Category: Greenhab Report

GreenHab Report

Hernán David Mateus Jiménez

18/01/2018

Environmental control:

Ambient with door opening

Heating

Shade cloth on

Working Hour: 17:50
Inside temp at working hour: 17° C
Outside temp during working hours: 1° C
Inside temperature high: 26° C
Inside temperature low: 13° C
Inside humidity: 93 %RH

Inside humidity high: 94 %RH
Inside humidity low: 21 %RH

Hours of supplemental light:

For the crops 05:00 to 11:59 PM

Changes to crops: None

Daily water usage for crops: 8 gallons

Time(s) of watering for crops: 17:50

Changes to research plants: none

Aquaponics: Atila is assembling

Narrative: Today, we have received good comments because the changes of the greenhab and the general conditions of it. Also we have received a heavy-duty tarp to be put under the celling and protect the plants that are exposed to the radiation.

The greenhab is becoming a place where the crew member search more inspiration or, at least, to see the green that makes them to remember the Earth. Now the greenhab is visited more often

The lysimeter is working and I am doing a test.

GreenHab Report

Hernán David Mateus Jiménez

16/01/2018

Environmental control:

Ambient with door opening

Heating

Shade cloth on

Working Hour: 6:05
Inside temp at working hour: 16° C
Outside temp during working hours: 0° C
Inside temperature high: 25° C
Inside temperature low: 15° C
Inside humidity: 86 %RH

Inside humidity high: 86 %RH
Inside humidity low: 20 %RH

Hours of supplemental light:

For the crops 05:00 to 11:59 PM

Changes to crops: We start to see that some tomatoes start to emerge

Daily water usage for crops: 8 gallons

Time(s) of watering for crops: 40 min

Changes to research plants: Are growing

Aquaponics: Atila has begun the assembly

Narrative: Today the Greenhab have had some changes, because it was necessary more space for aquaponics and the region 7 was exactly under the heater and in front the fan, so the leaves of the tallest plants were burned, so we decided to change the positions of some crops, the storm tanker and the desk.

The lysimeter is working and today I was working in calibration. Atila start the assembly of aquaponics and is almost finished.

GreenHab Report

Hernán David Mateus Jiménez

16/01/2018

Environmental control:

Ambient with door opening

Heating:

Shade cloth on

Working Hour: 6:00
Inside temp at working hour: 19° C
Outside temp during working hours: 0° C
Inside temperature high: 28° C
Inside temperature low: 14° C
Inside humidity: 93 %RH

Inside humidity high: 99 %RH
Inside humidity low: 16 %RH

Hours of supplemental light:

For the crops 05:00 to 11:59 PM

Changes to crops: The cucumber plants are better today

Daily water usage for crops: 7 gallons

Time(s) of watering for crops: 18:00

Research observations: The research has not started

Changes to research plants: The research has not started

Aquaponics: Not Functional

Narrative: Today I had my second EVA on Mars, where I collected the Martian soil for my project. Also I have finished to assemble the lysimeter, tomorrow I hope to transplant the quinoa that Atila started to grow.

It was amazing to share with all the crew in the greenhab, during the irrigation time, it made this activity easier.

The cucumbler plants look better today and there is not plants wilted.

GreenHab Report

Hernán David Mateus Jiménez

15/01/2018

Environmental control:

Ambient with door opening

Shade cloth on

Working Hour: 6:15
Inside temp at working hour: 16° C
Outside temp during working hours: 2° C
Inside temperature high: 25° C
Inside temperature low: 15° C
Inside humidity: 73 %RH

Inside humidity high: 67 %RH
Inside humidity low: 23 %RH

Hours of supplemental light:

For the crops 05:00 to 11:59 PM

Changes to crops: The cucumber plants are a little wilted today

Daily water usage for crops: 8 gallons

Time(s) of watering for crops: 45 min

Research observations: The research has not started

Changes to research plants: The research has not started

Aquaponics: Not Functional

Narrative: Today I have had a great day, my first EVA on Mars, where I could test the necessary tools to collect Martian soil in my next EVA, after it, I did not realize that the temperature decrease, so I forgot to close the door at the afternoon, fortunately Atila did it. Also I had to repair some pieces of my project that were broken during the trip to Mars, so today I could not finish the assembly of the lysimeter.

