Crew 263 Sol Summary 03Mar2022

[title Sol Summary – March 3th]

[category sol-summary]
Crew 263 Sol Summary 03-03-2022

Sol: 10

Summary Title: Depressurisation in the Hab

Author’s name: Cerise Cuny

Mission Status: Nominal

Sol Activity Summary: This morning Léa leaded the second EVA for the LIBS experiment. This time, the team had a lot more time than two days ago and was able to reach its goals in the area of Stream bed connector. They were very aware of the constraint of the Martian conditions, carrying the EVA suits was very tiresome and painful for the shoulders. Without the suits, there is no doubt they would have been able to do more, and that is exactly why it is interesting to try out the LIBS in those SIM conditions.

For lunch, the only non-French crew member Elena did an absolutely delicious tortilla, bringing Spain on Mars. She cooked for an hour and it was absolutely worth it. She had help from Nicolas and Mathéo to flip the very heavy frying pan: it is a three people’s job.

In the afternoon, in addition to undertaking Human Factors experiments, preparing EVA Requests, writing various reports, some of us went through old pictures: a nostalgic moment, missing our families. In the end of the day, we simulated a depressurisation in the Hab and followed an emergency protocol written by children of underprivileged backgrounds of Toulouse, France. Upon our return to France, we will give them feedback, underlining which parts where relevant and explaining why some others were not. By engaging with these children we hope to inspire the next generation of Space engineers and show them the educational path to reach their dreams.

Look Ahead Plan: Tomorrow, if the weather and the roads condition allow it, the EVA team will try to reach Candor Chasma to study another area of interest for its primary sulfate deposits. Valentine and Nicolas will try reaching Toulouse with the HF antenna in the morning. We hope this time if will be successful.

Anomalies in work: None.

Weather: A few clouds, no wind.

Crew Physical Status: Good.

EVA: EVA 14, nominal.

Reports to be filed: Sol Summary, EVA Request (n°15), EVA Report (n°14), Operations Report, Journalist Report, HSO Report.

Support Requested: We would be very grateful for clean kitchen cloths. Unfortunately we didn’t think to bring any laundry detergent ; if some is provided, we can hand wash them. We found two kitchen cloths tied up in a cupboard, we don’t know if they are clean or not. Astronomy Wifi: our astronomer is wondering if last evening’s requested support on the Astronomer Wifi went through or not.

EVA Report – March 3th

Crew 263 EVA 14 Report 03-03-2022

EVA # 14

Author: Léa Rouverand

Purpose of EVA: Replacing the batteries for the atmospheric experiments, Analysis of geology transition zones using a handheld LIBS (Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy) analyzer.

Start time: 09:00

End time: 11:27

Narrative: EVA Participants entered the airlock at 09:02. Depressurization ended at 09:07. EVA participants checked the rover batteries. The obtained information is:

Perseverance: Usage Duration – 228.1 Battery Charge – 100%

Spirit: Usage Duration – 157.2 Battery Charge – 100%

Opportunity: Usage Duration – 85.1 Battery Charge – 100%

Curiosity: Usage Duration – 169.1 Battery Charge – 100%

The EVA participants took Opportunity and Curiosity at 09:11 and drove on Entrance Road until Cow Dung Road. Batteries of the Atmospheric Experiments -LOAC, Mega-Ares, Purple Air- were replaced. The old batteries were placed on the rover trunks (09:17).

The participants drove on Cow Dung Road until Marble Ritual, as the road was muddy, the participants they stopped and parked the rovers along Cow Dung Road at 09:19. The EVA participant walked on Cow Dung Road until the junction with Stream Bed Connector (09:40).
They walked on Stream Bed Connector and reached two points of interest at 10:00 (the two points of interest were located at 519704E 4251292N and 519574E 4251279N).

The EVA participants stayed about an hour in this area, they proceeded on sketches, pictures and taking LIBS measurements. A drone was launched to take pictures of the study outcrops and to identify the entrance to Candor Chasma (area of interest for future geology studies).

At 11:00, the participants left the points of interest. At 11:21 they reached the rovers parked on Cow Dung Road

At 11:25, the participants arrived at the Hab:

Opportunity: Usage Duration – 85.2 Battery Charge – 97%

Curiosity: Usage Duration – 169.2 Battery Charge – 97%

They entered Airlock and at 11:27, the pressurization was over at 11:32.

