Category: Journalist Report

Hello Mission Control,

Today we were able to do two EVAs, both with Spencer Joseph. The first one, me, Avery, and Rishabh took him to Camel Ridge. We collected some samples there and showed him how the drone works. We also got more footage for the map. Since we had the Curiosity and Opportunity rovers, they had better batteries and we took him to Marble Ritual as well. Marble Ritual provides the "Martian" look and so we were able to get him some better footage for that.

Then, we took him to the RAM and Rishabh explained how the engineering software and drone works. He also gave insight into how this could be used to perform search and rescue missions. Next, we took him to the Science dome where myself, Noah, and Aravind explained our research. We did a live exfoliation and microscope test for him with the white mound sample. Noah and Aravind were also interviewed here. I took him to the greenhab to get some shots there and the next stop was the observatory. There, Avery and Kristina were interviewed and they showed him how to work the telescope. We got back to the hab and my interview was conducted.

After we had lunch with him, we took him on an EVA where he was suited up. Rishabh and I adjusted the suit for him and Noah, Aravind and Kristina took him around for a walking EVA. They tested out the Geiger counter. Now we are working on reports and resting up.

Have a great day!

Hello Mission Control,

Today we had a relatively research focused day. It wasn’t very active since the winds were quite intense and we couldn’t do much with the drone due to the heavy rains. We did get group pictures to promote MDRS and our project on LinkedIn. Me, Kristina, and Avery worked on the astronomy project, got the Musk observatory up and working again. However, it wasn’t able to focus on the sun right away due to the winds. Avery and I prepped the samples that we retrieved yesterday and Noah and Aravind analyzed them. Noah, Aravind and I are working on EVA requests since we are yet unsure of what samples give us better data about how to work around Martian terrain. We are going to visit spots that we find would give us better day throughout the next few days. Rishabh is still working on processing his videos and the astronomers are hard at work with the code. We are yet again stuck with another rainy Monday :))

Best,
Pari & the Bevonauts

Hello Mission Control,

Today we had an early start. Kristina and I helped set up Avery, Noah and Aravind for their morning EVA. Kristina was on comms while they went to Marble Ritual, Pooh’s Corner, and drove up to Galileo road to test the battery of the rovers. They were back promptly and we started to then disperse for our individual projects.

Kristina and Avery went to the observatory and got it working again. After they took two sets of images and are almost done processing them. During that time, Aravind, Noah and I finished retesting the interesting samples we wanted to retake data for. I also deduced the age, cause, volcanic activity and interest to applying this technique on Mars and created a document. Noah also worked with his radishes and prepared a soil sample to look at. We also are now determining the final composition of some potting soil.

Rishabh has been working hard processing his videos and working on the map.

We have honestly had a very productive and long day as the Bevonauts! Happy to see this.

And Avery and Kristina prepared some incredible dinner. All in a day’s work!

Best,
Pari & the Bevonauts

Hello Mission Control,

Today we had a day where we mainly split into and worked amongst our subgroups. We planned EVAs and ate our meals (butter noodles we are kind of in the trenches as we speak) as a group. Luckily, Noah and Kristina are quite creative and we are having a taco night for dinner.

Other than that, me and Noah have started taking care of the disaster of a biohazard that was left in the science dome and we thought we deserved to feel clean after (we took showers!). We worked on the science dome samples and categorized them. After the success of the first overnight sample experiment, we decided to do some more.

Avery and Kristina processed some images in the observatory and have been occupied the entire day with it. Rishabh has also been working hard at finishing the last few steps with this map.

Proud of the efforts and progress made!

Best,
Pari & the Bevonauts

Crew 297 – Janus 1 Journalist – David Laude

"The surface of Mars is a place of bare rock sculpted by wind, with canyons and valleys much deeper than the Grand Canyon on Earth." – Steven Squyres

Today’s Sol 10 brings with it a sense of urgency as Sol 12 will be our last for this team of researchers and explorers.

Curiosity carried the morning EVA team, Matt and Matt, to the exact coordinates for the NPS and it was recovered quickly, although it was hidden in an extremely challenging spot by the previous team. Around noon, they returned to the Hab and began their on-foot journey to Skyline Rim. By 12:40 they had reached the top of the ridge line behind MDRS, and continued with the long march across the Amazonis Planitia. They reached the Skyline Rim and proceeded with ground testing to determine the feasibility of burying the NPS in that region. After testing was completed, they headed back to the Hab.

Sarah and Pawel traveled to Somerville Overlook to observe the orange region.

