Month: February 2024

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Supplemental Operations Report – January 21st

Date: 1/21/2024
Name of person filing report: Sergii Iakymov
Reason for Report: Routine
Non-Nominal Systems: Perseverance rear view mirror, Crew car, GreenHab heater

Power system:
Solar: Nominal.
SOC Last 24 hours: Max 47%; Min 23%; Avg 38.2%.
VDC Last 24 hours: Max 54.22V; Min 41.8; Avg 47.47V.
Generator run time: 4775.1 hours.

Propane Readings:
Station Tank: 70%
Director Tank: 70%
Intern Tank: 87%
Generator Tank: 58%

Water:
Hab Static Tank – 530 gallons
GreenHab – 185 gallons
Outpost tank – 400 gallons
Science Dome – 0 gallons
Septic Tanks emptied: No

Rovers:
Sojourner rover used: No.
Hours: 196.2
Beginning Charge: 100 %
Ending Charge: 100 %
Currently Charging: Yes
Notes on Rovers: Perseverance parking brake non-functional and rear-view mirror cracked.

ATV: ATV’s Used: None. Nothing to report.

Cars:
Hab Car used and why, where: To Hanksville for supplies. Need to be serviced.
Crew Car used and why, where: To Grand Junction and back
General notes and comments: Crew car water pump replaced and oil changed.

Summary of Internet: All nominal.
EVA suits and radios:
Suits: All nominal
Comms: All nominal

Campus wide inspection, if action taken, what and why: All nominal.
Summary of Hab Operations: UV lamp in water filter needs to be replaced. Pending.
Summary of GreenHab Operations: Heater is broken and new parts have been ordered.
Summary of SciDome Operations: All nominal
Summary of Observatories Operations: Weather stripping repair in robotic observatory is pending.
Summary of RAM Operations: All nominal.
Summary of Outpost Operations: Intern trailer heater needs to be picked up from Grand Junction.
Summary of Health and Safety Issues: All nominal.

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Journalist Report – January 15th

Journalist Report

Nicole Chan, Crew 290 Journalist

01.15.2024

Sol 8

Today we got back into our normal routine. With an EVA planned this afternoon, the crew started the day with some slices of bread from yesterday. We all remarked that it was a bit more moist than previous iterations, making the bread softer and nicer to eat. With some raspberry jam and peanut butter, the crew had a wonderful breakfast and got to work. Rebecca (Chopper) began transferring knowledge of the pH meter from yesterday’s ScienceDome session. Madelyn (Melon) used the time to check geological guides for suitable sampling sites around the region of Kissing Camel Ridge, the destination of today’s EVA.

The crew suited up around 1200 and went on a rover ride to the Ridge. We all had fun donning our new and improved flight suits with our Project MADMEN mission patches! (It was a great bonding activity and yet another first for me which was super exciting.) They noted plenty of worthy sites to sample on the way there, so they made notes to CAPCOM, which is managed by Anna (Roots). Many pictures of hills with multicolored layers of deposits followed. As they settled on a site, the EVA crew, Melon, Anja (Freebee), and Ben (Funk), began the multi-step site processing. Melon and Funk focused on collecting soil samples and taking various measurements at the site (pH, temperature, ATP, etc.). Freebee collected more radar samples of interesting terrain with REMI. After returning to the Hab, Chopper went to the ScienceDome to process those samples to keep the data consistent.

Today also saw the continuation of Roots’ study of the crew’s glove dexterity. We were tasked with grabbing and changing our hold on various small objects (washers, nuts, caps, and screws) with and without gloves. Additionally, we also tied and untied a series of knots. It was a fun challenge and we’re all glad to participate in the study for Roots. The most impressive factor is that she had developed the protocols for this study (as well as the materials to carry out the tests) all during our rotation. Talk about resourcefulness! We look forward to the results from this dexterity study. Our frustrations during the tests also informed us of possible changes to our EVA equipment and gear to make the manual manipulation more efficient.

We all enjoy getting back into the groove of things at the station. Although our days are busy and sometimes tiring, we work productively and wind down in team-bonding activities at night. Speaking of, we had a great time learning more about each other during last night’s powerpoint presentations. We covered a span of topics and had many laughs. I look forward to more of these night time conversations as we come closer together as a crew.

