MARS DESERT RESEARCH STATION

Sol Summary – March 25th

Commander Report Crew 177:
Otsmar Villarroel
Sol 1
Earth date: 03/25/2017

Good evening!

Today we met the very helpful Crew 176 at MDRS.  Upon arrival at the hab, crew members were trained by Crew 176 members.  Training included a brief tour around the MDRS facilities as well as over use of the ATVs, operation report data, water leak issue, etc.  After the training we went to Bull Mountain Market to pick up our food according to the inventory sent by crew 176 as requested by Shannon.

We’ve made a plan for tomorrow, which will include, pending approval, our Orientation EVAs. We are expecting to enter sim tomorrow morning at 9:30 am, if possible.

From Crew 177; Hanksville, UT
Crew Commander
Otsmar

Commander Report – March 25th

Crew 176 Commander’s Report 25 March 2017
Natalia Zalewska
Commander Report
25 March 2017 – Sol 14

Dear Mission Support,

This was our last day at MDRS. We have EVA scheduled for this afternoon,
however, due to the poor weather conditions and the workload related to
packing up, we decided to cancel it and finish the simulation today.

In the morning, we worked on the video recordings. Green Hab Officer the
two crew members went to Grand Junction to pick up a rental car we will
use to transport the robot and other equipment. We finished cleaning the
upper and lower deck as well as helmets. In the afternoon we hosted Crew
177. We were happy to explain our guests how to run and maintain the MDRS
campus as well as what are the rules to follow when using ATVs and
engaging in EVAs. The evening was particularly long as we needed to finish
packing.

The crew is in a great mood, as it always is. We are also grateful to Mars
Society for the Spirit and Opportunity we have been provided at MDRS!

Best regards,

Natalia Zalewska
Commander, MDRS Crew 176

———————————————–

 

Commander Report Crew 177:
Otsmar Villarroel
Sol 1
Earth date: 03/25/2017

Good evening!

Today we met the very helpful Crew 176 at MDRS.  Upon arrival at the hab, crew members were trained by Crew 176 members.  Training included a brief tour around the MDRS facilities as well as over use of the ATVs, operation report data, water leak issue, etc.  After the training we went to Bull Mountain Market to pick up our food according to the inventory sent by crew 176 as requested by Shannon.

We’ve made a plan for tomorrow, which will include, pending approval, our Orientation EVAs. We are expecting to enter sim tomorrow morning at 9:30 am, if possible.

From Crew 177; Hanksville, UT
Crew Commander
Otsmar

Science Report – March 25th

Science Report

Michał Kazaniecki
Crew 176 Engineer

In recent days we had 2 EVAs with Ares rover. We performed some field tests to check procedures and collaboration with rover and to examine Ares behavior in various conditions.

Two days ago we had objectives regarding human-robot interactions. Ares was helping geologist with collecting the samples. It took some pieces of rock and delivered it to destination.

Yesterday we performed further field tests. We headed north, to the area between Hab and North Ridge. Ares climbed on several quite steep hills, some pf them up to 35 degrees. It was a great opportunity to observe how the suspension works when forces on each wheel are not equal (and asymmetrical). Besides, we checked the performance of motors and grip of wheels on loose soil as well as we drove in the dust and mud to verify the impact of water or dirt on mechanical parts.

One of unexpected events was when Ares dug itself in sand. Unfortunately, it blew two electric fuses while it was trying to escape.

We also performed tests on maximum range of wireless communication (without additional antenna). Results were quite surprising – in open field (without any obstacles around) we nearly lost visual contact with rover but the connection was still quite good.

That EVA was also an opportunity to train an additional rover operator. It took less than minute to explain how to drive a rover.

A completely new experience, impossible to gain on robotic competitions like University Rover Challenge  was operating the rover in helmet and space suit. We found out, that using a joystick in gloves is as comfortable as without them.  On the contrary, sun reflections on the helmet makes nearly impossible to see anything on computer screen.

 

 

Journalist Report – March 24th

Crew 176 Press Officer // 24 March 2017
Krzysztof Jedrzejak
24 March 2017 – Sol 13

Dear Mission Support,

I am sending you my journalist report. This time it concerns the last three days at MDRS which focused on the following activities:

•    Video interviews conducted with 2 out of the 5 crew members, namely Crew Commander Natalia Zalewska and Green Hab/Human-Robot Interaction Officer Karolina Zawieska. These recordings were one of the most important parts of a documentary movie we are working on. In the interviews, crew members shared their subjective experience related to the two weeks spent at MDRS.

•    Preparation of the documentary photography and video session while conducting field tests of the rover Ares.

•    Preparation of the Social Media content.

These are the last days of our simulation. Right now, we are focus on taking last video shots of our crew and spectacular landscapes. Moreover, we are preparing MDRS for the upcoming rotation and a new Crew.

