Category: Journalist Report

Crew 222 Journalist Report 26Feb2020
Author: Marie Bochard, Crew Journalist
Sol 10
Title: Pale white dot

Today’s EVA team headed North to the Ridge by foot. They found a way up the hill and had a long walk back to the Hab. It was fun seeing them in the distance from a Hab window! They looked like tiny ants walking along the edge. Seeing the white Hab from far away was impressive: it’s the only man-made building in the visible region around us. It feels like we are alone in the universe. During the climb, what struck them the most was the red, unfertile sand that really looks like Martian soil. There are no animals to be seen, and the few plants that grow don’t look like a sustainable life form.

After lunch, Eishi showed us his solar observatory. He calibrated the telescope, and we could see clearly the Sun in the visor! Unluckily, we are right in the middle of the “low activity” period of the sun, so all we saw was a giant red ball. The red comes from the filters that allow us to look directly at the Sun, without them it would burn our retina instantly. In a few years, Astronomers will be able to see prominences, sun spots, or even flares and filaments! Judging from the photos on the manual, it looks impressive. We might come back in 5 years to see it with our own eyes!

Valentin and I almost finished working on his LCVG on his afternoon. We finished joining together and waterproofing the tubes through which the cold water will run. The whole system works well, and we found no leak! Tomorrow, we will test it out and see if the suit truly makes a difference when outside on EVA.

We only have a few days left here, and we really feel like we have grown up during our time here. Our organization improved, we all get along great, and we have created a routine that suits all. It will be very strange to face the real world again.

Crew 222 Journalist Report 25Feb2020

Author: Marie Bochard, Crew Journalist

Sol 9

Title: More exploration!

This morning, Valentin, Nicolas, Benjamin and I went on EVA to Reservoir Dam up North and Cowboy Corner. After the rain on Saturday night, we wanted to see if there was any damage done to the terrain. We took the rovers Curiosity and Spirit up the path, after re-installing the LOAC experiment close to the Hab. We stopped near the reservoir and discovered that there was barely any water left. This reservoir was man-made to help animals nearby find water, as we deducted from the regularity of the hill. But it hadn’t rained enough to fill it up at all, so we decided to explore the other side of the road. We went down into a small canyon, a tiny replica of the Grand Canyon we visited before coming here. There was a small lake there, with water redder than the sand around it! We found traces of life: there were some antelope footprints on the ground that had dried up after the rain, and leftovers of a cow’s passage (as a reminder, the main road here is call Cow Dung Road… for a reason). My camera’s battery died on me during the EVA, but thankfully we had brought a GoPro to film the landscape, so we got beautiful videos of the exploration.

It felt great being able to leave the Hab again to go exploring. These past few days, we have all been stuck inside because of the mud, only leaving the Hab to change MegaARES’ battery. Tomorrow, it’s Eishi, Nina and Bleuenn’s turn to head out!

For lunch, we had our most anticipated meal: the only pasta we have for the whole mission. We always try to satisfy everyone’s culinary taste, and pasta with pesto was one of the easiest meals we cooked. It brought a taste of home! Now, back to baking bread.

Bleuenn and Benjamin planted new seeds in the GreenHab, and harvested another batch of tiny carrots! The menu keeps improving day after day.

Crew 222 Journalist Report 24Feb2020
Author: Marie Bochard, Crew Journalist
Sol 8
Title: Cold wind blows

The wind today has been very loud. There is no visible movement outside
the windows, because there is no vegetation that bends and moves in the
wind. There is only sand and hills that stay still even when the wind
blows. We were impressed by the sheer speed of it: from our weather
station, we recorded a maximum speed of more than 15 m/s! This is rather
good news because wind dries out the mud that the snow created.
Hopefully, we will have dry ground soon, because going on EVA in mud is
very slippery and dangerous.

Today in the GreenHab, Bleuenn showed us a cucumber that’s almost ready
to be harvested. It’s going to be amazing to have a fresh, crunchy
vegetable! Her spirulina experiment is going well, the algae is growing
and will be harvestable in a few days hopefully. Nina’s aerospring moss
is also growing: out of the four plants she chose, three have grown
significantly and she will be able to transfer the moss into the
vertical garden in a few days. All this is very promising!

