Month: November 2024

Journalist Report

MDRS Crew 301

Michael Ho, 10.24.24

Day 4: We woke up and find ourselves back on MDRS Utah, Earth!

That awesome Martian landscape through the visor of the helmet while that constant swishing of oxygen blowing past our ears will now hang proudly suspended in time within all our memories.

Nevertheless the crew is now back on Earth, and we still have much to learn and samples to collect.

0742 hrs: Sunrise. Eager to catch the only Sun we share with Mars as seen from Earth. Right on time, it appeared, bathing the landscape below with its beautiful golden glow.

0900 hrs: Zoom with Mission Specialist Dr. Shannon Rupert (who is still on Mars). We had a very brief history of NASA’s search for water and life on Mars through the various rovers such as Pathfinder and Sojourner. We had a quick lesson with samples of petrified wood, Gryphaea, coprolite, man-made mud pottery, dinosaur bone marrow. The importance of using desert varnish as a model to detect life on Mars made a lot of sense, knowing that these rocks may potentially contain microbial mats of cyanobacteria and fungi (as on Earth), and desert varnish had been detected by Spirit on Mars.

1000 hrs: Off we went, looking for desert varnish at…

1100 hrs: We arrived at Gryphaea Hill at North Ridge and were mind blown by the sight of the exoskeletons of gryphaea dotting every single inch of the entire area. An upheaval of the landform here must have then left all marine life here high and dry – leaving only a mass grave of these lifeforms from some 155 million years ago.

1300 hrs: Burger Shak! Nothing fills the spirit more than a great Hanksburger Combo at Burger Shak after a stint on Mars.

1400 hrs: Rockin Riddle Rock Shop – this shop totally rocks! We went in and felt like Harry Potter when he first entered Diagon Alley – there were just so many rocks to check out! Cathy the owner is such a gem with many interesting stories to tell!

1515 hrs: Some of the crew members also tried out Riley’s two new designs of helmets for EVA.

Riley wearing the helmet she designed as part of SWB Utah.

Alex from Crew 301 wearing the helmet Riley designed.

1600 hrs: We went off to Barrainca Butte to hunt for galaxy rocks and to stake out the area near Robert’s Garden for the lichen that fluoresces under UV. We found the patch, and will go out again tonight with UV flashlights to have a look at it.

1730 hrs: Back to Hab!

MDRS Crew 301
Alex Grab, 10.23.24

Today’s operations focused on two successful EVAs south of the Mars Desert Research Station. The crew explored two key sites: an area near Barrainca Butte and Kissing Camel Ridge West. At Barrainca Butte, samples of basalt, breccia, and several exciting biosignatures (including ancient marine fossils) were collected. At Kissing Camel Ridge West, we discovered petrified wood fragments scattered throughout an ancient riverbed, adding to our growing geological catalog.

Back at the habitat, the crew analyzed our finds and mapped them across the Noachian, Hesperian, and Amazonian periods, weaving them into the larger story of Martian geological history. In the lab, we also continued our selenite weathering experiment. The baked selenite samples displayed calcification and became chalky, while the water-treated crystals smoothed from erosion, each reflecting the impacts of environmental forces over time.

We discussed our findings with Dr. Shannon Rupert to further connect our data to the Martian timeline. Dinner brought the crew together for a comforting meal of cheesy potato and chicken bake with freshly baked bread. Spirits remain high as we prepare for another day of exploration. Mars feels more like home each day, though tomorrow will mark our return to “Earth.”

Journalist Report
MDRS Crew 301 (Spaceward Bound)
Rachel Johnson, 10.22.24

Today was crew 301’s second day in the MDRS and we woke up in simulation on Mars! The day began with a morning lesson focused on the geology timeline of Mars lead by Dr. Shannon Rupert via zoom in preparation for our first EVA. We were also informed of our mission objectives for the afternoon EVA which was to collect various rock samples for experimentation purposes.

In preparation for the EVA we applied our training from day one on proper spacesuit utilization, ensured all of our comms were in working order and exited the hab in two groups. At 1pm, we loaded into three different rovers: Spirit, Curiosity, and Perseverance , to travel 4-5 km north to our first rock collection site, the intersection of Brahe highway, in search of at least three samples of selenite each. After about 20 minutes, we loaded back into the rovers and headed 2.5 km south to our second location, the mounds near the balancing rock south of dry creek wash, with the objective of collecting at least three samples each of sandstone and sandstone blueberries. After about 30 minutes we departed the mounds location headed south and returned to the hab.

After removing, cleaning and storing our gear we analyzed our rock samples and selected three selenite samples each for use in an experiment. We cleaned the samples and designated one as the control, one to be added to a moving water solution and one to be baked at 250 degrees Fahrenheit. During the set-up, Analog Educator Astronaut Michael Ho, demonstrated the UV reactive properties of selenite which we found to be extremely interesting. We will analyze the results and provide outcomes of the selenite experiment on day four.

After concluding the experiment set-up we enjoyed a delicious dinner of tacos with freshly made tortillas courtesy of our Analog Educator Astronaut Commander Jen Carver-Hunter! We ended our evening with some relaxing in the common room with the knowledge that tomorrow is another big day exploring Mars!