Because of the fact that the source of water close to the greenhab is not working, I am spending a lot of time filling the watering can in the kitchen of the hab.

I hope to finish the assembly of the lysimeter and start the quinoa crop over it with the soil that we will get tomorrow at the EVA.

GreenHab Report

Hernán David Mateus Jiménez

14/01/2018

Environmental control:

Ambient with door opening

Heating

Shade cloth on

Working Hour: 6:30
Inside temp at working hour: 17° C
Outside temp during working hours: 0° C
Inside temperature high: 30° C
Inside temperature low: 15 C
Inside humidity: 75 %RH

Inside humidity high: 75 %RH
Inside humidity low: 21 %RH

Hours of supplemental light:

For the crops 05:00 to 11:59 PM

Changes to crops: No changes

Daily water usage for crops: 8 gallons

Time(s) of watering for crops: 15 min

Research observations: The research has not started

Changes to research plants: The research has not started

Aquaponics: Not Functional

Narrative: Today I have started as the new Greenhab Officer in the station, I hope to continue maintaining it as beautiful as now. Thank you Mark.

During my first day, I have divided the crops in 8 regions in order to compare each day the changes using picture

Tomorrow I will start to assemble the lisimiter in order to start to measure evapotranspiration in the crop of quinoa that Atila plant at the Saturday. Also, I will check the inventory of the crops that Mark shared with me during the training.

Today during the irrigation, I realized that one of the sprinklers is broken.

GreenHab Report

Mark Gee

13Jan2018

Environmental control:

Heating

Shade cloth on

Ambient with door open

Working Hour: 06:40PM
Inside temp at working hour: 16 C
Outside temp during working hours: 2 C
Inside temperature high: 37 C
Inside temperature low: 15 C
Inside humidity: 88 %RH

Inside humidity high: 94 %RH
Inside humidity low: 16 %RH

Hours of supplemental light:

For the crops 05:00 to 11:59 PM

Changes to crops: Seeds are emerging rapidly.

Daily water usage for crops: 6 gallons

Time(s) of watering for crops: 03:00PM

Research observations: None

Changes to research plants: None

Aquaponics: Not in use.

Narrative: Today was my last day caring for the Greenhab. I feel proud of what I have done. An abundance of thriving plants were left to me and I have not only kept them alive, but brought some to harvest and left the future crews with even more than I was given. It has been fun to water the baby cucumbers knowing that some crew will be enjoying them a month from now.

For the next Greenhab officer, I would recommend starting by taking care of what has been left to you and at the half way point of your rotation seeding a small amount of many crops so that future crew can enjoy a diverse harvest. Below is a table of what is currently growing, actions taken, and notes on what needs to be done in the next two weeks. Everything should be watered every day. There is also an inventory of all supplies available at this time.

