Crew Photos – January 31t
Sol Summary – January 31st
Sol: 10
Summary Title: Crunching the numbers
Author’s name: Andrew Wheeler
Mission Status: Nominal
Sol Activity Summary: The mornings are on repeat; clear and cold (-4C) morning and perfect for the solar observatory. A very short duration, early morning EVA to in front of the science dome’s panorama windows saw the final re-deploy of the solar logger. Despite the longer nights, the battery has been keeping the sensors working longer than anticipated. The performance data is eagerly awaited. The remainder of the morning was spent cleaning, cataloging, photographing and identifying samples and then preparing some for both non-destructive and destructive analysis. Lunch was a repeat of the scones and soup mostly because we’re getting good at this. After lunch, some of the gypsum collected the day before from the White Moon locale that had been subjected to spectral analysis, was shown to be completely different to other gypsum spectra. The repeat analyses and comparisons will be interesting. Dinner, a layered meat, vegetable and potato bake based on Hunza pie awaits.
Look Ahead Plan: Final EVAs to locate points of geological interest for GPS recording and a continuation of data analysis from spectral and physical samples.
Anomalies in work: Back pack batteries – see operations report.
Weather: Clear morning at -4 Celsius rising to mid teens during the day. Altostratus clouds with cumulus clouds on the southern horizon building in the afternoon with no precipitation. Humidity continuously dropping from near 70% at sunrise to 30% in the afternoon. The wind was faint to gentle during the day.
Crew Physical Status: Head bump in the observatory – see operations report.
EVA: EVA 18 with Andrew and Steve to re-deploy the solar logger.
Reports to be filed: Sol Summary, Journalist’s Report, Greenhab Report, Operations Report (including an HSO report), EVA report, EVA Request(s), Astronomer’s report.
Support Requested: Nothing to request.
Operations Report – January 31st
SOL: 10
Name of person filing report: Scott Dorrington
Non-nominal systems: None
Notes on non-nominal systems: None
ROVERS
Spirit rover used: Not used
Opportunity rover used: Not used
Curiosity rover used: Not used
Perseverance rover used: Not used
General notes on rovers:
Summary of Hab operations:
WATER USE: 21.15 gallons
Water (static tank): 223.25 gallons (depth 25”)
Static tank pipe heater (on or off): On
Static tank heater (on or off): On
Toilet tank emptied: no
Summary of internet: Nominal during comms window
Summary of suits and radios:
Batteries on suits #6 and #7 were replaced with new ones. Old batteries were labelled and placed with other faulty batteries. Charged batteries for 1 hour after replacement, then ran fans for 1 hour, testing voltage before and after. The voltage on suit 7 is also now stable after discharging.
Suit 6: Start: 13.60 V, End: 10.78 V (after 1 hr running)
Suit 7: Start: 13.08 V, End: 12.38 V (after 1 hr running)
Suit 8: Used nut kit in the RAM to judge the size of the nut. Found it is bigger than M3 and smaller than M4. Likely an imperial measurement.
Suit 11: While inspecting other suits for charging port nuts, I pulled suit 11 off the bottom rack. One of the screws from the back fell to the floor (likely not secured). Opening the back, I discovered the battery cables were not attached to the battery terminals. Not sure if this is deliberate. Left as found. Replaced screws in back, half screwed in – not all the way tightened.
Summary of GreenHab operations:
WATER USE: 9 gallons
Heater: On
Supplemental light: 10pm – 2am
Harvest: None
Summary of ScienceDome operations: Andrew used Science Dome for processing of gypsum discovered during yesterday’s EVA to White Moon. Gypsum was crushed in mortal and pestle and heated on hotplate to extract water. Clare used Science Dome to wash rock samples from previous EVAs. Steve used Science Dome to gather spectral curves of rock samples. Scott observed activities in Science Dome.