The last of the crew members biographies to present is that of the Journalist/Engineer:
"David Laude was present for the memorable and impressive launches of Apollo 11, the first Space Shuttle and subsequent Shuttle night launches. He also met several lunar astronauts and like many others, dreamed about space exploration. David began a lifelong passion for electronics and space technology in elementary school. With a B.S. and a M. Eng. in Electrical Engineering, he designed integrated circuits for Harris Semiconductor (now Intersil), Ford Aerospace (now unknown), Ford Motor Company and Linear Technology Corporation (now Analog devices). David is currently retired from the work force and is a lifelong learner who enjoys working with talented people. He also has formal training in Anthropology and Archaeology. He is a member of The Planetary Society and a founding member of The Mars Society. His hobbies include radio controlled airplanes, electronics, musical instrument synthesizers, music composition and antique radio restoration. Utah, with its stark beauty and remote areas, is one of his favorite states. He previously served as a crew member at MDRS on Crews 80, 181, 228 and 265 in the roles of commander, executive officer and engineer."

Crew 297 – Janus 1 Journalist – David Laude

"Mars is much closer to the characteristics of Earth. It has a fall, winter, summer, and spring. North Pole, South Pole, mountains, lots of ice. No one is going to live on Venus; no one is going to live on Jupiter." – Buzz Aldrin

With one more Sol remaining after today there are heightened thoughts towards completion of individual goals among us. Some goals, while having made progress, remain incomplete and at least two crew members have hopes to come back to Mars for further research work on this red planet.

The morning EVA team, Pawel and Matt S. first tested Case in the usual way, by defining an objective and some obstacles. Case was able to complete its mission and return to the starting point, but only after several recalculations, each which required manual intervention before it would resume autonomous operations. Next was a simple terrain capability test in full manual mode, attempting to climb a 30 degree slope. Case made it about 3/4 of the way up the hill and then lost traction on the loose regolith, after which the test was ended.

The afternoon EVA team, Dave and Matt L., road rover Opportunity to Somerville Overlook to acquire telephoto photos of the sedimentary rock layers in the walls of the escarpments. The view was stunning, like that of a nascent Grand Canyon, complete with the Canyon’s range of Earth tone colors. As the weather turned cloudier and windier the team headed back towards MDRS, but made a planned stop at Chandor Chasma for additional photos of stratigraphy and rocks. These were then uploaded to our Crew’s website for later analysis by Crew Geologist Sarah.

"A time would come when Men should be able to stretch out their Eyes …. they should see the Planets like our Earth." Christropher Wren, Inauguration Speech, Gresham College, 1657

Today’s only, and last, EVA took place mid-day. Its goal was to geologically observe the region that appears purple from orbit. This location has also been referred to as Purple Mountain. Wind conditions escalated as the Crew of Sarah, Pawel, Matt and Matt drove Opportunity and Curiosity to North Ridge. They walked to the southwest part of North Ridge and on the way up observed green shale, various colors of regolith, and tan sandstone. They were able to observe large areas of sandstone that had fallen from the higher layers. On the way back, while in Rovers, a light rain graced the final EVA.

Tomorrow, after 12 days of rigorous simulation, our crew of six will emerge from our Mars habitat. Inside the habitat our crew navigated through challenges, from managing limited resources to maintaining physical and mental well-being. Each crew member carried with them valuable lessons and experiences, ready to contribute to the ongoing quest for space exploration.

We, Crew 297, bid farewell to life on Mars, and to a rare, fortunate and productive two weeks at MDRS. We wish to thank all MDRS personnel for their support and to thank the state of Utah for the use of this unique Marscape on Earth.

Dave Laude
Crew 297 Journalist/Engineer

Crew 297 – Janus 1 Journalist – David Laude

"Mars has been flown by, orbited, smacked into, radar examined, and rocketed onto, as well as bounced upon, rolled over, shoveled, drilled into, baked and even blasted." – Ray Bradbury

This Sol 9 has delivered mixed results as the NPS recovery team failed to recover it from an uncertain landing site, while progress with Case was made.

Dave and Matt S. went clockwise around the search area searching for the NPS, while Matt L. moved counter-clockwise. Some of this terrain was very hilly and made movement quite slow. Late into the search we had still not located the NPS and asked for a hint from HABCOM, however due to the high amount of interference it was challenging to make out the exact hint. To expedite the return and maximize search time, we used the extended range of Opportunity to do a short shuttle mission. The NPS was not found, but we have now been given its exact coordinates and an EVA to recover it is planned tomorrow.

Case the robot was driven by crew members Sarah and Sean as Pawel watched on for the final set of trial runs needed to get Case’s confidence up. Sarah explored the area and took gamma-ray spectrometer measurements. She noted that the uranium content here was more than areas further south from the Hab (around Robert’s rocks), but in line with what is expected. Case was also able to maneuver around an obstacle course to gather imagery of a point of interest, but needed some manual input.

This journalist had planned to use AI to help write a report and now is the time and so here it is.

In ChatGPT own words [journalist's edits in brackets]:

"In the vast expanse of the desert, three figures clad in space suits embarked on a seemingly futile mission to locate an air-dropped [NPS]. With each step, their visors fogged with frustration as the relentless sun beat down upon them. The arid landscape stretched endlessly, offering no clues to the elusive container’s whereabouts. Each passing moment heightened their sense of urgency, yet the [NPS] remained tantalizingly out of reach. As the [clock ticked relentlessly onward,] the trio reluctantly conceded defeat, their mission ending in disappointment amidst the vastness of the unforgiving desert."