For a human factor experiment, we played a game called Keep Talking and
Nobody Explodes, about diffusing a bomb. One person has the bomb on
their computer, and they have to work in collaboration with an expert
who has the manual to diffuse the bomb. We are almost becoming competitive!

We ended the day with a delicious spinach pie staring a stunning “Crew
222” decoration by Nina, and watched Kaamelott all together to have a
good laugh before bed.

Crew 222 Journalist Report 23Feb2020

Author: Marie Bochard, Crew Journalist

Sol 7

Title: White land

It’s snowing outside! Here, the temperature easily drops below 0°C, staying at about -12°C for the majority of the night. The landscape feels changed, and it’s lucky that this change happened today since it is the middle of our mission. We started the simulation on Sunday, it’s been exactly one week since we started the mission, and there is one week left. We now have new sights to discover and new areas to explore in a different light!

Today is rest day. We’ve been working hard and going on EVA every day for a week, which has been tiring. We focused on ourselves today. We had new discussions, we read new books, we started putting together a summary video of our trip to get here… and of course caught up on sleep. Waking up at 6:45 to do sports every morning isn’t easy, even if it is worth it.

At the end of the mission, I can assure you that everyone will be able to solve a Rubik’s cube, thanks to Benjamin’s help! We also discovered space chess and battled hard.

We also took time to reflect on our mission so far. The beauty of the landscape is unanimously what we will remember most. Living with and only seeing six other people for a week has been a new experience for the majority of us, and so far, so good! We get along great.

Cooking has brought us closer: we bake bread daily, and sharing recipes between crew members makes us discover new tastes… and cooking abilities.

Crew 222 Journalist Report 22Feb2020
Author: Marie Bochard, Crew Journalist
Sol 6
Title: Rainy day

In the prevision of rain, Benjamin and I went on EVA this morning to change the MegaARES’ battery in the hope that it will last for two days. We were very efficient, and after only 30 minutes we were back in the Hab.

Bleuenn took the time today to start her experiment “music for plants”,
in continuation of a similar experiment the crew 206 did last year. The
goal is to study the influence of music on plants’ ability to resist UV
radiation. This radiation will be very problematic on Mars if the
habitats are on the surface of the planet, hence the need to find ways
to protect or enhance the plants’ resistance.

Special sounds can inhibit genes that code for UV protection, hence the music (of course, it is a series of notes, not actual songs!). In 50 Petri dishes, she planted more than 500 watercress seeds, a plant that resembles salad.

Crew 223 will continue the experiment, so we are hoping to see promising results!

As the weather forecasted, this afternoon it began to rain. Thankfully,
it won’t rain on Mars…

We all kept quiet during the relaxation session, and we heard nothing
but the sound of raindrops falling on the roof. For those of us who live
in the city, it never gets this quiet and peaceful. We really feel cut
off from civilization, and it’s a great feeling. Not having to worry
about looking at our phones for messages or news is relaxing. We only have to communicate between ourselves, and speaking face to face is much nicer than waiting alone behind a phone.

Today my inspiration goes towards poetry. Rain is very poetic, and I
wanted to transmit that through Haikus. Haikus are Japanese poems
written with a simple rule for the number of syllables in each verse: 5
– 7 – 5.

Raindrops fall in peace
Nature always has her way
Keeping us quiet

Breathing in and out
Looking out the small window
Red sand in the rain

Standing in the rain
Nothing matters like you do
Alone with your thoughts

Crew 222 Journalist Report 21Feb2020

Author: Marie Bochard, Crew Journalist

Sol 5

Title: Discussions

Today’s EVA group went all the way up North to the White Moon. The landscape was breath-taking, and it made us want to meditate while looking at the panorama. The sea of stones in front of us was alien-like. The group sat down for a few minutes enjoying a little rest after the climb up top, and soaked in the view from up the hill. We like to take everything slow here, because nothing good comes from a rush, especially when there is a risk to be hurt. The group headed back and reached the Hab in time for lunch.

