Category: Sol Summary

Crew 293 Sol Summary Report 09-03-2024

Sol: 20

Summary Title: Back to the Canyon

Author’s name: Marie Delaroche, Crew Commander

Mission Status: Nominal

Sol Activity Summary:

Although it is never not special to wake up to the Martian hills drenched in rising sunlight, it is also increasingly difficult to get out of bed at 6:45… This morning’s challenge was the final EVA to Candor Chasma, this time for the Crew Journalist and Crew Astronomer to reach the checkpoints with the sole help of a 2D map. While they did come back with wide smiles, the exertion finally caught up, and when I came back from the Science Dome after an EchoFinder session, the Hab was doused in silence: the Crew was resting, a rest that felt as though it had been long awaited.

Some good news: AMI is finally fully operational. The interface now has the possibility to record and store the actions performed by the Crew in power management. This allows us to run the interface and manage the station’s resources without the additional task of manually recording major configuration changes. Unfortunately, regarding EchoFinder, we are having more and more issues with both the software and the hardware. We are awaiting Earth-based help to try and solve these issues, although we have already been able to gather significant amounts of data.

Finally, despite issues with the shutter system of the observatory, the Crew Astronomer was able to photograph solar prominences and more sunspots for her study.

Look Ahead Plan:

Sol 21 has been declared a rest day. For our final week on Mars, three EVAs are planned at Kissing Camel Ridge, the final Photogrammetry site (Sol 22, 24, 25). We aim to dismantle and retrieve all atmospheric instruments on Sol 26.

Anomalies in work: Solar Observatory dome

Weather: Sunny, low -5°C, high 15°C

Crew Physical Status: Nominal

EVA: Exploration EVA to Candor Chasma

Reports to be filed: Sol Summary, Journalist’s Report, GreenHab Report, Operations Report, Photos (6-8 pics), EVA Report, Astronomy Report

Support Requested: NA

Crew 293 Sol Summary Report 10-03-2024

Sol: 21

Summary Title: A Sunday Quest

Author’s name: Marie Delaroche, Crew Commander

Mission Status: Nominal

Sol Activity Summary:

Today was supposed to be a rest day… but was it really? Many factors would indicate that it was in fact not. An hour of sleep was lost tonight, because apparently, Mars also has a daylight savings time change. This morning, after an hour-long workout, experiments had to be run in the Science Dome, and the Crew Astronomer had much troubleshooting to do in the Observatory.

In the afternoon, we knew that the HSO and Crew Engineer had something special planned for us. What we didn’t know, is that is turned out to be a station-wide treasure hunt! For the past week, they had been meticulously preparing this Sunday adventure for the rest of the Crew. We had so much fun solving riddles and passing trials, that we didn’t see time fly by.

We are looking forward to a restful evening and a good night’s sleep.

Look Ahead Plan:

The first EVA at Kissing Camel Ridge is planned tomorrow, to choose checkpoints and perform photogrammetry of the site.

Anomalies in work: Solar Observatory dome, EVA suits 7 and 9

Weather: Partly cloudy, Low 0°C, High 15°C

Crew Physical Status: Nominal

EVA: NA

Reports to be filed: Sol Summary, Journalist’s Report, GreenHab Report, Operations Report, Photos (6-8 pics), EVA Request, Astronomy Report

Support Requested: NA

Crew 293 Sol Summary Report 11-03-2024

Sol: 22

Summary Title: Good Vibes Only

Author’s name: Marie Delaroche, Crew Commander

Mission Status: Nominal

Sol Activity Summary:

Final week on Mars, final photogrammetry destination: this morning, an EVA team composed of the Crew Scientist, the GreenHab Officer and the HSO was sent to Kissing Camel Ridge, tasked with choosing checkpoints and 3D mapping the area. They made the most of their outing by also collecting data from the atmospheric instruments and changing their batteries.

In the afternoon, part of the Crew worked to make plans for the AMI interface for our final week on Mars, while the HSO and GreenHab Officer continued working on their code to retrieve the core data sets from the impedance meter and our smartwatches. The Crew Scientist also started working on generating the 3D map of Kissing Camel Ridge.

