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EVA Report – March 5th

Capcom,

Here is today’s EVA report also comming from Jérémy:

EVA Report:
EVA #11 Crew members: Jérémy Auclair (EVA leader), Louis Mangin, Gabriel Payen, Benoit Floquet

Location:
– Around the Hab
– Near Pooh’s Corner: 12S-518900E-4252000N
– Near Mid Ridge Planitia: 12S-517500E-4251500N

Time: departure at 09:12 a.m. Duration: 2 hour 24 minutes

Narrative:
When describing shortly today’s EVA, we could say that concerning our experiments it was a failure. After arriving at the instruments’ position near Pooh’s corner, we found out that both batteries were empty. Therefore, we plugged the new battery on MegaARES to start transferring data on Gabriel’s USB key. We took one empty battery (to start charging it) and went back to the Hab to start Benoit’s localization experiment. After more than five minutes the GPS chip still hadn’t found any signal.

We decided to continue the walk to get on the Hab ridge. We took quite a few pictures, Louis with his camera and me with mine, on which I had mounted my orange filter (for my personal pictures). After we arrived over the Hab we headed back to the Hab. We took the ATVs to go back to Pooh’s Corner to finish MegaARES’ data transfer.

Once the transfer was done we plugged the LOAC on the battery. But once again the power system was broken. This time it was the switch which was broken. We took the decision to bring the two batteries and the LOAC back to the Hab to fix the power system.

Unfortunately, on the way back to the Hab, one of the batteries fell of one of the ATV 30 meters away of the Hab because of a bump on the road. It broke and started to leak slightly. We must have attached it too weakly because we had to bring back two batteries instead of one. I quickly asked Habcom to put a garbage bag in the engineering Airlock. 3 Minutes later we put the leaking battery in the plastic bag to confine it. Once this (small) crisis was taken care of we started the final engineering check and ended the EVA.

Purposes:
– LOAC: Test of the battery level
– MegaARES: Replacement of the battery
– Localization experiment: test with increasing uncertainty on the positioning measure

Vehicles: 4 ATVs

9:12 a.m.: EVA#11 left Airlock
9:20 a.m.: EVA left the Hab using the four ATVs
9:33 a.m.: Arrival on the working place and beginning of battery tests and data transfert
9:39 a.m.: Return to the ATVs
9:42 a.m.: Turning on the ATVs to go back to the Hab
9:46 a.m.: Arrival to the Hab, Benoit starts his GPS instrument 9:50 a.m.: Beginning of Walk to find a way to climb on the ridge 9:57 a.m.: Benoit’s instrument still doesn’t work
10:22 a.m.: Louis finds a safe way to climb on the ridge
10:32 a.m.: Arrival on top of the ridge
10:42 a.m.: Beginning of way down the ridge
11:00 a.m.: Departure to the instruments on Pooh’s Corner
11:18 a.m.: Departure to the Hab with both batteries and the LOAC 11:36 a.m.: Entry in the Main Airlock

Best,

Louis

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Greenhab Report – March 5th

Hello again Capcom,

Here is today’s GreenHab report coming from Jérémy:

GreenHab Report
AUCLAIR Jérémy
5th March 2018

Environmental control:

(door closed)
Heating once the sun was down
80 % Shade cloth on

Average temperatures:
Around 30 °C at 11:30 am, around 23 °C the rest of the day

Hours of supplemental light: none

Changes to crops: 5 cherry tomatoes harvested

Daily water usage for crops: around 9 gallons

Time(s) of watering for crops: 10:00 am and 9pm

Narrative: none

Support/supplies needed: none

Cheers,

Louis

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Commander Report – March 5th

Hello Capcom,

Here is today’s Commander Report:

Crew 189 Commander Report 05Mar2018

Sol 15

We started today the last straight line of simulation after a needed day off. We were a bit slow in the morning, struggling to wake up or making last minutes adjustments on experiments before the EVA, so that we ended up leaving the Hab late.

This EVA was another one of the type you do not really want to do, but that ends up being instructive. Almost everything didn’t go as planned: we started late, discovered that both the MegaARES and the LOAC were draining their batteries way faster than expected for an unknown reason, so that we will need to replace both of them, which is impossible as we only have one more. We launched the data copy on the MegaARES and went back to the Hab.

It was then time for Benoit’s experiment to fail: its GPS chip couldn’t find a satellite to connect to. After a long pause during which we restarted it a few times, we decided to head to Hab View Point anyway. The funny thing was that we were carrying inflated balloons all this time, that were supposed to mark specific locations on the field to test the guidance system. It allowed us to shoot unusual photos in which you can see a Martian child carrying balloons in spacesuit over the MDRS!

At the same time, my EVA logger App started to fail too, as I was only able to hear half of the sounds it was supposed to emit. The good thing is that after all the tries I did, I might have found a pattern in the errors giving me a lead on the way to fix it. To end up this EVA properly, we discovered once arrived at Pooh’s Corner that the LOAC power system wasn’t working anymore (for the 4th time if I get the right count…). This time, we headed back to the Hab. But doing so, we didn’t attach a battery properly to an ATV, resulting in it falling 30 meters before arrival after a bump. It started leaking, and we managed to confine it quickly before heading back. This shouldn’t have consequences as the third battery was used for rotations, and we will now only use one charge more for each instrument before the end of the mission.

