Commander Report
12/30/2012
Chelsea Iwig
Day 2 on Mars was another busy, but exciting day for crew 121. We got up bright an early this
morning and began making a delicious breakfast of pancakes and hash browns. While eating our
breakfast, we had a quick crew briefing to discuss the schedule for the day. After breakfast and
clean-up had been finished, Amy began preparing for her data collection. Three crew members were
randomly chosen to be in her experimental group. These three participants were then taken into the
GreenHab to work with some herb plants that we brought along with us. The remaining crew members
stayed inside the Hab and worked on cleaning and inventory of crew 120’s remaining food supplies.
Once all of this was complete, we were able to move on to Carolyn’s data collection. Since today was
a control day for her, the crew was not allowed to listen to any music and she recorded our blood
pressure and pulse rates. Gisela also collected data for her study today, which involved
interviewing each crew member on their perceptions of the habitat design. She will use her Human
Factors experience to assess the overall design for habitability.
Once most of the data collection was complete, it was time for lunch. Carlos and Noah made some
delicious home-made mozzarella and sesame seed bread. This was an adaptation of the cheddar and rye
bread recipe in the bread machine book. After lunch, Chelsea and Gisela continued to receive one
final habitat briefing with the crew 120 Commander before he leaves Hanksville tomorrow. He also
brought the food supplies for our two week mission which was a significant moral boost. We were
excited to see that we were given sparkling cider for New Year’s, a bag of chocolate candy, a few
small bags of chips, and some dried bananas.
Following the final briefing with crew 120’s Commander, we had one last crew orientation and tour
of the outside facilities. During this time, we were able to take some great pictures and really
enjoy the Martian scenery, which really motivated us for our EVA tomorrow. The hatches were then
closed and we officially began the simulation.
Currently, soup is cooking for dinner and brownies are baking for dessert, which is filling the
habitat with the smell of sweet chocolate. Once we have finished eating, Chelsea will conduct one
more data collection session to conclude the required activities for the day. We plan to relax by
watching one of the greatest movies of all time, Apollo 13, before turning in for the evening.
Overall, we have had a very eventful day and we are really looking forward to the events planned for
tomorrow.
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Commander's Check-In
12/30/2012
Chelsea Iwig
Crew Physical Health: Two crew members have a cold, but the rest of the crew is in good health.
Hab Maint: All systems nominal; however, at 7:30 this morning our engineer, Gisela, unfroze the
water heater pipes. She also filled the loft tank and static tank this morning.
Rep Sched: The Commander will be reporting on the status of the crew, what we have accomplished
today, and other interesting things that have taken place. We have also planned an EVA tomorrow
because we are eager to get out for some exploration and to conduct science outside the Hab. The
crew Engineer will also be submitting her daily report, and the Health and Safety Officer will report
on the current health of the crew. Lastly, Amy began her study utilizing the GreenHab today. Therefore,
she will be reporting the goals of her study and the status of her data collection.
Tomorrow Plan: Tomorrow is going to be a big day for Crew 121. Not only do we have our normal
data collection for four out of the seven crew members, but we will also be having our first EVA.
We are all very excited about this! The data collection scheduled for tomorrow includes administering
behavioral measures for Chelsea’s study, completing the sleep logs and questionnaires for Eric’s
study, listening to music and having blood pressure and pulse recorded following the music sessions
for Carolyn’s study, and playing group and individual games in the evening for Noah’s study. At the
end of the day, stress and mood questionnaires will be administered. We have planned our EVA for
four crew members in the afternoon. During this EVA, the four crew members will be exploring two
notable geologic features near the habitat and samples will be collected for analysis upon returning
to the Hab. Since tomorrow is New Year’s Eve, we have set up our own lighted ball to drop at
midnight. Also, since we received our food allotments for the duration of our stay today, we will have
sparkling cider and other goodies to enjoy during our New Year’s celebration. Overall, it will be an
eventful day on Mars tomorrow.
Inventory: Today we conducted an inventory of the extra food left over from the previous crew. This
inventory will be sent to Mission Support to help them know what food items to order for the next crew.
Support Req: Blade fuses are needed for the EVA suits because we are out of them. Also, the installation
disk for the printer is missing. We will go on the HP website to download the necessary software for now.
The trailer tank is low on water, so it will need to be refilled soon. The coffee pot is not currently working
and we believe that there might be some calcium buildup that needs to be cleaned out. Therefore, if we
could get some cleaner for the coffee pot, it would be appreciated. However, we are content with the
instant coffee for now.
Miscelleneous: Crew 121 had another great day on Mars today! We got a great deal accomplished and
are settling in to our temporary home well. We took a lot of pictures today and will be sending in a few favorites later tonight.