Destination: Zone F -final point of interest reached located on the Stream Bed Connector road at 519704E 4251292N

Participants: Léa Rouverand (EVA leader), Nicolas Wattelle, Mathéo Fouchet, Valentine Bourgois. HabCom was Cerise Cuny.

Road(s) and routes per MDRS Map: Entrance Road, Cow Dung Road

Mode of travel: Rover on Entrance Road and Cow Dung Road till Marble ritual, foot on Cow Dung Road and on Stream Bed Connector.

Crew 263 Journalist Report 03Mar2022

[title Journalist Report – March 3th]

[category journalist-report]


Sol 10 – On the field

Author: Nicolas WATTELLE

I had the chance to be part of today’s EVA, and it was deeply interesting living it from the inside. Actually, it might be one of the first thing human would do on Mars: deepen the knowledge of Martian geology, to go further than the work current rovers are doing. Of course, they are efficient and provide a great analysis, but a human action would very probably be more precise and more efficient. Firstly, because you are not constrained by the remote control of a device millions of miles away… And in such a specific field as geology, one of the greatest advantages of being a human in flesh on Mars is the ability to adapt, and see what machines can not see. This experiment is thus focused on the operational aspect of conducting such a study in a hazardous context like the EVA one.

Léa was leading the operations, Mathéo, Valentine and I were here in support and sometimes operator. We headed to Stream Bed Connector (a little further than the first geology session). Marine and Léa had chosen this place to record data on a geological era transition, between two times named Cretacean and Jurassic. Here we are in the middle of a tectonic plate, which means that the transition is well conserved, and so is easily observable: a perfect terrain for training! There are many analysable outcrops here, on their bottom we can find the oldest layers, on their top the earliest ones.

And what strikes me the most was the almost constantly questioning that had ben running in the crew made of 4 martionauts. Should we go there? Should we go that far? Should we take altitude to have a greater view on the outcrop, despite the fact that our suits make our moves sometimes uncertain and energetically costly? Should we take that risk to provide a potential “ground-breaking” data?

This is where simulation is teaching us many things, and very useful for the future aerospace engineer we might become. The first rule here, is always to place SAFETY before science, before comfort, before anything else… Be aware: we are on Mars and a tiny deviance on Earth may be a huge problem here! And after more than a week journey in the MDRS I can assure you that we learned many things, and our precautions before leaving the airlock have been multiplicated since the moment we entered. As an example, one of our nightmares is the loss of communication. Several times, we had to shorten EVAs because of a headset that slightly moved out of our ear and complicated the communication: grey tape has become our best friend. On the field, precautions are pervasive even if it creates frustration for some of us (I acknowledge being part of these ones), but this is the game, you have to play by the rules! We are on Mars, try to survive before playing space cadets!

Each time we come back in the airlock, no matter if the EVA went well or not, we have new ideas to facilitate the next outing, and this is why I like it, why we are here.

For the rest of the day, the crew was mainly focused on human factor experiments. It is not always a pleasure, but we keep up doing it!

Operations Report – March 4th

Crew 263 Operations Report 03-03-2022

SOL: 10

Name of person filing report: Mathéo Fouchet

Non-nominal systems: Nothing to report

Notes on non-nominal systems: Nothing to report

ROVERS

Spirit rover used: No

Hours: 157.2

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: 100%

Currently charging: Yes

Opportunity rover used: Yes

Hours: 169.2

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: 97%

Currently charging: Yes

Curiosity rover used: Yes

Hours: 85.2

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: 97%

Currently charging: Yes

Perseverance rover used: No

Hours: 228.8

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: 100%

Currently charging: Yes

General notes and comments: Nothing to report

Summary of Hab operations:

WATER USE: 21 gallons

Water (static tank): 340 gallons

Water (loft tank): 34 gallons

Water Meter: 01562353 units

Static to Loft Pump used: Yes

Static tank pipe heater: On

Static tank heater: On

Toilet tank emptied: No

Summary of internet: Nothing to report

Summary of suits and radios: I am currently trying to troubleshoot what could probably go wrong with the suit #10 battery thanks to Scott and Shannon’s advice. After charging the battery using the alligator charger, the battery voltage went to 13.6V but I can clearly see the voltage dropping down at a rate of approximately 0.01V per second.

