Month: February 2024

The Sun Sets on Mars
Well this is it. We’ve now passed the end of sim. Theoretically we could all sprint out of the airlock without suits and frolic across the hillsides, but Commandrew’s advised us that the bentonite clay outside is too waterlogged and swollen for that. Or maybe he just wants to preserve our remaining dignity.
It’s been a bit of a strange (but satisfying) day. With no EVAs on the scope, members of the crew spent their last morning as proper Martians finishing off experiments in the science dome (like testing the reactivity of powdered concretion), doing some preliminary cleaning, or just chilling/warming in the kitchen. We had some good convos and laughs around the table, as always, discussing everything from Hawking radiation and space elevators to sunsets, duck feet and TV shows. The Greenhab decided to bequeath us some parting gifts: five tomatoes, three peas and a cucumber. A few of us also trudged through the mud to get some picturesque photos of the landscape, and when it got dark, did some stargazing under the northern hemisphere sky.
I think this is the point where I give a formal shout out to the fine folks of Crew 291, who are genuinely all fun, easygoing, considerate people. Maybe we’re all steadily succumbing to cabin fever… but there have been so many hysterical moments between us, and we’ve become fast friends in a very short span of time. Everyone brings something interesting to the table. Everyone pulls their weight. We’ve succeeded and failed as a team. Somehow, there’s been no bad blood whatsoever between us… which I didn’t expect, being thrown into a living situation with five other strangers (and one toilet between us). These people are passionate about – and very skilled at – what they do, and it’s been inspiring to document them fulfilling their professional and personal goals at the MDRS.
What have I learned from this experience? There’s the obvious stuff, about how a habitat is run and the kind of day-to-day tasks that life on Mars might one day entail. Then there are the less obvious things. The geology lessons, realising the unseen ways (and innate beauty) with which the landscapes around us tell their ancient stories – from the mightiest chasms to the most mundane pebbles underfoot. Or how profoundly the simplest things, like food, can uplift crew culture, morale and cohesion. The way a great crew can make the challenges trivial.
So there you have it. Our last report from the MDRS. Tomorrow we leave the MDRS and journey all the way back to Australia. I’d like to thank everyone who got involved in this expedition, including the directors of Mars Society Australia. While we’re all looking forward to returning home (more than ready to see some Terran green and blue), I think I speak for all of us in saying that this has been an unforgettable experience that will stay front-of-mind for a very long time. It’s not every day you get to be Martian.
And thanks to you, readers, for following and supporting us. If you’d like to reach out to the crew about our activities and experiences at the MDRS, please contact Mars Society Australia.
Farewell from Andrew Wheeler (Commandrew), Steve Hobbs, Rob Hunt, Clare Fletcher, Scott Dorrington, and Alexander Tobal!
Highlights of the day: Steve’s landscape photography (reportedly “the best sunset he’s seen in thirty years, in either hemisphere”), pasta, send-off harvest, stargazing, Clare is a LotR/fantasy fan (finally, something to get her out of the lowlights), Commandrew "doesn’t think any of us need putting down".
Lowlights of the day: Rob used buttermilk again as a milk substitute (in fruit porridge), Steve’s clay-caked boots, Clare "didn’t have any thoughts today" (ah well, back into the lowlights), crew got rained on through the ‘tornado-proof’ hab roof, more extraterrestrials checking us out.

– Alexander Tobal, Crew 291

Back to Earth
Sol 11 began on a slightly sombre note. At 09:00, the crew held a minute’s silence to mark the anniversary of the Columbia disaster, followed by a bit of a speech by Steve about the ill-fated crew and mission. It’s a fascinating story, from both a technical and human perspective, and serves as a sobering reminder that what we’re doing here now will one day be very real for the human crews sent to Mars – which, when it happens, will be one of the most extraordinary and precarious ventures our species has ever taken.
As the last full day ‘in sim’, we planned to make full use of our time and conduct two hefty EVAs. The first went out to Candor Chasma: a deep, winding riverbed that cuts a deep channel through the rocky landscape east of the MDRS. As we climbed down and trekked much of its length, further than our crew had previously, we found ourselves surrounded by huge cliff faces of stratified rock, and discovered a wealth of interesting rock samples underfoot (including some great petrified wood fossils, and other novel things like jasper for Steve to spectrify).
The second EVA was almost cancelled on account of wet weather, but luckily the looming rain was delayed by a few hours and the team was cleared to proceed. They wanted to go to White Moon again, 4km north of the MDRS, but with the rovers’ batteries depleted more quickly by the colder weather they reached 55% charge (their point of no return) slightly north of Cowboy Corner, just over halfway to their destination. The team made the best of their remaining time by collecting additional samples from the area around the rovers (which they’d already visited during a previous EVA). At this site they found more petrified wood, concretions, endoliths growing on chert, as well as some extra parts of Clare’s ‘weird fizzy rock’ (carbonate). They also got to see a few special sights: a yardang from below, an antelope (I didn’t think they married, hurr durr), squirrels, birds, and a humanoid native lifeform on a faraway hill.
Unfortunately, these will likely be our last EVAs as said wet weather (and a hint of snow) has made conditions tomorrow unsuitable.
So… it’ll all end at midday tomorrow. After that, we do our cleaning, packing… and if time and weather allow, maybe some unencumbered hiking.
Highlights of the day: ‘Cobweb’ rocks (actually called "chicken wire gypsum"), other cool stones, the Chasma, remembering Columbia (maybe this should be a lowlight?), animals, Scott’s sugar stash.
Lowlights of the day: Steve mangling a bread loaf, biggest power loss yet, foggy visors, Clare hasn’t watched The Simpsons, someone dropped/broke multiple rock samples, EVA (mis)communications.

– Alexander Tobal, Crew 291