sonal Baberwal, Avishek Ghosh

A few sprouted seeds along with some grown-up mustard plants have been transferred and planted to the new 8 different soil compositions that are prepared yesterday. Observation is required on the surviving capacity and growth of the seeds and plants on new soils. A regular growth has also been observed on the sprouted seeds that already planted in regular garden soil.

3. Rover assembly and integration

Kunal Naik (Space_Bot)

The rover has experienced some issues related to power system and wirings which was resolved at the earliest. The battery test and camera performance test have been executed inside RAMM (Engineering lab). It is ready to be operated outdoor during the EVA’s through a newly developed local server connectivity. But the real communication system is yet to be tested.

4. 3D Printer assembly and test run

Avishek Ghosh (Carbon flight)

Today, finally Commander was able to start the printer system and successfully extrude materials through the tube with automatic/manual settings in engineering to develop. It took a bit of time to develop the mechanical assembly but the entire machine responds well during operations. Printed a sample (MARS) of a few layers during the test run. Further upgradation is required to develop complex printed structures.

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