Dual split: Nominal
Summary of RAM operations: Entered RAM on several occasions to retrieve and return tools. Used tin snips to cut up a can for gypsum processing. Used socket sets and nut kit to investigate size of nut used for charging port on one-piece EVA suits.
Summary of any observatory issues: See astronomy report
Summary of health and safety issues:
Crew member received graze on head from hitting it on the door frame of the observatory. Bandages applied. Monitoring.
Questions, concerns and requests to Mission Support:
Advise on state of suit #11. Should the battery terminals be attached and screws inserted.
Journalist Report – January 31st
Breaking out the Bubbles
Sol 10 was a fairly relaxed day. There was reduced focus on EVAs… with the crew having collected most of the samples they needed during earlier EVAs, today was more about processing what we already had.
For Andrew and Clare, this involved preparing their gypsum samples for water extraction. The samples first needed to be washed, to remove any lingering dirt and other contaminants, and then ground in a mortar and pestle. The resulting powder was then heated. This experiment, although small, yielded the amount of water expected and was generally a success.
At every step of the way, Steve also took the opportunity to spectrify the gypsum – in its dirty state, its clean state, its powdered state, and its anhydrite state (post-water extraction). This went really well, although the spectral readings of the powdered gypsum weren’t fully consistent with Steve’s previous readings of similar samples, possibly implying slight differences in chemical composition between them. The more excitable of us have named this strange new form of gypsum “Stevenite”.
Andrew and Clare also reacted their carbonate samples (or specifically, the clay matrices within the samples) with ascetic acid (vinegar) to extract carbon dioxide, resulting in some very visible effervescence. Meanwhile Rob spent some more valuable time in the observatory.
As the crew’s engineering officer, Scott alternated between spacesuit maintenance (several of the suits were having battery issues) and Greenhab duties. Apparently we have two cucumbers in the ‘soon-to-be-eaten’ pipeline, as well as a surprise new fledgling cucumber from one of the more feeble plants. We didn’t necessarily have high expectations of the cucumber plants given that they had a rough time prior to our rotation with heating issues, so as far as we’re concerned this is all a bonus – clearly they’re enjoying the steady warmth. If we don’t eat them, they’ll make a good welcome present for Crew 292.
Speaking of warmth, in half a week we’ll be flying back into an Australian summer. Alas, our time at the MDRS is steadily drawing to a close. We only have one more full day ‘in sim’ before the end of our rotation – as of 12:00 local time on 2 February, we’re free men and woman (or at least, able to leave the hab without gearing up and depressurising in the airlock). The plan is to make tomorrow count with several large EVAs.
Highlights of the day: Water from rock, discovering Stevenite, discovering dehydrated chicken, Scotty to Engineering, Rob’s epic ‘hunza’ pie, cucumber surprise, discussing volcanoes/space disasters/conspiracies, Clare’s ‘weird rock’ fizzed (in vinegar).
Lowlights of the day: Self-dissembling plant-beds, Clare apparently hates puns and the news as well, and also hasn’t watched any Futurama or Star Wars/Trek (and calls the Force “psychic powers”), spherical trigonometry.
– Alexander Tobal, Crew 291
GreenHab Report – January 31st
GreenHab Officer: Scott Dorrington
Environmental control: heater on automatic
Average temperatures:
09:12: 73.9 F, 21%
09:34: 75.9 F, 26%
11:23: 89.8 F, 25%
12:05: 94.6 F, 23%
13:40: 100.8 F, 19%
14:00: 89.1 F, 16%
15:19: 101.8 F, 21%
16:07: 98.4 F, 30%
18:38: 84.7 F, 28%
Hours of supplemental light: 4 hours overnight
Daily water usage for crops: 9 gallons
Daily water usage for research and/or other purposes: 0 gallons
Water in Blue Tank (200 gallon capacity): 99 gallons
Time(s) of watering for crops: 09:15 water, 11:23 mist, 13:40 water + mist, 15:20 mist
Changes to crops: None
Narrative:
Another clear sunny day today. I gave the plants their first watering of 4 gallons around 9am. The tomato plants were looking a little dry again, so wanted to give them a good watering early in the day. During this watering, I also noticed that the wilty cucumber (cuke #1) had a tiny cucumber on it. This was very surprising, as it doesn’t look very healthy. It got some extra water to try to bring it back to health. I noticed that the orange tomatoes on #9 are also now red. I think they will be harvestable in the next day or two. I returned a few times throughout the day to log temperatures and mist. The second watering was given at 13:40. This time 5 gallons. I opened the door for around 10 minutes during this watering to lower the heat a bit for the afternoon, and rearranged the plants to be out of the sun. Today’s music therapy featured Bernard Fanning and some podcasts.