Photo of the Day: 290-01_15_2024 science rocks.JPG

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GreenHab Report – January 15th

Crew 290 GreenHab Report 15-01-2024 (Sol 8)

Greenhab Officer: Ben Kazimer

Heater off (not by choice), fan off, door closed

Average temperatures: 0956: 74.8⁰F, 22%, 1623: 75.9⁰F, 15%, 1955: 51.4⁰F, 20%

Hours of supplemental light: nominal 4 hours overnight

Daily water usage for crops: 4 gallons

Daily water usage for research and/or other purposes: None!

Water in Blue Tank 147.05 gallons

Time(s) of watering for crops:

0956: 3 gallons watering, ½ gallon misting, 1623: ½ gallon misting

Changes to crops: rearranged tomatoes again, harvested some dill for dinner

Narrative:

Turns out it isn’t always sunshine and rainbows in a Martian Greenhouse (especially the former) as the tomato plants are showing conflicting signs of stress and the heater system is currently on the fritz. I individually inspected every tomato and cucumber plant today on the examination table (my newly acquired sitting stool which has already been sacrificed to my plants) and found that some plants had curling leaves that might indicate heat stress while others had browning leaves with small holes that could be from frostbite. It is quite puzzling so I trimmed most of the stressed leaves and gave them some fresh water and mist. They were all moved further away from the greenhab wall as these showed the greatest stress so I was hoping to see at least some improvements right before I started this report but instead I was faced with disaster! The heater is repeatedly clicking on without providing heat to the now 51⁰F habitat so I am trouble shooting with Mission Support on solutions as trivial power cycling did not change the heater status… updates to follow. In better news, I had a bountiful harvest of the rapidly growing dill which was immediately incorporated into a compound butter that was a tasty topping for our dinner of black bean burgers, cheddar biscuits, and mashed potatoes! Finally, today I spun some classic rap for the plants, ranging from A Tribe Called Quest to MF Doom.

Harvest: 33 grams dill

Support/supplies needed: Heater Repair (In Progress)

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Sol Summary – January 15th

Crew 290 Sol Summary Report 15-01-2024

Sol: 8

Summary Title: Patches, Presentations, and Potatoes

Author’s name: Madelyn Hoying

Mission Status: Nominal

Sol Activity Summary:

Chopper (Rebecca) kicked off the day with a trip to the Science Dome to prepare our pH setup for the afternoon’s EVA. Roots (Anna) spent the day continuing glove dexterity experiments and working as CAPCOM for Melon (Madelyn), Funk (Ben), and Freebee (Anja)’s EVA. The afternoon EVA was a success, with one MADMEN sample site fully processed in the field and 12 REMI collections completed. During EVA, PODO (Nicole) did a deep clean of the Hab to keep the living spaces tidy. Funk made a dinner of black bean burgers, biscuits, and mashed potatoes while Roots and Chopper processed samples, Melon evaluated today’s geology, and Freebee worked on post-EVA data logging and reporting. The crew had fun with team bonding yesterday and are looking forward to continued success, both in our scientific endeavors and in creating memories together!

Look Ahead Plan: Continued sample collection and analysis

Anomalies in work: none

Weather: Warm and windy

Crew Physical Status: nominal

EVA: none

Reports to be filed: Sol Summary, Journalist Report, Greenhab Report, Operations Report, EVA Report, EVA Request

Support Requested:

Perseverance rearview mirror was broken prior to our arrival, noted in the Engineering EVA (EVA 05) report. The broken glass fell out of the mirror on today’s EVA. We want to note that between the broken parking brake and now a lack of ability to see behind us, we likely will not request use of Perseverance and will distribute our rover requests among the remaining 3.

We are particularly interested in an EVA to Skyline Rim. Are we able to attempt an EVA plan to drive the 1103 footpath with the rovers, to connect to the Sagan Street 1103 rover road that leads directly to Skyline Rim?

Our furnace reset works, but we are having to do it regularly whenever it is windy.

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Operations Report – January 18th

Crew 290 Operations Report 18-01-2023

SOL: 11

Name of person filing report: Anna Tretiakova

Non-nominal systems: None

Notes on non-nominal systems: Not applicable.