Name	Quantity	Growth Stage	Action	Notes
Dill Weed	2ft row, ~20 plants	Vegetative	Thinned plants to 1 inch spacing.	Can begin harvesting outer leaves for meals. Leave the center of the plants to regrow.
Rosemary	2ft row, ~20 plants	Seedling, 2 true leafs	Slow growing. It will be a long time before this is ready to harvest.
Parsley	2ft row, ~50 plants	Seedling, true leaf	Can thin to 1 inch spacing after Jan 20. Eat plants you pull.
Cilantro	2ft row, ~30 plants	Seedling, 3 true leafs	Thinned to 1 inch spacing	Should let plants establish 10 leaves before beginning harvest.
Oregano	2ft row, ~50 plants	Seedling, 2 true leafs	Can thin to 1 inch spacing after Jan 20. Eat plants you pull.
Sage	2ft row, ~10 plants	Seedling, 1 true leaf	Let grow.
Basil	2ft row, ~40 plants	Seedling, 1 true leaf	Can thin to 1 inch spacing after Jan 20. Eat plants you pull.
Thyme	2ft row, ~30 plants	Seedling, 3 true leafs	Let grow.
Chives	2ft row, ~20 plants	Seedling, 2 leafs	Let grow.
Lavender	2ft row	Seeds, not emerged	If no emergence by Jan 20, plant something else.
Spinach, Bloomsdale	3 pots, 16 plants.	Seedling, two true leafs.	Transplanted 06Jan2018	Let grow.
Spinach, Bloomsdale	4ft row	Seedling, cotyledon.	Planted 06Jan2018	Let grow.
Kale, Blue Curled Scotch	5 pots, ~50 plants	Seedling, 3 true leafs	Transplanted 06Jan2018	Let grow.
Cabbage, Golden Acre	1 seedling tray, ~20 plants	Seedling, 2 true leafs	Need transplanting by Jan 15.
Moringa Olifera	14 plots	Seeds, no emergence	Repurpose pots with Capcom approval.
Paperwhites	3 pots, seven plants	Various, sprouted to flowering	Move to the habitat for your enjoyment.
Beans, Pole	27 plants	3ft vines, producing flowers and pods	Harvest beans when they reach at least 3 inches and you can feel the beans inside.
Cucumber	23 plants, 7 pots	3ft vines, producing flowers and fruit	Let grow.
Melon	8 plants	2ft vines, no flowers	Let grow.
Peppers	9 pots, 23 plants	8 inches, vegetative	Let grow.
Tomatoes	39 pots, 57 plants	6in-48in tall, some flowering	Transplanted 05Jan2018	Use cages to support tomato branches. Make sure plants are growing up through the cages.
Radish	1 pot, three plants	Vegetative, 1ft tall	Harvest after Jan 20.
Radish sprouts	6 sq ft	Seedling, cotyledon.	Planted 04Jan2018	Harvest Jan 14.
Swiss Chard	1 starter container	Seedling, cotyledon.	Planted 06Jan2018	Let grow. Thin if needed.
Scallions	5 starter containers	Seeds, no emergence	Planted 06Jan2018	If no emergence by Jan 20, plant something else
Onion	8 starter containers	Seeds, no emergence	Planted 06Jan2018	If no emergence by Jan 20, plant something else
Broccoli	1 starter container	Seeds, no emergence	Planted 06Jan2018	If no emergence by Jan 20, plant something else
Carrot	6 starter containers, 4 pots	Seeds, no emergence	Planted 06Jan2018	If no emergence by Jan 20, plant something else
Lettuce, Romaine	1 starter container, 1 ft row	Seedlings, cotyledon	Planted 06Jan2018	Thin to 1 inch spacing after Jan 25. Eat plants you pull. Transplant if needed.
Lettuce, Red Leaf	1 starter container, 1 ft row	Seedlings, cotyledon	Planted 06Jan2018	Thin to 1 inch spacing after Jan 25. Eat plants you pull. Transplant if needed.
Lettuce, Black Seeded Simpson	2 starter containers, 1 ft row	Seedlings, cotyledon	Planted 06Jan2018	Thin to 1 inch spacing after Jan 25. Eat plants you pull. Transplant if needed.
Lettuce, sprouts misc.	2 sq ft	Seedlings, cotyledon	Planted 06Jan2018	Harvest as microgreens after Jan 25. Save a few plants and grow to maturity.
Lettuce, Bibb	1 sq ft	Seedlings, cotyledon	Planted 06Jan2018	Harvest as microgreens after Jan 25. Save a few plants and grow to maturity.
Mustard	1 pot	Seedlings, cotyledon	Planted 06Jan2018	Harvest as microgreens after Jan 25. Save a few plants and grow to maturity.
Quinoa, Red Sprouting	2 sq ft	Seeds, no emergence	Threw away.	These seeds did not grow and were thrown away.
Zennia