Harvest: None
Support/supplies needed: None
EVA Report – January 31st
EVA # 18
Author: Andrew Wheeler
Purpose of EVA: Redeploy of solar logger outside the science dome following recharge of battery.
Start time: 0755
End time: 0815
Narrative: Having been retrieved from it’s position outside the science dome, the solar logger was redeployed to the same location following full recharge of it’s battery. A visual inspection of the elements of the MDRS and the connecting tunnels for the engineering officer was also carried out at this time before returning to the hab.
Destination: Outside the science dome panoramic windows.
Coordinates (use UTM WGS 84): 518228E 4250718N
Participants: Andrew Wheeler and Steve Hobbs.
Road(s) and routes per MDRS Map: MDRS campus environs
Mode of travel: Walking.
Astronomy Report – January 31st
[category
astronomy-report]
Name: Rob Hunt
Crew: 291
Date: 31/01/2024
MUSK OBSERVATORY (MO)
Solar Features Observed: Sun spots observed, imaged for processing later
Problems Encountered:
09:30
excellent blue-sky day, no wind, no clouds, temp. ~14o C, RH ~35%,
bashed top of head entering door – again. This time it drew a small amount of blood that stopped very quickly. Since I’m Crew Medical Assist, and Crew MO was not available, I returned to the HAB, disinfected it and applied a dressing. Incident recorded to MO,
I suggest write sign on inside and outside of door saying “Mind your head”,
shutter, and azimuth dome motors worked well,
at first the ‘scope Hand Control didn’t follow normal menu presentation so I power cycled at the pier and then ‘scope slewed to target.
10:05
subsequently, the first power-up resulted in the ‘scope perfectly with the Sun centered in field of view,
as yesterday, live view is fuzzy and I can’t achieve granular surface of chromosphere,
as for all of these observing sessions, a large, fuzzy ‘plume’ is seen on one side of the target in the eyepiece.
11:10
granular view of chromosphere still not being achieved despite tweaking tuners as Observatory Manager suggested,
while tweaking settings the ‘plume’ was seen in a number of the SharpCap captures,
something’s not right,
primary lens/filter was photographed to include in condition report of scratch and smudge noticed on 22nd Jan but not reported until now,
11:40
ran first capture at 50/2.16/80 (Gain/Exp/Histo),
ran several more captures at various settings.
14:00
‘scope reached limit of tracking ability so I stopped, packed up and returned to HAB,
data processing will be done at a later time.