Summary of GreenHab operations: Nothing to report

Summary of ScienceDome operations:

Dual split: Off

SOC: 100% at 5:55pm

Summary of RAM operations: Nothing to report

Summary of any observatory issues: Nothing to report

Summary of health and safety issues: See HSO Report

Questions, concerns and requests to Mission Support: Nothing to report

EVA Report – March 2nd

Crew 263 EVA Report 02-03-2022

EVA #13

Author: Mathéo Fouchet

Purpose of EVA: Changing the batteries of atmospheric experiments, Testing an EVA security protocol, and Search and Rescue exercise with a Thermal Drone with teams less than a kilometer apart.

Start time: 9:13 am
End time: 10:25 am

Narrative: We left the airlock at 9:13 and checked the rover batteries (all full), then we took Curiosity and Opportunity as requested and went to the atmospheric experiment at 9:16. We changed the batteries of MegaAres and the LOAC and we put back the Purple Air device. We went back to rovers at 9:26 to go to Robert’s Rock Garden, Opportunity and Curiosity had 100% battery.

We noticed that we passed Robert’s Rock Garden for approximately 20 meters, so we turned around and stopped the rovers next to Robert’s Rock Garden at 9:34. We checked the rovers’ batteries: Opportunity at 98% and Curiosity at 95%.

To implement the Search and Rescue with Drone experiment, the Blue team (Valentine and Elena) walked in the East direction. Then, the Red team launched the drone at 9:46 to look for the Blue team. During this time, the Blue team tried to implement the Security Protocol, everything went well and Valentine acted the «victim» well. The Red team saw the Blue team at 9:50 thanks to the drone’s camera. The drone stayed in the air to help the Red team to reach the Blue team, we carefully found an easy way to join the others. Both teams gathered at 9:57 thanks to the drone vision. All 4 EVA members reached the rovers (still 98% for Opportunity and 95% for Curiosity) at 10:17. The radio contact between the two teams has never been lost.

We finally stopped and plugged the rovers at the RAM and reached the airlock at 10:25.

Destination: Intersection between Entrance Road and Cow Dung Road, Zone I, and Kissing Camel Ridge E

Coordinates (use UTM NAD27 CONUS): Atmospheric Experiment: 518288 E, 4250586 N; 4249500W, 518350S (entrance of Robert’s Rock Garden), 4249500W, 518500S (Kissing Camel Ridge E.)

Participants: Valentine Bourgeois, Mathéo Fouchet (EVA Leader), Cerise Cuny, Elena Lopez-Contreras.

Road(s) and routes per MDRS Map: Entrance Road, Cow Dung Road.

Mode of travel: Foot at Kissing Camel Ridge E, Rover until Robert’s Rock Garden

Sol Summary – March 2nd

Crew 263 Sol Summary 02-03-2022

Sol: 9

Summary Title: Mid mission

Author’s name: Cerise Cuny

Mission Status: Nominal

Sol Activity Summary: This morning, the first shower of the sim was taken. Léa only used 1.8 gal of water, which is a very good score compared to normal, non-Martian showers. We will try to all be as economical as her for our own first shower. The EVA was breathtaking. We went to the south to Kissing Camel. I found the landscape of Robert’s Rock Garden absolutely mesmerizing, and it was nice seeing a very different landscape from the surroundings of the Hab.

At lunch, we had debates about the French educational system. This debate has been recurrent during the mission preparation and some of us are getting tired of the same arguments being used again and again. We decided not to talk about it anymore.

In the afternoon, we did some ultrasound image acquisitions for the CNES, and two of us had to go through a very exhausting human factor experiment – one of the tasks is particularly long and tiresome. Marine will try doing some cheese naan for this evening’s dinner, following Clément and Crew 240 recipe. They also gave us a recipe for homemade hamburgers – I can’t wait to try them. Speaking of food, we did a food inventory and compared it to the food inventory we did at the beginning of the mission.

We ate more carbs per person than the serving sizes on the boxes, but I believe we need the energy to do sports and EVAs. We only eat enough food not to be hungry, thus I wouldn’t be comfortable reducing the food servings. We already talked about reducing portions but its provoked anxiety among the crew members.

Anomalies in work: None.

Weather: Clear sky, warm.