During their EVA, we baked delicious bread and prepared a rice salad. The meal was marked by a very interesting discussion between all of us, on topics as vast as ecology, politics and relationships. Nicolas is an environmental activist, and we all learned a lot about what measures need to be taken to prevent a 7°C increase by 2100. It’s hard imagining what’s going on back on Earth while living confined on Mars, because none of the issues seem to matter since we are so far away and unimpacted. But these issues do matter, since problems on Earth will prevent any further exploration of the solar system, including Mars.

Being confined here, we have to find new subjects of conversation often and there is no other source of entertainment than ourselves. We did bring books and movies, but we all prefer talking and playing card games when we have free time. It seems like we’ve known each other for years, as we are all becoming closer and closer day after day.

Valentin, the crew engineer, and myself continued working on his backpack and LCVG this afternoon. LCVG stands for Liquid Cooling and Ventilation System. It is what astronauts use to cool themselves down in their spacesuits, because in space there is no air breeze to cool the suit’s atmosphere. His backpack is similar to the one here at the station, it blows air in the helmet to prevent fogging. These two systems together mimic what marsonauts will carry in their back when they will go on EVAs. The electronics were giving us trouble, but looking at every component individually helped us solve the issue. The system is almost ready to go! We plan to test it on EVA tomorrow. Once again, I’ll keep you posted.

Crew 222 Journalist Report 20Feb2020

Author: Marie Bochard, Crew Journalist

Sol 4

Title: Precious water

The exploration continues! This morning, the EVA group headed down South to the Kissing Camels, a set of rocks between which the road passes through. Once there, we safely climbed over to the ridge, the hill that surpasses the road. The view up there was beautiful, on one side there was a vast plain with colored hilltops, on the other side there was a snowy mountain in the distance, between the high rock hills.

This afternoon, our crew Scientist, Nina, finished assembling her AeroSpring tower, the vertical culture tower. She also started to cultivate the plants that will grow in this tower, in a special moss that allows faster growth. We are hoping to see some sprouts before the end of our mission, and I will keep you posted!

Our Commander, Benjamin, also started putting together his experiment: the water-consumption control system. Using a camera linked to buttons, once someone wants to use water they just have to press a button before and the device will take a picture of the water-level before and after opening the tap. This monitoring is very important to our mission. Water is a rare resource here, and it has to be used with parsimony. Our biggest source of consumption is drinking: each crew member drinks up to 3L per day, since it is very dry here we are always thirsty. We also use water for cooking, as all our food comes dehydrated and has to be submerged in water before being cooked. The rest of the consumption comes from the dishes, hygiene and the toilet flush. We manage to use only 15 gallons of water per day in the Hab! Of course, in the GreenHab water is used to water the plants, and this system doesn’t take it into account since it is already monitored there.

Once again, Nicolas had prepared a relaxation session, which ended the afternoon well. Tonight is a special night: it’s pizza night! While writing our reports, we can all smell the oven heating up for our long-awaited dinner. Goodnight from every member of this amazing crew!

Crew 222 Journalist Report 19Feb2020

Author: Marie Bochard, Crew Journalist

Sol 3

Title: Explorers

Mars is truly a beautiful planet. This morning was our first exploration-focused EVA. The group left for North Ridge, and came across stunning sights. The red sand meets yellow stones, dark hills are intercut by lighter sediments, it seems every step brings a new landscape to our eyes. It feels like we are so far from Earth, and we are! Even with spacesuits on, we all wished to have explored the surroundings of the Hab for hours on end.

Today we take a tour of the GreenHab with Bleuenn, our GreenHab officer. She is responsible for watering, planting and harvesting all the plants that we have. The GreenHab is our own little piece of Earth, a reminder of the green and blue planet that we left. Having this greenery is extremely important to us. Everything around us is hostile and infertile, whereas home grows in the soil of the GreenHab. It plays a big part in cheering us up: seeing plants grow and eating fresh food is very good for the morale. Back home, we are all used to eating fresh fruits and vegetables at every meal, especially since some of us are vegetarians, and the dehydrated food we have doesn’t have the same texture as food back on Earth. Flowers can also help with the isolation, as they can bring the smell of home to the Hab. All in all, the GreenHab is not just a habitat for vegetation, it also helps keep everyone in good mental shape!