This journalist (not a professional, nor a good word smith) admits to Chat’s greater than his own ability to compose a compelling story, and with only one sentence of information provided (Create a short paragraph regarding the failed attempt to find an air dropped can in the desert with 3 people in space suits.). It’s as if it were a professional journalist and with the EVA team!

There is no doubt AI will be of use in a multitude of ways for any manned Mars mission. In 1968 this journalist saw the HAL-9000 AGI system in the sci-fi movie "2001:A Space Odyssey", then a marvel for the future. The year 2001 came and passed with no HAL like AI. That future is nearly here though, hopefully without AGI having its own mysterious ways with us.

Crew 297 – Janus 1 Journalist – David Laude

As the Martian sun slowly cast its crimson glow over the horizon, the crew of the Janus 1 awoke to the start of another extraordinary day amidst the barren yet captivating landscape of the Red Planet. With near ideal weather conditions, the EVA team departed the Hab at 9:08 AM and mounted their all electric rovers, Opportunity and Curiosity. The EVA participants were Pawel Sawicki (Commander), Sarah Lamm (Geologist), Matthew Lynch (Engineer), Matthew Storch (Executive Officer and EVA Team Leader)

Team leader Matt S. remarked in detail: "We first did another seek for the NPS Project, by traveling to the coordinates specified by Mission Support, and searching a 300 m radius for the NPS. We then evaluated the robot, excavated a site for placement of the NPS, and explored the surrounding region for geological purposes."

"Crew obtained the NPS search coordinates and proceeded to the search area, which was near the Candor Chasma. We stopped just off Cow Dung road and proceeded on foot along the Gateway to Candor, to conduct the search. The crew split into 2 teams that straddled a ravine. Matt Lynch quickly spotted the NPS and we retrieved it and returned to the rovers. We then proceeded north along Cow Dung Road to Galileo Road and headed east on Galileo until we reached the turnaround limit on battery power. The turnaround point was not deemed suitable for the other mission objectives, so we started to return along Galileo road, stopping twice to evaluate possible sites to cover the remaining mission objectives. Once a suitable location was found, Pawel and Matt S set up the robot, while Matt L scouted for suitable nearby excavation sites and Sarah conducted geological studies of the area. The robot had problems connecting to its network and there was not much we could do in the field to address the problem, so we had to abandon that objective for today. All four EVA crew members then joined the excavation effort, using a variety of tools and working in shifts. In the end we were able to excavate deep enough to properly bury the NPS, but finished just in time to return from the EVA with a suitable time margin. Excavation was much more difficult than in the first location, with the regolith removal rate being about one half of what it was in the first excavation, despite having 4 crew members to work this excavation vs. 2 for the previous one."

Meanwhile, at the Hab, Dave was preparing his first scone with blueberries mix for the oven. Despite the use of freeze dried foods for most of the ingredients, the scones came out of the oven in fine shape and satisfying taste. The fine shape was like a flower pedal.

Today’s featured crew member is Pawel. In his biography he notes that he "is currently a New Shepard Crew Capsule Test Engineer at Blue Origin, where he is responsible for the successful and safe execution and on-time completion of several major launch vehicle tests and pre-flight checks. At Blue Origin, he is also a volunteer Emergency Response Team member. Pawel earned a Ph.D. from the University of Colorado at Boulder, where his doctoral research involved computationally investigating amelioration techniques for plasma-induced radio wave blackout, which has historically plagued hypersonic vehicles. Pawel had also obtained an M.S. in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Colorado at Boulder, an M.S. in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Michigan, and M.S. and B.S. degrees in Mechanical Engineering from New York University. Pawel’s career has also included stints of varying capacities at NASA Ames Research Center, NASA Langley Research Center, NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, and Lockheed Martin Advanced Technology Center."

Crew 297 – Janus 1 Journalist – David Laude

One week in, Sol 7, and the Janus 1 Crew has full confidence in completing nearly all research projects before departing Mars, problems or not. Today’s EVAs took one team (Matt and Matt) to the far NW where the "Overlook" (previously the "Moon Overlook" where this journalist once performed an EVA on Phobos). A few km north they reached the "Sea of Shells" where hill side after hill side is covered dense with ancient sea shells. The other EVA team (Pawel and Dave) stayed at home base and spent time with the mobile robot Case in front of the Hab. Dave set it on its automated course and at times manually controlled it from within the RAM while Pawel accompanied it. Case had a mind of its own at times stopping and turning about before proceeding on and then finally losing its azimuth by fixating on 71 degrees east. The final drive of the day up the ramp into the RAM to Dave was a perfect end to an otherwise somewhat troubled afternoon. Our goal was to evaluate for ease of use and note any problems and so one should consider the event a success. In the Hab whole wheat raisin bread was baked and for dinner jambalaya with Red Lobster brand muffins.