While Crew members were working on their projects throughout the afternoon, they took turns in the Science Dome to discover a video created for each individual crewmember, featuring ESA astronaut Arnaud Prost! This surprise gave us the final boost we needed to do our very best during this final week at the Mars Desert Research Station.

Look Ahead Plan:

The two exploration EVAs at Kissing Camel Ridge (involving a 2D team and a 3D team) are scheduled on Sol 24 and Sol 25. We aim to dismantle and retrieve all atmospheric instruments on Sol 26 (morning), and to break sim at 6 PM.

Anomalies in work: EVA suits 7 and 9

Weather: Cloudy, Low 2°C, High 16°C

Crew Physical Status: Nominal

EVA: Photogrammetry of Kissing Camel Ridge

Reports to be filed: Sol Summary, Journalist’s Report, GreenHab Report, Operations Report, Photos (6-8 pics), EVA Report

Support Requested: NA

Crew 293 Sol Summary Report 06-03-2024

Sol: 17

Summary Title: Here Comes the Sun

Author’s name: Marie Delaroche, Crew Commander

Mission Status: Nominal

Sol Activity Summary:

A very productive day for the entire crew! This morning, our Crew Astronomer was over the moon to hear that the missing part in the Solar Observatory was replaced, and that she could start her astronomy project! She spent most of her morning setting up in the observatory, while the boys’ team was once again roaming Candor Chasma. They decided to return there to re-capture a better quality 3D map for the Photogrammetry experiment, and returned quite content from their outing! They have until tomorrow afternoon to generate the map, an operation which requires a lot of computing power.

A few of Sol 17’s successes: the simulated alarms for the AMI interface are operational, our Crew HSO had a breakthrough in coding her data aggregator for our health data sets, and Léa and I continued working on outreach articles in the afternoon. Established studies are still running smoothly.

Look Ahead Plan:

Two exploration EVAs are planned this week, on Sols 19 (3D team) and 20 (2D Team). On Sol 19, we will request to pilot the drone from the Science Dome.

Anomalies in work: EVA suits 3,4,5,7,9

Weather: Sunny, then mostly cloudy, low 5°C, high 15°C

Crew Physical Status: Nominal

EVA: Photogrammetry at Candor Chasma

Reports to be filed: Sol Summary, Journalist’s Report, GreenHab Report, Operations Report, Photos (6-8 pics), EVA Reports, Astronomy Report

Support Requested: In the coming Sols, there will be random alarms generated by the AMI interface. The Crew has been briefed on how to react to these; most of the time, they will be simple sensor anomalies, but they can turn out to be depressurization alarms. In this case, we will need to perform an emergency EVA to “repair” (i.e. perform a simple task outside to simulate a repair operation) the module.

Therefore, we are requesting the authorization to radio Mission Support when an emergency depressurization EVA is “required” by the interface. These will, of course, only take place when the weather conditions permit it.

Crew 293 Sol Summary Report 07-03-2024

Sol:18

Summary Title: A multi-faceted Crew

Author’s name: Marie Delaroche, Crew Commander

Mission Status: Nominal

Sol Activity Summary:

Today, our Crew Scientist dedicated most of his time to generating and “cleaning” the 3D map in order to render it usable to navigate the canyon. He finished just in time for the HSO and I to prepare tomorrow’s outing! We sketched remarkable sites and prominences in the landscape, to help us locate the checkpoints. I am particularly looking forward to this EVA, as I was unable to explore Candor Chasma during my last rotation at the Mars Desert Research Station.

Speaking of EVAs, the Crew Engineer changed all non-nominal suits’ batteries, and is currently running voltage and airflow tests to validate them for use.

Look Ahead Plan:

Two exploration EVAs are planned, on Sol 19 and 20, to explore Candor Chasma with the 2D and 3D maps. On Sol 19, the drone will be piloted from the Science Dome to capture images of the station’s surroundings and lay some groundwork for the next photogrammetry location.

Anomalies in work: So far, battery replacement on the non-nominal EVA suits seems to have worked. See Operations Report.