After all these sad events, we went back on track due to a very good meal, starting by a fresh salad harvested the day before. The afternoon was less challenging: human factors experiments, astronomy, work on experiments, rotation video, VR filming, reports, cooking. All this put together was enough to keep all of us busy. I enjoyed the VR filming as the gear was very nice to use. I hope I didn’t do too bad as it was the first time I ever shot videos using such a video camera. Tomorrow will be another special day as a French national television team will spend the day with us. Let’s hope this goes as well as it did on Saturday!

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Operations Report – March 5th

Hello CapCom, hello Graeme,

Here is my Operations Report for sol 15 :

Crew 189 Operations Report 5March2018

SOL: 15

Name of person filing report: Gabriel PAYEN

Non-nominal systems: –

Notes on non-nominal systems: –

Generator (hours run): Turned on at 8:20 AM and turned off at 7:00 PM

Solar— SOC 79 % (Before generator is run at night)

Diesel – 48 %

Propane – 23 psi.

Ethanol Free Gasoline (5 Gallon containers for ATV) – 10 gallons.

Water (trailer) – 0 gallons.

Water (static) – 500 gallons (90/95%)

Trailer to Static Pump used – NO

Water (loft) – Static to Loft Pump used – YES

Water Meter: 131 684.0

Toilet tank emptied: YES

ATV’s Used: 1,2,3 & Honda

Oil Added : NO

ATV Fuel Used: Gals

Hours the ATVs were Used today: 2h30

Notes on ATVs: –

Deimos rover used: NO

Hours: 113.2

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: –

Currently charging: NO

Sojourner rover used: ASSIGNED TO DIRECTOR

Hours:

Beginning charge:

Ending charge:

Currently charging:

Spirit rover used: NO

Hours: 22.4

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: –

Currently charging: YES

Opportunity rover used: NO

Hours: 18.0

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: –

Currently charging: YES

Curiosity rover used: NO

Hours: 15.4

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: –

Currently charging: NO

HabCar used and why, where –

General notes and comments: –

Summary of internet: –

Summary of suits and radios: –

Summary of Hab operations: –

Summary of GreenHab operations:

Summary of ScienceDome operations: –

Summary of RAMM operations:-

Summary of health and safety issues: –

Questions, concerns and requests to Mission Support: –

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Journalist Report – March 5th

Hello CapCom!

Here is my report of the day.

Best,

Journalist report, 03/05/18: The beginning of the end

While we were enjoying our evening off, a surprise guest made its appearance in the Hab: a small mouse showed up from under a couch, certainly looking for some food. It has yet certainly been scared by Louis and me, still awake later than our teammates. However, it succeeded in its quest: Gabriel was surprised to catch it eating a piece a chocolate bar he had left near its bed! He has been quick to act, and drove out our little friend, which has not been seen since.

It was even harder to wake up early today after our day off: fatigue is accumulating among the crew. Benoît has notably been unable to get out of bed for our sport session: he got up only when he felt the nice smell of pancakes. Our EVA of the day aimed to improve and test some of our experiments, the main one being the localization experiment of Benoît, which he has been working on in the Hab for a while. To model benchmarks, he had brought some balloons he had inflated with helium gas. Wearing such multicolored balloons, he looked like an astronaut who enjoyed some rides at the fair. Along with Louis, Gabriel and Jérémy, leader of the day, they then left the station.

As it has become a routine, the team started the EVA going to Pooh’s Corner, our instruments’ location. However, as both of the LOAC’s and MegaARES’ batteries had to be changed, it was decided to bring back the LOAC in the station until the next day, as we only have one spare battery. Unlike what we are used to, the team did not go on
exploration today, as they had a lot to do with the experiments. Unfortunately, Benoît’s one could not work because of GPS issues, which he will have to tackle later. In the meantime in the Hab, I started to work on our rotation video: I found the music, created a synopsis, and tried to begin to edit the video: there is yet a lot to do before it is finally completed!

Our afternoons are getting more rhythmic, as the end of the mission is in sight! However, as everyone wants to fulfill his own tasks which can evolve several members of the crew, it is sometimes hard to manage our time! Each member is indeed very busy: Gabriel managed once more our KTNE session; Louis put together a VR video of the Hab; Benoît made new solar observations, etc. There are now only 4 mission days left before our return to Earth, and one of them will be quite different than what we are used to. We will in fact receive two journalists from TF1 (one of the largest French TV station) tomorrow: the day is going to be full of events!

Alexandre Martin, Crew 189 Journalist.

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Operations Report – November 25th

Hello CapCom, hello Graeme,

Here is my Operations Report for sol 15 :

Crew 189 Operations Report 5March2018

SOL: 15

Name of person filing report: Gabriel PAYEN

Non-nominal systems: –

Notes on non-nominal systems: –

Generator (hours run): Turned on at 8:20 AM and turned off at 7:00 PM

Solar— SOC 79 % (Before generator is run at night)

Diesel – 48 %

Propane – 23 psi.