ROVERS

Spirit rover used: Yes

Hours: 242.3

Beginning Charge: 100%

Ending Charge: 29%

Currently Charging: No

Opportunity rover used: No

Hours: (Before EVA)

Beginning Charge: (Before EVA)

Ending Charge: (After EVA and before recharging)

Currently Charging:

Curiosity rover used: Yes

Hours: 264.3

Beginning Charge: 100%

Ending Charge: 25%

Currently Charging: No

Perseverance rover used: No

Hours: (Before EVA)

Beginning Charge: (Before EVA)

Ending Charge: (After EVA and before recharging)

Currently Charging:

General Notes on Rovers: The back left wheel in curiosity is very deflated.

Summary of Hab Operations:

WATER USE: 27.4 gallons

Water (static tank): 272.5 gallons

Static tank pipe heater (on or off): on

Static tank heater (on or off): on

Toilet tank emptied: No

Summary of Internet: internet is nominal during times 18:00 to 22:00

Summary of Suits and Radios: Radios nominal. Suits nominal.

Summary of Greenhab Operations:

WATER USE: 6.5 gallons

Heater: on

Supplemental Light: off

Harvest: 13g cilantro, 47g kale, 47g red cabbage, 32 arugula and 20g of lettuce.

Summary of Science Dome Operations:

Continued imaging and measuring the pH of the samples. Also prepared our final EVA soil microfluidic devices.

Dual Split Heater or AC: On

Summary of RAM Operations: (Tools used, work done):

Measuring tape was used to measure the water level.

Summary of any observatory issues: Nominal

Summary of health and safety issues:

All crew in good health and happy spirits. No safety issues.

Questions, concerns and requests to Mission Support:

The toilet cover appears to have detached off the toilet bowl. What should we do?

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EVA Report – January 18th

Crew 290 EVA Report 18-01-2024

EVA # 11

Author: Madelyn Hoying

Purpose of EVA: MADMEN sample collect along White Rock Canyon, to complete sampling among diverse geologic sites. REMI collect in Aonia Terra.

Start time: 0930

End time: 1330

Narrative: The crew reached 55% battery and parked just beyond Zubrin’s Head. After some scouting, they found exactly the terrain we needed! The MADMEN sample collection proceeded smoothly, while REMI managed 11 samples. This was our last and smoothest EVA!

Destination: Aonia Terra

Coordinates (use UTM WGS 84): N4247500, E520500

Participants: Anja Sheppard (Crew Scientist), Anna Tretiakova (Crew Engineer), Ben Kazimer (GreenHab Officer)

Road(s) and routes per MDRS Map: Drive south on Cow Dung Road until reaching White Rock Canyon (just before reaching the cattle guard) and then walk to sample collection site(s).

Mode of travel: Driving and walking

Vehicles to be used (If applicable): Spirit and Curiosity

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GreenHab Report – January 18th

Crew 290 GreenHab Report 18-01-2024 (Sol 11)

Greenhab Officer: Ben Kazimer

Heater on (set to 65⁰F), fan off, door closed

Average temperatures: 0829: 80.8⁰F, 15%, 1545: 76.8⁰F, 25%, 1750: 70.2⁰F, 29%

Hours of supplemental light: nominal 4 hours overnight

Daily water usage for crops: 6 ½ gallons

Daily water usage for research and/or other purposes: N/A

Water in Blue Tank 125.3 gallons

Time(s) of watering for crops:

0829: 6 gallons watering, 1545: ½ gallon misting

Changes to crops: Big harvest of leafy greens and trimming of some dead leaves on herbs.

Narrative:

A rather chill sol in the wonderful world of the greenhab affairs. All system and plant health statuses are nominal, which was quite welcome with other duties occupying most of my time today. The plants have been riding out the early morning watering, with an afternoon pick-up misting, and will hopefully get a post-sunset misting and light watering (if I don’t fall asleep on the bean bag chair after I submit this report). I’ve been letting a bunch of greens grow out to stockpile a fresh salad, hence tonight’s bountiful harvest. I’m holding off on a few miscellaneous veggies for a sampling harvest tomorrow that should contain one pea pod, 3 tomatoes, and an assortment of herbs. Tomorrow, I’ll also update the inventory list and leave a few (optional) recommendations to 291! Last but not least, I forgot to report on yesterday’s music choice ☹ Despite previous trends with disaster, I let out some more rap but this time a bit newer with a curated rotation of Mac Miller. Today, the plants got a pretty wide range of tunes, most notably the long-awaited Dave Matthews Band #41 Live in Rio. I think it’s quite obvious, but everyone in the greenhouse enjoyed that one.