Best regards,
Krzysztof Jedrzejak

Press Officer, MDRS Crew 176

Sol Summary – March 24th

MDRS Daily Summary Report for SOL 13

Person filling out Report: Michał Kazaniecki

Summary Title: A step closer to the successful end

Mission Status: Busy, busy, busy

Sol Activity Summary: EVA,  rover related tasks, cleaning

Look Ahead Plan: more cleaning and packing

Anomalies in work: everything as expected

Weather: sunny, but not too hot

Crew Physical Status: everyone feels good

Reports to be filled:

-Operations Report
-Commander Report
-EVA Report
-EVA Request
-Summary Report (as requested by Robert Zubrin)

Science Report – March 22nd

Crew 176 Science Report 22 March 2017

Natalia Zalewska
Science Report
22 March 2017 – Sol 11

Dear Mission Support,

We went to the East to see the Jurassic formations in White Rock Canyon
with petrified sandbanks and dunes (Fig.1). I noted characteristic cross-
beddings. Similar beddings are noticable in Gale crater provided  by the
Curiosity rover (Fig2). For milions years on Mars and on Earth layers of
small rock pieces have been deposited in a similar way and now they have
been exposited by erosion.

Regards,

Natalia Zalewska
Commander and Crew geologist, MDRS Crew 176

Curiosity Gale
White Canyon

Sol Summary – March 22nd

MDRS Daily Summary Report for SOL 11 (22Mar2017)

Person filling out Report: Michał Kazaniecki

Summary Title: Internet issues and beyond 

Mission Status: Still work in progress

Sol Activity Summary: EVA, Internet “fixing”, rover testing, installing the experimental shower

Look Ahead Plan: EVA with rover, tests of rover Ares

Anomalies in work: Unstable Internet connection (again)

Weather: Cloudy and windy, heavy rain and strong wind at night

Crew Physical Status: one minor toe injury, everyone else feels good

Reports to be filled:

-Operations Report
-Commander Report
-EVA Report
-EVA Request (via SMS)
-Science Report

EVA Report – March 23rd

EVA #8

Crew members:  Michal Kazaniecki (EVA leader), Natalia Zalewska, Karolina Zawieska (EVA buddies)

Location: Around the MDRS Hub

Vehicles : NA
Time : Departure at 10:00  and back at 13:00 hrs

Duration : 3 hours

Purposes:
•  Testing Ares Rover

•  Recording promotion materials

Summary:
Due to rainy and windy weather our testing scenario for Ares Rover was limited. However our test were successful and gather materials are on satisfactory level. Set of selected pictures (our favourites) are attached to this report.

Commander’s Report – March 23rd

Crew 176 Commander’s Report 23 March 2017
Natalia Zalewska
Commander Report
23 March 2017 – Sol 12

Dear Mission Support,

While we are heading to the end of our mission, we continue to maintain
our daily routine. Thus, we woke up today in the morning, had a breakfast
together as well as some of us completed psychological tests. We made sure
holter monitors work but due to the increasing fatigue of the entire team,
we skipped the sport activities.

Despite poor weather conditions, we undertook EVA as planned. This time
the crew members stayed in the close proximity of the habitat without the
need to use ATVs. The main focus was on the use of the rover Ares 2,
including in the role of the support tool when collecting geological
samples.

The Crew Engineer spent a significant amount of time working on the rover
and a corresponding trailer, and the Green Hab Officer was happy to
discover new plants in the pots. Also, just as every day, the entire crew
worked on preparing audio-visual data for both education and outreach
activities.

Starting from tomorrow, we will work on packing our staff, cleaning the
habitat and we will get mentally ready to leave. Our mood and teamwork is
still very good.

Best regards,

Natalia Zalewska
Commander, MDRS Crew 176

Science Report – March 23rd

Crew 176 Science Report 23 March 2017
Natalia Zalewska
Science Report
23 March 2017 – Sol 12

Dear Mission Support,

I have done comparison of sedymentations between different sandstones as
well as in relation to blueberries found on Mars by Opportunity rover in
the Endurance crater. Inside sandstones developed at the turn of Jurassic
and Cretaceous I have found near the habitat (Fig.1), there are
concretions in a side up to 1 cm, while in the layers originated from
Cretaceous in Member of Mancos Shale (Ferron Sandstone)(Fig.2) these
concretions have size of a few milimeters only. However, for example in
the Miocene layers dating from 6 million years ago in Romania in Costesti,
in Museum Trovanţilor(Fig.3) the concretions have diameters up to 5 m. The
characteristic feature is that such concretions are produced in very
fine-grained sandstones. In all these cases, scientists refer to river
deltas in which these concretions have formed. They are the result of
cementation, or the process of transformation of loose rock sediments into
a compact rock. This is the result of the fill by the cementation of the
free space between the sediment grains. Because the grains of a sand are
the result of rolling by water currents they have a spherical form,
combining them with merging solutions, for example due to calcium
carbonate or sulphate and clay minerals in the case of Mars, and then take
the form of a ball. It is said that on Mars were flowing rivers, which
could have also deposited large amounts of sediment. It is unknown exactly
whether these rivers carried sand similar to terrestrial or just altered
volcanic material. In any case, it is assumed that the concretions on Mars
were generated under the conditions of water which flow carrying the
solutions primarily of sulfates and clay minerals in addition the iron
oxides deposited on them (Fig.4)like in the case of spherules from Navajo
Sandstone from Jurassic formations .

Regards,

Natalia Zalewska
Commander and Crew geologist, MDRS Crew 176