Crew Photos – January 30th
Sol Summary – January 30th
Sol: 9
Summary Title: Pushing the limits
Author’s name: Andrew Wheeler
Mission Status: Nominal
Sol Activity Summary: Another clear and cold (-4C) morning. Perfect for the solar observatory and EVAs. A morning EVA to Pooh’s Corner allowed a team to revisit a site last observed 18 years ago to gauge arid land degradation with a view to develop a geoheritage strategy. Concurrent with this, more robot rover traction trials were conducted over the different terrain. This EVA was most successful. The afternoon EVA sought to push the rovers to the maximum of their endurance under the current conditions, in an attempt to reach White Moon at the junction of Cow Dung Road and Brahe Highway. Here, gypsum crystals are exposed at the surface and these provide excellent targets for spectral analysis. Under the conditions, the rovers made it to approximately 800m short of the target. This distance was easily walked and 20 minutes later the team were there. Spectra were taken, samples collected and, in too short a time, the team headed back to the MDRS. However, the journey was interrupted by the appearance of a pair of (juvenile?) pronghorn antelope who crossed our path. What are they doing on Mars?. During all of this, the sun was continuously imaged in the observatory and an enhanced composite produced. Cheesy garlic scones for lunch and jambalaya for dinner was greatly enjoyed by all.
Look Ahead Plan: A day of consolidation. With no EVAs planned (except for a short one to redeploy the solar logger), we will use the time to crunch data, process samples and collect laboratory spectra for comparison to field data.
Anomalies in work: Nothing to report.
Weather: Clear morning at -4 Celsius rising to mid teens during the day. No clouds and no precipitation. Humidity continuously dropping from near 70% at sunrise to 30% in the afternoon. The wind was faint to gentle during the day.
Crew Physical Status: Nothing to report.
EVA: EVA 15 with Clare, Steve and Alex in search of anhydrite yardangs near Pooh’s Corner complimented with robot rover trials.
EVA 17 with Andrew, Steve and Scott to White Moon to push the rovers to their limits and collect spectra and samples for analyses.
Reports to be filed: Sol Summary, Journalist’s Report, Greenhab Report, Operations Report (including an HSO report), EVA report, EVA Request(s), Astronomer’s report.
Support Requested: Nothing to request.
Operations Report – January 30th
SOL: 9
Name of person filing report: Scott Dorrington
Non-nominal systems: None
Notes on non-nominal systems: None
ROVERS EVA 17
Spirit rover used:
Hours: 244.4
Beginning charge: 100%
Ending charge: 35%
Currently charging: No
Opportunity rover used:
Hours: 158.9
Beginning charge: 100%
Ending charge: 48%
Currently charging: No
ROVERS EVA 15
Curiosity rover used:
Hours: 261.1
Beginning charge: 100%
Ending charge: 75%
Currently charging: No
Perseverance rover used:
Hours: 283.0
Beginning charge: 95%
Ending charge: 68%
Currently charging:
General notes on rovers:
Perseverance was a little under-charged this morning. We experienced a power outage that may have been due to the rovers being charging.
Summary of Hab operations:
WATER USE: 22.87 gallons
Water (static tank): 252.66 gallons (depth 22.75”)
Static tank pipe heater (on or off): on
Static tank heater (On or off): on
Toilet tank emptied: yes
Summary of internet: Nominal during comms window
Summary of suits and radios:
Suit #8: Located nuts from RAM, however did not fit screws. Not sure that there are nuts that will fit. Can have another look in RAM tomorrow.
Suit #6: Noted yesterday that the voltage of this suit was rather low after EVA. Mission support suggested a test of running the fan for 1 hour. Starting volts: 13.61 V, end: 6.60 V. Similar numbers to yesterday’s EVA
Suit #7: Fan was noticeably low during afternoon EVA. Compared to other suits upon return and it sounds quieter inside helmet. Noticed some strange voltage measurements following EVA as well. After turning off suit, voltage read around 6.5 V, however voltage slowly increased over the next 10 minutes, leveling out to around 11.85 Volts.
Summary of GreenHab operations:
WATER USE: 10 gallons
Heater: On
Supplemental light: 10pm – 2am
Harvest: 40g kale, 18g arugula, 40g (1x) radish, 37g lettuce
Summary of ScienceDome operations: Not used
Dual split: Nominal
Summary of RAM operations: Entered RAM to locate nuts for suits.
Summary of any observatory issues: See astronomy report
Summary of health and safety issues: None
Questions, concerns and requests to Mission Support: None
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