Sol 11 – The sweetness of success
« “How do you like Mars, Pop?”
“Fine. Always something new. I made up my mind when I came here last year I wouldn’t expect nothing, nor ask nothing, nor be surprised at nothing.” »
– Chapter 11 of The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury
This morning, we woke up expecting only to be surprised… and we were!
The forecast announced slightly less fierce winds, allowing the third photogrammetry EVA at North Ridge to take place. Beforehand, the exploration team was shown a 3D render of the same area, and given indications on where to find the checkpoints. The experiment was a success! Jérémy and Alexandre found all six checkpoints much faster and more efficiently than the team with the classic 2D map, and had time left on their EVA to explore North Ridge further. They even mentioned that having seen the 3D map, they felt like they had already been to North Ridge before even going on EVA. Alice was HabCom for the first time, and had fun jotting down notes for the EVA crew to read upon their return.
Next week, the same process will be repeated at a different location. Alice and Quentin are aiming higher: more checkpoints to find, a greater search radius, and more complex terrain.
The conditions in which we have been conducting the EchoFinder experiment have also improved! Thanks to Quentin and the researchers from MEDES, we have been able to transfer the software to a more powerful tablet, making it easier to detect the QR cubes and use the Augmented Reality interface. After Quentin and I performed a test run, Adrien and Alexandre were able to run a full ultrasound session which was successful. Meanwhile, I went to battle with my computer to start creating a mid-rotation video using footage from a first-person camera I wore during EVAs and from our Parrot drones. I cannot believe we are nearing mid-rotation… time flies!
The Hab smelled of cake and caramel all day, doing wonders for the crew’s morale: using up the last of our flour and dough mixes, Corentin and Adrien baked a chocolate chip cake and a brioche!