Mars Desert Research Station Crew 61 Files Final Report
April 15, 2007
For further information about the Mars Society, visit our website at
www.marssociety.org

The following is the final report of MDRS Crew 61. A full review of
this year's activity at the Mars Desert Research Station and the
historic 4-month mission to the Flashline Mars Arctic Research
Station on Devon Island will be given at the 10th International Mars
Society Convention, which will be held August 30-September, 2, 2007
at UCLA, Los Angeles. Registration is now open at www.marssociety.org/

Log Book for April 14, 2007
Mission Summary
Chip Shepherd & Crew 61 (Spaceward Bound V) - Reporting

Overview:

The following constitute, in brief, the results and findings of Crew
61 during our rotation in the Mars Desert Research Station in April
2007. Crew 61 was the fifth crew sponsored by the NASA Spaceward
Bound Program, and the final crew to inhabit the MDRS for the
2006/2007 field season. You are invited to visit
http://quest.nasa.gov/projects/spacewardbound/ for more detailed
information about the Spaceward Bound Program. This summary is
organized corresponding to our motto: "Be Safe, Have Fun, Get It
Done --- Crew 61!"

"Be Safe": Emergency Preparedness and HSO Summary

While personal safety was, of course, top priority in everything we
did, the central theme of the mission was "Emergency Preparedness."
Core to this theme were activities dealing with EVA emergencies,
radiation-related emergency protocols, and an emergency air
quantity/location study.

Our Health and Safety Officer, Pieter Jan Van Asbroeck, files this
summary: "Allergies, cuts, and lack of sleep seemed to be the cause
of most of the health issues faced on Crew 61. Morale and spirit
stayed strong. A fire extinguisher that we brought was placed in the
engineering area near the generator and fuel." In addition, ten
emergency air masks (for simulation/drill purposes only) were placed
in the crew quarters and other appropriate locations.

"Have Fun": Morale, Visitors, and the Media

Crew 61 was an international crew with ties to Belgium, Peru, Spain
and the United States and varying academic and professional
backgrounds. The crew included engineers from two NASA contractors
(Jacobs Technology and Boeing) and students from universities in the
United States and Belgium. The energy level was typically high;
Spanish, English and Dutch were commonly spoken; and the crew found
no lack of opportunities to share their diverse approaches on various
topics. This rotation received a number of visitors, planned and
unplanned (one day alone we had 21 non-crew here). We worked with a
number of visitors from academia, including the NDX-1 team from the
University of North Dakota, and two students from the State
University of New York - Buffalo who tested their hardware and slept
over in the Hab with us for a few nights. And during the Easter
holiday weekend, we encountered dozens of tourists (many with
children) and local ATV riders who saw the Hab and dropped by out of
curiosity. Each one was a treat.

Our crew was also showered with attention from the media. Three
crews (ABC-TV/Houston, Telemundo, and an independent documentary film
producer) visited us for two days at the MDRS. ABC and Telemundo
plan to air their stories in May. Belgium covered our mission in
multiple formats (web, print, radio, and television), and articles
appeared at Penn State University and Mars Daily.
The visitors always seemed to provide the crew with a boost of
energy, but other important factors that contributed to morale were
the special meals we shared together (cooked mostly by Elizabeth),
daily gifts from the Commander, and our Yuri's Night Celebration that
rocked our conical-shaped MDRS roof! We also hope the dozen new
DVD's we added to the library help the morale of future crews.

"Get It Done": EVA's, Science, and Engineering

EVA: Crew 61 featured an aggressive schedule of EVA's and EVA
support activities. Alex Diaz (Executive Officer and EVA
Coordinator) reports: "From an EVA perspective, this experience has
once again confirmed for me that the most effective construction and
operations in Mars will synergistically employ human-robot buddy
systems. While robots may work best under highly predictable
conditions, humans are able to adapt better to an unpredictable
environment. That is why the human factor in space exploration is
indispensable. Below is a list of the salient EVA and Human Factors
objectives completed during our rotation:

1. Tested NDX-1 Prototype Planetary Spacesuit from the University of
North Dakota. Crew Engineer Marcus Medley was invited to wear the
suit, and enjoyed the experience thoroughly.
2. Tested EVA rescue procedures and equipment to transport immobile
EVA crewmembers in the case of emergencies (i.e. rover accidents,
solar storms, etc).
3. Designed and built Modified Emergency Stretcher for transporting
injured EVA crewmember in the supine position.
4. Designed and built ATV Stretcher Stand for mounting Modified
Emergency Stretcher on ATV.
5. Tested Walk-back procedures in the event of rover failures, and
determined average walking speeds for MDRS suited crewmembers.
6. Tested EVA Tool used for sample collection developed by the State
University of New York, Buffalo.
7. Tested EVA connector accessibility with NDX-1 pressurized
gloves.
8. Conducted extensive, detailed inspection of MDRS suits to document
their condition; weighed EVA suits and ancillary equipment; and
tested MDRS PLSS battery duration.
9. Conducted Mars Analog Crew Performance preliminary study under
guidance of Dr. Rygalov at the University of North Dakota.
10. Conducted Mars Analog Crew Logistics preliminary study.

"Despite our crew differences (i.e. personal, political,
philosophical, etc.), which are expected with such a diverse crew, we
were able to work great as a team and were extremely efficient. It
was a genuine pleasure to work with such a competent and interesting
group of individuals."

SCIENCE: Crew 61 completed several scientific objectives. Irene
Schneider, Crew Physicist and Radiation Specialist, reports her
findings:

"During the radiation simulation program performed with Crew 61, we
included for the first time a field test of emergency radiation
operational protocols. In addition, I carried out a simulation in
which individual dose radiation exposures were monitored. In the
exercise I assumed that the Habitat is sufficiently well protected
from radiation, and that no doses are received while inside. I also
assumed an early warning detection system was in place capable of
monitoring in real time gamma rays, neutrons of all relevant energies
in human dosimetry, high energy protons to monitor solar storms and
cosmic ray background. I have assumed that the habitat is located at
the bottom of the Hellas Basin. This is the deepest location on Mars,
as well as one of the most interesting in terms of habitability. The
fact that it is the deepest location on Mars implies that its
atmospheric density is the highest at its bottom. This thicker
atmosphere would provide an additional attenuation of the constant
GCR background (Galactic Cosmic Rays), which is always desirable. In
order to calculate estimates for the radiation dose exposure for each
crew member I used the NASA HZETRN code, which is the code used by
NASA to estimate radiation doses to astronauts. The code provides
detailed estimates for the GCR background for Mars both in units of
Rads and Rems (roentgen equivalent man, which pertain to humans).

Total Dose received by each crew member in units of REM during the
entire two-week mission: Chip: 0.003; Alex: 0.13; Irene: ~400;
Elizabeth: ~400; Pieter Jan: 0.04; Marcus: 0.08 [rems].

Irene and Elizabeth received the highest levels because they were
performing an EVA when a simulated solar storm was encountered. In a
real mission, crew members Elizabeth and Irene would have had to be
promptly banned from all future EVA excursions. Furthermore, they
would have had to receive appropriate medical treatment and be
maintained in isolation to avoid any infections due to the ablation
of the bone marrow for at least one month. Thus both crew members
would have become unable to operate further as active members of the
mission. According to current radiation exposure regulations an
astronaut should not exceed the dose of 25 rem in one year while on
the ISS. Thus the rest of the crew members would have been well
within the dose limits for this particular two-week mission while on
the surface of Mars. Note that this exercise does not take into
account radiation doses received while in transit between Mars and
Earth."

Elizabeth Wolfe reports our Geology and Astronomy activities:

"Geology did not go as planned, but was productive nonetheless. Our
main limitations were related to transportation, as we had only one
working ATV. Because of this, geology was restricted to Lowell
highway and was more or less randomly chosen. Objects of interest
include Devil's Toenails, petrified wood, evaporates, Tank Wash
cutting into the Salty River member, and the large pond west of
Lowell Highway. Although no "real" science was carried out, I still
had an immensely interesting time from a geological perspective
simply being in this area and the crew seemed satisfied with my basic
explanations and rock identifications as the extent of our geology."