Crew Physical Status: Good.

EVA: EVA 13, in the morning, went very well.

Reports to be filed: Sol Summary, EVA Request (n°14), EVA Report (n°13), Operations Report, Journalist Report, HSO Report.

Support Requested: Food Supplies: We won’t have enough cereals and oat for the third week. We also might need a little bit more flour. Wi-Fi: Our Astronomer has an issue with the Astronomy Wi-Fi. The laptop does connect to the Wi-Fi but displays ‘No Internet’.

Operations Report – March 2nd

Crew 263 Operations Report 02-03-2022

SOL: 9

Name of person filing report: Mathéo Fouchet

Non-nominal systems: NA

Notes on non-nominal systems: NA

ROVERS

Spirit rover used: No

Hours: 157.2

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: 100%

Currently charging: Yes

Opportunity rover used: Yes

Hours: 85.1

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: 94%

Currently charging: Yes

Curiosity rover used: Yes

Hours: 169.1

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: 87%

Currently charging: Yes

Perseverance rover used: No

Hours: 228.8

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: 100%

Currently charging: Yes

General notes and comments: NA

Summary of Hab operations:

WATER USE: 17 gallons

Water (static tank): 361 gallons

Water (loft tank): 38 gallons

Water Meter: 01562097 units

Static to Loft Pump used: Yes

Static tank pipe heater: On

Static tank heater: On

Toilet tank emptied: No and it smells better because we emptied it yesterday

Summary of internet: NA

Summary of suits and radios: Suit #10 has not been used today and was charging all day, but its battery voltage is currently at 9.6V. I was wondering if it would be possible to charge it “manually” or to replace the battery using the spare ones in the deck near the front airlock. Let me know if you have any suggestions.

Summary of GreenHab operations: NA

Summary of ScienceDome operations:

Dual split: Off

SOC: 97% at 6:00pm

Summary of RAM operations: Broom to sweep the RAM

Summary of any observatory issues: NA

Summary of health and safety issues: See HSO Report

Questions, concerns and requests to Mission Support: NA

Journalist Report – March 2nd

Sol 9 – A Hollywoodian movie

Author: Nicolas Wattelle

We are now at a point where the end of our mission is as far as its beginning. It is a strange feeling; this is one of the first times where we concretely think about the “end” of our more than a one-year-long project. But be reassured, it does mean that we do not keep up the good work!

Valentine is a clever strategist. Our HSO, for Health and Security Officer, takes care of us every day with sports sessions, proposing sophrology exercises, keeping an eye on our personal physiological data… She is like the guardian angel of each of us here, and it is great to have her by our side. But this morning, she organised an exercise of rescuing an injured astronaut, but in order to provide great data to analyse, she developed a scenario, Hollywood-worthy.

All began during yesterday’s eve, where she separately took each member of the crew to explain their role in testing a rescue protocol. She told everyone, except Cerise and Léa, that Elena would simulate a fall and an injury, and everyone one would have to abide by the protocol. The aim was to measure different parameters such as efficiency, time to secure the victim, and physiological data from Martianauts living the situation in EVA.

But in reality, she told the true scenario to Léa (who had to stay in the Hab during the EVA) and Cerise (who was Mathéo’s buddy during the EVA): Valentine herself, was meant to simulate being the victim before Elena did. Like this, the situation was more likely unforeseen for most of us and would be more realistic, while keeping the situation under control if something went wrong. In this case, Léa would have been able to inform Marine (today’s Habcom) and same with Cerise and Mathéo. It was very clever.

Everything went as planned, and after the protocol was applied, Valentine revealed the truth to the Marine, Elena, and Matheo who couldn’t be sure of what had really happened (even if Elena seemed to have understood quickly…). And we are now waiting for the data to be processed. This was a very exciting morning, and we had a great time talking about it at lunch!

For the work that has been done inside the station today, we made our second session of ultrasound with the Sonoscanner device and CNES protocol. Since last week, we received some adjustments from researchers, and it was useful. I think everyone improved their “image capture skills”, finding on average one organ more than last time.

On this subject, Elena is really impressive for an engineering student, she made twice a perfect shot! She may begin a conversion… The whole crew seems to appreciate this experiment and is really involved in giving their feedback and feelings about the protocol. This is a pleasure working in these conditions!

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