Ethanol Free Gasoline (5 Gallon containers for ATV) – 10 gallons.

Water (trailer) – 0 gallons.

Water (static) – 500 gallons (90/95%)

Trailer to Static Pump used – NO

Water (loft) – Static to Loft Pump used – YES

Water Meter: 131 684.0

Toilet tank emptied: YES

ATV’s Used: 1,2,3 & Honda

Oil Added : NO

ATV Fuel Used: Gals

Hours the ATVs were Used today: 2h30

Notes on ATVs: –

Deimos rover used: NO

Hours: 113.2

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: –

Currently charging: NO

Sojourner rover used: ASSIGNED TO DIRECTOR

Hours:

Beginning charge:

Ending charge:

Currently charging:

Spirit rover used: NO

Hours: 22.4

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: –

Currently charging: YES

Opportunity rover used: NO

Hours: 18.0

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: –

Currently charging: YES

Curiosity rover used: NO

Hours: 15.4

Beginning charge: 100%

Ending charge: –

Currently charging: NO

HabCar used and why, where –

General notes and comments: –

Summary of internet: –

Summary of suits and radios: –

Summary of Hab operations: –

Summary of GreenHab operations:

Summary of ScienceDome operations: –

Summary of RAMM operations:-

Summary of health and safety issues: –

Questions, concerns and requests to Mission Support: –

Posted on

Astronomy Report – March 5th

Hello Capcom,

Astronomy Report
Name: Benoit Floquet Crew: 189
date: 2018/03/05

Sky Conditions: The sky was clear.

Wind Conditions: No wind

Observation Start Time: 02:00 pm

Observation End Time: 05:00 pm

Summary: Just a casual afternoon of observation

Objects Viewed: Sun Filament

Problems Encountered: None

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Sol Summary – March 5th

Here is the Crew 189 Sol Summary Report 05 March 2018

Sol 15

Summary Title: Beginning of last martian week

Author: Victoria Da-Poian

Mission Status: All nominal

Sol Activity Summary: We began our last week on Mars. Today’s EVA was dedicated to air sensors experiments and to localization experiment. The EVA was not really successful (cf EVA report) but we still have one week left to work on this! In the Hab today, I was pleased to cook a salad (salad, cucumbers, cherry tomatoes!): it was delicious! I took care of the greenhab as Jérémy was outside and as the previous Crew 175 Greenhab officer, I spent some time enjoying the vegetables smells! Then, we spent time working on our experiments (human factors experiment, virtual reality filming…)

Look Ahead Plan: Tomorrow, we will welcome two French television journalists (TF1). They will spend the day with us from our physical training to our afternoon activities.

Anomalies in work: None

Weather: Sunny

Crew Physical Status: Fine

EVA: 11th

Reports to be filed:
Commander
Journalist
Engineering
Greenhab Officer
Astronomer
EVA

Support Requested: None

Cheers,

Victoria
Crew189 Commander

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Journalist Report – March 4th

Journalist report, 03/04/18: Second day off / Special edition 2: About the MegaARES

Our second day off was quite welcomed today after such a busy week. All the crew could catch up some sleep, and spent some time chilling in the Hab, around films and card games. As intended, I will talk today about our second large outside experience and its instrument: the MegaARES.

The Mega Atmospheric Relaxation and Electric field Sensor is an instrument developed by Grégoire Déprezand his team of researchers at LATMOS (French atmosphere and spatial observations laboratory). Several versions of ARES have been developed before, the most advanced being the MicroARES, which was part of a group of sensors on the DREAMS payload of the ExoMars Schiaparelli module which attempted an automated landing on Mars on 19 October 2016. However, the signal was unexpectedly lost shortly before the planned landing time, and Schiaparelli crashed. MicroARES was thus destroyed and could not take any measure on Mars.

This device is able to record the electric field in favorable weather conditions and is precise enough to catch electric field variations phenomenon known as Schuman and Transverse Resonances. On a planet, such electric phenomenon occurring in the atmosphere could indeed have a major role and link with the planet’s climate and chemistry. Being able to measure the electric field precisely is thus a quite interesting challenge for planetology. Utah Desert’s electric field matches Mars’ atmospheric one on several points. Interesting phenomenon hypothesized to occur on Mars could indeed be caught in the Utah Desert.

Scientists of the LATMOS team will have to wait for the next Martian mission to deploy their instrument, and want to use the time left to improve its performance. Analog mission are thus their best opportunity to work on the device. Through MegaARES, specially developed for Earth measures, data recording, data analyzing and hardware can be tested for a certain length of time at MDRS station. The instrument is used simultaneously with the LOAC, in order to study cross effect between sand and electric field dynamics. LOAC and MegaARES will thus give a large and precise database which could be used for future experiments on the MDRS.

We would like to thank Grégoire Déprez and his team for having accepted to lend us this instrument, and for their trust in us for its use.

Alexandre Martin, Crew 189 Journalist, with the help of Gabriel Payen, Crew 189 Engineer, in charge of the MegaARES experiment.