Weather: Cloudy, low 2°C, high 15°C

Crew Physical Status: Nominal

EVA: NA

Reports to be filed: Sol Summary, Journalist’s Report, GreenHab Report, Operations Report, Photos (6-8 pics), EVA Request

Support Requested: NA

Crew 293 Sol Summary Report 08-03-2024

Sol: 19

Summary Title: Martian Topography

Author’s name: Marie Delaroche, Crew Commander

Mission Status: Nominal

Sol Activity Summary:

Today’s exploration of Candor Chasma with the 3D map was a success. All checkpoints were reached in less than an hour, leaving plenty of time to enjoy the beauty of the canyon and take pictures. The walk from the rovers to the chosen photogrammetry site was long, but the EVA was well timed and planned, and the Martian landscapes were worth it. The Crew Scientist, HSO and I returned from Candor Chasma before 1 PM, and we enjoyed lunch with the rest of the Crew.

In the afternoon, scheduling made it so that the Science Dome was occupied almost constantly, rushing the pace of the assessments and experiments a bit. No setbacks were experienced. The Crew Astronomer continued working on their project in the Observatory, while the GreenHab Officer started working on the drone footage shot this morning, at the beginning of the EVA. It looks quite promising!

Tonight, I assisted the Crew Astronomer in repairing the Observatory dome, an operation which proved unsuccessful; we ended up securing the opening with a tarp. Hopefully, we will be able to repair the dome when the sun comes up.

The length and intensity of the mission have slowly started to take their toll on the Crew; we are looking forward, after tomorrow’s second exploration EVA to Candor Chasma, to a restful 21st Sol.

Look Ahead Plan:

We have planned a second exploration EVA to Candor Chasma, involving another team of astronauts having prepared the EVA using the 2D map of the site. A stop will be made at the atmospheric instruments to retrieve the data and change the batteries.

Anomalies in work: NA

Weather: Sunny, Low 2°C, High 15°C

Crew Physical Status: Nominal

EVA: Candor Chasma exploration with 3D map

Reports to be filed: Sol Summary, Journalist’s Report, GreenHab Report, Operations Report, Photos (6-8 pics), EVA Report, EVA Request, Astronomy Report

Support Requested: NA

Crew 293 Sol Summary Report 03-03-2024

Sol: 14

Summary Title: The White Planet

Author’s name: Marie Delaroche, Crew Commander

Mission Status: Nominal

Sol Activity Summary:

Today was a much needed rest day for the entire Crew. Morale is at an all-time high, everyone did a great job at mitigating the effects of accumulated stress and tiredness.

I finished conducting mid-rotation interviews, while our GreenHab Officer baked amazing muffins for everyone. We also spent time taking care of ourselves, washing our hair for the first time in two weeks, using less than 10 liters of water! We’re all feeling a lot better, and ready to dive headfirst into the next two weeks.

Look Ahead Plan:

The first Photogrammetry EVA at Candor Chasma is scheduled for tomorrow morning, paired with the food resupply, which we are all looking forward to.

Anomalies in work: EVA suits 3,4,5,7,9, Solar Observatory Offline

Weather: Partly cloudy, Low 0°C, High 10°C

Crew Physical Status: Nominal

EVA: NA

Reports to be filed: Sol Summary, Journalist’s Report, GreenHab Report, Operations Report, Photos (6-8 pics), EVA Request

Support Requested: NA

Crew 293 Sol Summary Report 04-03-2024

Sol: 15

Summary Title: Who runs Candor Chasma? Boys!

Author’s name: Marie Delaroche, Crew Commander

Mission Status: Nominal

Sol Activity Summary:

Today, Mars had us working hard to adapt our schedule to its whims. A white blanket of snow had covered the plains, forcing us to put our EVA on hold for the time being. We reorganized our day so as to lose as little time as possible, an operation which was quite successful. In fact, our Crew Engineer even had the time to work out a system to insulate the battery using cardboard, cotton and black tape. His solution could be put to good use: at 1PM, the rescheduled EVA was confirmed, allowing the team to retrieve the data from atmospheric instruments, change the battery, and, of course, perform photogrammetry at Candor Chasma. The team came back to the Hab enchanted, and the entire Crew is looking forward to continuing participating in the study.