…

GreenHab Report

Mark Gee

12Jan2018

Environmental control:

Cooling with vent

Heating

Shade cloth on

Working Hour: 07:40PM
Inside temp at working hour: 19 C
Outside temp during working hours: 2 C
Inside temperature high: 31 C
Inside temperature low: 16 C
Inside humidity: 33 %RH

Inside humidity high: 49 %RH
Inside humidity low: 25 %RH

Hours of supplemental light:

For the crops 05:00 to 11:59 PM

Changes to crops: Harvested radish microgreens, lettuce, green beans, dill, and cilantro.

Daily water usage for crops: 22 gallons

Time(s) of watering for crops: 03:30PM

Research observations: Harvested microgreen experiment and for each treatment measured mass harvested, volume harvested, and size of plants.

Changes to research plants: Microgreen experiment is complete.

Aquaponics: Not in use.

Narrative: Today was harvest day! For the crops we harvested 580g of radish microgreens, a bowl of lettuce leaves, a fistfull of greenbeans, a handful of dill, and a sprinkle of cilantro. The other crops are growing well and should produce a bountiful harvest for crews to follow.

The microgreen experiment was harvested and has concluded successfully. It is too early for results, but keep an eye out for the upcoming report.

I have been making an effort to characterize the Greenhab and will be synthesizing my observations into a cohesive document. As a sneak peak, the figure tracking the temperature and humidity in the habitat throughout the day will be included in the Mission Summary as an image. 

GreenHab Report

Mark Gee

11Jan2018

Environmental control:

Heating

Shade cloth on)

Working Hour: 06:30PM Inside temp at working hour: 17 C Outside temp during working hours: 3 C Inside temperature high: 33 C Inside temperature low: 16 C Inside humidity: 39 %RH

Inside humidity high: 41 %RH Inside humidity low: 16 %RH

Hours of supplemental light:

For the crops 05:00 to 11:59 PM

Changes to crops: The tomatoes, cucumbers, beans, herbs, peppers, and melons keep growing. The microgreens have taken off and will be ready to harvest tomorrow. Of the seeds planted, the arugula, mustard, and various lettuce varieties have sprouted.

Daily water usage for crops: 15 gallons

Time(s) of watering for crops: 11:00AM, 06:30PM

Research observations: The microgreens have recovered from the early damage and are sprouting magnificently. Tomorrow they will be harvested.

Changes to research plants: None.

Aquaponics: Not in use.

Narrative: Today I watered the plants as usual and inventoried the tools, fertilizer, pots, and supplies.

The grow lights turned on at 02:00 pm. The analog timer has been gaining time steadily, as do the clocks on the electronic appliances in the Hab. These clocks probably use the frequency of the alternating current power supply to keep time as is common in most appliances. The standard frequency for an electrical grid in the US is 60 Hz, and our crew engineer observed that the generator is supplying power at 60.18 Hz. This increased frequency would cause the clocks to gain time at approximately the rate we are observing. See Sol 1 summary for a further explanation.

To compensate for this gain, the light timer needs to be reset every day.

Support/supplies needed: Scale with a capacity of 2 kg. The analog scale in the Science Dome has a capacity of 610g. Needed for experiments tomorrow.

GreenHab Report

Mark Gee

10Jan2018

Environmental control:

Heating

Shade cloth on

Working Hour: 06:50PM

Inside temp at working hour: 18 C

Outside temp during working hours: 0 C

Inside temperature high: 26 C

Inside temperature low: 15 C

Inside humidity: 46 %RH

Inside humidity high: 60 %RH

Inside humidity low: 34 %RH

Hours of supplemental light:

For the crops 05:00 to 11:59 PM

Changes to crops: Microgreens almost ready to harvest. Spinach is growing rapidly. Cucumbers continue to produce fruit. Beans near harvest. Tomatoes are flowering but no fruit set. Sprouts are emerging from the seeds planted a few days ago.

