Journalists Report March 19
At 3:00 am, Dean arrived with all kinds of electronic and mechanical goodies.
After allowing him a short nap, 3 of us assembled a bicycle and mounted it to a friction trainer. Dean hooked up a battery and ancillary monitoring devices. Each crew members will ride for an hour per day for at least 2 days. Energy will be stored in the battery, and used to power the 3D printers. This activity keeps us in shape, maintains high crew morale, and creates electrical power
independently.
Kevin hooked up a 3D printer in the RAM and printed a microscope slide holder, a soil sieve base, and a mold for making protein gels (used for Western blotting). How wonderful that these aids to science can be made right on Mars without the necessity of transporting them up here!
In the afternoon, Kevin, Tiffany and Julielynn went on an EVA to scout the turn off the main highway to Cow Dung Road. As there is no signage, they plan to drone map the area to create a 3D printed map which might be a helpful aid to pinpointing the intersection.
In the evening, Julielynn trained all crew members in needle decompression skills to treat a potentially fatal tension
pneumothorax. She employed her leading-edge 3D printed medical simulation training devices. While this was fascinating and exciting it was kind of scary for those of us who are not in the medical profession! But being on Mars, where the nearest hospital is months away, it’s a handy skill to know!
Cheers,
Julielynn Wong, MD, MPH, FACPM
Chief Medical Maker