Other experiments are hitting a few snags, notably EchoFinder and AMI, but the Crew and Capcom are actively looking for solutions. On a more positive note, Léa and I have launched the Crew’s scientific outreach project. So far, we have three articles ready !

Look Ahead Plan:

Following the same plan as last week, the two exploration EVAs at Candor Chasma for the photogrammetry experiment are programmed on Sols 17 and 19.

Anomalies in work: EVA suits 3,4,5,7,9, Solar Observatory offline

Weather: Cloudy in the morning, then sunny; Low -2°C, High 10°C

Crew Physical Status: Nominal

EVA: Photogrammetry at Candor Chasma

Reports to be filed: Sol Summary, Journalist’s Report, GreenHab Report, Operations Report, Photos (6-8 pics), EVA Reports

Support Requested: NA

Crew 293 Sol Summary Report 05-03-2024

Sol: 16

Summary Title: Sometimes you need to know how to start again…

Author’s name: Marie Delaroche, Crew Commander

Mission Status: Nominal

Sol Activity Summary:

Today, the Crew Scientist and GreenHab Officer, responsible for the photogrammetry study, realized that the map generated yesterday was not of sufficient quality to help the EVA teams locate the checkpoints. Rescheduling a photogrammetry EVA to Candor Chasma was no easy task, but in the end, we managed to rearrange everything in a way that would not impact our other studies too much.

As a result, this was a relatively quiet afternoon. The photogrammetry team developed a new strategy for tomorrow’s backup EVA, while the rest of the crew concentrated on keeping the station and experiments up and running.

Look Ahead Plan:

We are planning to perform a second photogrammetry EVA at Candor Chasma to map the area on Sol 17, and to reschedule the two follow up EVAs to Sol 19 and Sol 20.

Anomalies in work: EVA Suits 3,4,5,7,9, Solar Observatory offline

Weather: Mostly cloudy, low 0°C, high 15°C

Crew Physical Status: Nominal

EVA: NA

Reports to be filed: Sol Summary, Journalist’s Report, GreenHab Report, Operations Report, Photos (6-8 pics), EVA Request

Support Requested: NA

Crew 293 Sol Summary Report 02-03-2024

Sol: 13

Summary Title: Winds in the East, Mist coming in

Author’s name: Marie Delaroche, Crew Commander

Mission Status: Nominal

Sol Activity Summary:

It feels very strange to change a well-established routine after two weeks! Usually, our mornings are planned to the second, however today we were forced to do things differently. The daily workout session had to be struck out of the schedule, in order to begin the emergency EVA as early as possible. Because of the very high winds and rain forecast, the outing to change batteries in the afternoon was rescheduled to 8 AM, to avoid the high winds. The objectives were changed, prioritizing the protection of the Field Mill and retrieval of the LOAC. The EVA was a success: all instruments are ready to face the Martian storm, the data has been collected, and batteries changed.

This afternoon, the winds set off a series of unfortunate events: the outer Airlock door was blown open, and the tunnel to the Science Dome was so deformed by the wind that the tarps started tearing. The Science Dome was deemed unsafe to travel to by the Crew, access has been restricted for the time being, until the winds slow down. As for the outer airlock door, Mission Support intervened to close it from the outside, after which we secured it using weights and ropes; the system is holding up so far. An alarm from our Anomaly Monitoring System also rang at 14:02; the issue was handled by the GreenHab Officer, following the protocol developed by our CapCom in Toulouse.

The Crew Engineer has finished the mid-rotation video, which we are excited to share tonight!

Look Ahead Plan:

We are aiming to start photogrammetry at Candor Chasma on Sol 15, if the weather conditions permit it. Sol 14 has been declared a rest day.

Anomalies in work: EVA suits 3,4,5,7,9 , Solar Observatory offline, Science Dome closed off

Weather: Partly cloudy, high winds (70-80 km/h gusts)

Crew Physical Status: Nominal

EVA: Atmospheric instruments retrieval and maintenance

Reports to be filed: Sol Summary, Journalist’s Report, GreenHab Report, Astronomy Report, Operations Report, Photos (6-8 pics), EVA Report, Food Inventory, Mid-rotation science report

Support Requested: NA