Daily water usage for crops: 10 gallons

Time(s) of watering for crops: 06:30PM

Research observations: Microgreens are growing rapidly. No change to tomatoes sprayed with moringa extract.

Changes to research plants: None.

Aquaponics: Not in use.

Narrative: Growing up, we learn to fear bees because of their sting, then to like them because of their honey. But we should treasure them for their work as pollinators. Bees and other insects perform the critical task of transferring pollen from flower to flower. Without this transfer by insect, many crops would not produce fruit because their pollen will not blow in the wind. Some crops, namely the Cucurbitacea family of pumpkins, melons, squash and cucumbers, have co-evolved with their own species of bees that specialize in pollinating these crops. Almond farmers will actually pay beekeepers to bring their bees into the almond orchard while the trees are flowering to help ensure that there will be a bountiful harvest.

Unfortunately, there are no bees on Mars.

To make up for this, I put on my bee suit in the Green Hab today, plucked a male flower from a cucumber plant, and buzzed from cucumber to cucumber, sprinkling pollen in the flower as I went. It took effort and patience.

There are many natural resources that we do not appreciate until they are gone. Surviving on a new planet will be challenging and full of surprising realizations of how much we are missing back on Earth.

Support/supplies needed: I have several questions of general interest.

Is the water supply from Hanksville drawn out of a well, river, or something else?

What are the heater control settings? What temperature is it set to turn on and what temperature for off?

What is to be done with used potting soil?

Is the shade cloth a 60/40 cloth? Is there a better way to describe how much shade it gives?

GreenHab Report
Mark Gee
09Jan2018

Environmental control:
Heating
Shade cloth on

Working Hour: 06:15PM
Inside temp at working hour: 18 C
Outside temp during working hours: UNK
Inside temperature high: 24 C
Inside temperature low: 16 C
Inside humidity: 40 %RH
Inside humidity high: 48 %RH
Inside humidity low: 28 %RH

Hours of supplemental light:
For the crops 05:00 to 11:59 PM

Changes to crops: Quinoa seeds did not germinate and rotted in the tray. Threw them away. The past days have been very cold and cloudy. Nothing has germinated yet.

Daily water usage for crops: 6.5 gallons

Time(s) of watering for crops: 10:00AM, 06:15PM

Research observations: Microgreens seem to be growing much better in the shady environment. Maybe the full sunlight was scorching them.

Changes to research plants: Applied fertilizer to microgreens.

Aquaponics: Not in use.

Narrative: Watering needs to be as efficient as possible in a Martian habitat. But after I finish watering, I often look around and see a water on the floor.
Some of the water comes directly from accidental spilling becase the spout of the watering can holds water and drips when turned upright. This waste could be eliminated with a differently designed spout or by using something crazy like a giant syringe so that no water is relesed unintentionally.

Most of the leakage comes from water that is poured into the pot and flows quickly through macropores in the soil and out the pot before there is time to soak in. This is a tricky problem to solve. The macropores are a beneficial part of soil structure and should not be removed by compacting the soil. If I water less so that less water flows through the pores, the plants might not get enough water.

We are currently trying to reduce this waste by growing plants on vertical shelving so that the plants below can catch the water leaked by the plants above. But this is not a perfect system. Another option is to install trays beneath every plant so that the leakage can be captured and recycled. It is uncertain how much labor this method would require and how much of the water would evaporate before it could be reused. A third way to reduce this waste would be to use drip irrigation tape that continually releases water into the soil at a slow rate. This would increase water use efficiency and also reduce the labor requirements for the astronauts. However, an adjustable drip tape would have to be invented so the same tape could be used with different crops. And it may not be feasible to rocket yards and yards of drip tape to Mars.

For now, I will stick with my watering can.

Support/supplies needed: None