We ended the day with a group cohesion activity. Nicolas spread cards on the table with qualities on them, and we each chose a couple that represented us. The goal was to explain how these qualities defined us, using examples from our experience. This was a very enriching experience as we got to know more of everyone, and being able to open up to the crew is important to be fully integrated. It was a great way to end the day, we are all feeling good and ready for tomorrow

Here is the report of the journalist who was in the EVA today !

Crew 222 Journalist Report 18Feb2020

Author: Marie Bochard, Crew Journalist

Sol 2

Title: Head in the stars!

Today in EVA, we were tasked with setting up the experiment MegaARES, a giant aluminium sphere that measures the magnetic field of the planet. When we practiced putting it up before leaving, it did not take too long, but here it took us two whole hours! It’s hard to imagine how difficult it is moving in a spacesuit. Every small task becomes difficult. Just getting in the rover seat was tough, and trying to get back up after sitting down was even harder. This is in part due to the large backpack we have to carry around, since it is quite heavy and impairs our movements, and since this was our first EVA we kept bumping into each other lightly. Thankfully we quickly got the hang of it, and the suit no longer bothered us.

Upon our return, we could smell the delicious smell of a savory cake waiting for us. Martian food, when cooked to perfection, can rival with Earth cuisine! Especially when seasoned with GreenHab-grown greens that our GreenHab officer harvested yesterday.

Here, far from civilization, far from any man-made light, the night sky is beautiful. Today, Eishi showed us the pictures of a galaxy that he took last night. As the Astronomer, he has access to three telescopes here in the MDRS.

The first one is for finding objects in the night sky, such as galaxies and stars. It is fully automated and it can follow the objects that the Astronomer wishes to study during the night. It then activates the second telescope that takes astrophotography, and in the morning, the Astronomer has access to all the images taken by the telescope.

The third one is a manual solar telescope that is used to follow the Sun’s activity during the day. With it, we can see clearly the dark spots and solar eruptions. This will be crucial on Mars, because without a magnetic field all the radiation from the Sun directly hits the surface of the planet, and this can be fatal to Marsonauts who will live there. The Sun isn’t a still ball of plasma, it has phases where its activity increases or decreases, and following these cycles is important to ensure we can predict future activity and prevent any danger. Solar flares can be dangerous for the Earth too, as it interferes with electronic instruments! Even if it is millions of kilometers away, it has the power to make and destroy.

Crew 222 Journalist Report 17Feb2020
Author: Marie Bochard, Crew Journalist
Sol 1
Title: Problem-solving

Here on Mars, every small problem can take incredible proportions. Consider this: what if one life-support system fails? The entire mission is at stake, so everyone has to chip in and help repair the problem. Thankfully, this rarely happens, but minor problems still occur.

This morning was our first EVA, and there were two important experiments to get ready. The LOAC is used to measure air particles, which will be necessary to analyze the atmosphere on Mars, and the weather station can help predict dust storms that will be frequent on the red planet. Both experiments were assembled before leaving the Hab, because when we are on EVA we wear big gloves that really impair on our ability to manipulate tools. Once the setup was done, the four crew members leaving for EVA got ready in their spacesuits. These backpacks are designed specifically to enable humans to walk on Martian soil even though the environment is hostile: there is no oxygen on the surface of Mars, so us humans cannot breathe. This is an example of a life-support system that can need repair, since we cannot leave the station without it!

After a (very) spicy lunch, it was time for everyone to focus on their experiments. Valentin, the engineer, was tasked with finding a way to power a data collector for the weather station. This proved to be more difficult than we thought: after trying to solder batteries together to provide enough power to the data collector, which took us a few hours, we settled on using a powerbank. Problem-solving isn’t always about trying to make an idea work, it’s also about finding new ideas, and today was a proof for that.

Enough problems for now, today was also filled with crew moments. Meals are always a great way of communicating between us, since we all eat together. There moments are crucial for crew cohesion, because we are going to be living together for two weeks, so being honest and understanding everyone’s concern is fundamental. Cohesion is about sharing our favorite moments from every day, but also about making sure everyone feels at home and is their best self.

As the day winds down, we are all happy to smell the delicious blueberry tart that Bleuenn baked this afternoon. This has been an incredible first sim day, and we are looking forward to tomorrow!