"Astronomy was quite successful. Again not scientifically
groundbreaking, but interesting and amusing in its own right for the
crew. Due to weather, only two nights featured acceptable viewing.
During the first opportunity, a few days into the mission, most
objects were washed out due to the full moon. Despite this, Saturn
and the Orion Nebula were quite amazing and the crew agreed. The
second opportunity was late into the mission, but was spectacular!
Three to four hours were spent in the calm, clear, moonless night.
Countless objects were observed (TOUR is indispensable). Clusters
tended to be the most popular, followed by double stars and
then "fuzzy blobs" (galaxies and nebulae). Saturn was again viewed
and lost none of its former glory. Alex and I were also lucky enough
to catch Jupiter and Pluto as they rose tonight, and the show was
grand."

Pieter Jan Van Asbroeck, HSO and Crew Biologist, reports on GreenHab
activities: "Maintenance of the GreenHab was focused on keeping the
plants alive. Temperatures inside the GreenHab varied from 61 degrees
Fahrenheit to 118 degrees, with the fan and heaters running as
necessary. The plants in the beginning required water at least once
or twice a day, but closer to the end of the rotation it seemed that
we overwatered them. Dried out leaves were pruned every couple of
days and the plants were rotated about once a week. The plants closer
to the wall of the GreenHab were driest. Crops were harvested on
several days to supplement crew meals."

ENGINEERING: Crew 61 experienced a number of unexpected situations
with power, water, and GreenHab systems. Each was handled in turn,
often with the aid of the Engineering Support Team, although in one
notable case the crew performed their own water re-supply (local
support was temporarily unavailable due to an illness in the
family).

Marcus Medley, Crew Engineer, reports:
"As the crew engineer I quickly came to realize that the smooth
operation of most, if not all, of the HAB's systems falls directly on
my shoulders. Although much of what I was supposed to do was maintain
these systems, most of them were in some form of crippling condition.
In order to ease the workload for myself, I attempted to fix the
problems that directly affected me as the engineer. One of these was
the pump that would normally transfer gray water into the greenHAB. I
fixed the motor, which had melted brushes, and installed it. This
worked for all of 2 days, then it started giving me trouble. I was
troubleshooting it off and on during the entire mission. Although a
new generator was received, this rotation was plagued with power
issues. The main issue was that the Xantrex inverter would often
reject the power that the generator was sending.

"I was in charge of helping out on other projects, too, such as
mobilizing the NDX-1 suit test. That went well, and I was able to get
the compressor and generator to work properly while secured to a
trailer pulled by the ATV. Also during the rotation I fixed the ATV
with a thorough spark plug cleansing, oversaw a freshwater resupply
for the HAB, and helped design a stretcher that would allow a person
wearing a surface suit to be carried on their back rather than on
their face or side. I also developed a method of securing the
backpack such that it would aid in supporting the injured person
rather than pulling down on the shoulders and mid-section of the
individual. And I designed and developed a device that would allow a
person to be transported on an ATV with this modified stretcher.
These were all original ideas and we plan to apply for patents.

"With all the power issues and the very early NDX-1 suit test, I
didn't have much time for HAB upgrades. And the upgrades that I did
manage to attempt, regretfully ended in failure. Overall though, I
did manage to keep the HAB in working order for me and the rest of
the crew to enjoy."

IN CONCLUSION:

Crew 61 is grateful to the NASA Spaceward Bound Program for
sponsoring our mission, to the Mars Society for building and
maintaining this wonderful station, and the cadre of people in
Mission Support, the Remote Science Team, the Engineering Team, and
especially Local Support, who all are equally a part of the Spaceward
Bound V mission.

We're Safe, Had Fun, Got It Done --- CREW 61!!!

Chip Shepherd
Commander, Crew 61
Over and Out

For further information about the Mars Society, visit our website at
www.marssociety.org.