Harvest: 13 grams Cilantro, 47 grams Kale, 47 grams Red Cabbage, 32 grams Arugula, 20 grams Lettuce

Support/supplies needed: None!

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Sol Summary – January 18th

Crew 290 Sol Summary Report 18-01-2024

Sol: 11

Summary Title: MADMEN? MADMEN.

Author’s name: Madelyn Hoying

Mission Status: Nominal

Sol Activity Summary:

Last night, the crew had a simulated emergency with fire alarms and acting from Mission Support (shout out to Ben Stanley). The crew responded well and completed the emergency protocol in under 45 seconds! This morning’s activity was a long EVA, with Freebee (Anja), Funk (Ben), and Roots (Anna) spending close to 4 hours in the field at Aonia Terra. With Melon (Madelyn) on CAPCOM, the crew successfully selected the sample site to fill the last terrain type needed for MADMEN. REMI had a successful outing too, collecting 11 different samples. Chopper (Rebecca) and Melon attempted to cook a pasta lunch for the crew, with some help from Funk on return from EVA. After lunch, Chopper and parts of the crew spent time in the Science Dome processing EVA samples. Freebee made chicken pot pie for dinner and the crew settled in for the last night in sim.

Look Ahead Plan: Last day of sim!

Anomalies in work: none

Weather: Cloudy

Crew Physical Status: nominal

EVA: 11

Reports to be filed: Sol Summary, Journalist Report, Greenhab Report, Operations Report, EVA Report

Support Requested:

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Journalist Report – January 17th

Journalist Report

Nicole Chan, Crew 290 Journalist

01.17.2024

Sol 10

Today took a pretty unexpected turn. The crew had originally scheduled an EVA at 1000 to Skyline Rim for Madelyn (Melon), Ben (Funk), and Anna (Roots) to visit the site and collect soil samples to further our Project MADMEN science goals. A few hours before, Melon and Anja (Freebee) watched the weather forecast closely and started noticing snow and thick clouds on the horizon. After consulting with mission support, Melon decided to watch the weather up until 0945 before making the final decision of whether to go ahead with the EVA or not. We were worried that unfavorable weather conditions would have a more significant impact on the walking EVA. As the gray clouds rolled in and the generator turned off in the daytime, our Hab went into low power mode to conserve energy. In the end, due to low visibility at the planned EVA destination, our commander decided that it was unsafe to perform the EVA and postponed it for Sol 11.

With a sudden open gap in our schedule, Freebee offered the idea that we should play Fishbowl. Similar to Charades, the game had several rounds of guessing certain words in teams, where we’re allowed to verbally describe the phrase, then limit our hints to a single word, and lastly only use our body language. As the rounds went on, the teams found creative ways to speed through each word, which generated lots of laughs amongst the crew. Team 1, which included Melon, Freebee, and Funk, won the game. Freebee, our leading social activities planner in the crew, suggested that we cool down and relax with some yoga. To this, the crew cleared the upper Hab area to create a makeshift yoga studio (moved the furniture to the side to create a large central area). We relaxed our muscles in different stretches and yoga poses, noticing that we felt more centered afterwards. The yoga session soon turned into a workout routine led by Anna (Roots) which required outstanding flexibility and got us feeling more active. We even started to take turns doing handstands, trust falls, and cheerleading routines. We all had a great time sharing stories and moving our bodies in interesting ways. Before we knew it, it was time for lunch. It was a tasty leftover from last night’s taco bowls. (I couldn’t stop myself from getting seconds!)

Some of our crew (Rebecca aka Chopper, Freebee, and Roots) then headed to the ScienceDome to perform the routine pH measurements of the soil samples in different reagents. With so many different measurements, the crew also began inputting the data onto a spreadsheet for post-mission analysis. We’ll be finishing up the daily measurements in the next few days and hopefully collect samples from another interesting site before the mission ends. As Funk is cooking up some Jambalaya for dinner, the ScienceDome crew begins to head back for our nightly family dinner. To wrap up the day, we look forward to another stargazing session on such a clear night.

Photo of the Day: 290-01_17_2024 fishbowl.jpg

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