MDRS Crew 122 (HI-SEAS)
Science Report #4
01/16/13
Sleep-Light Study
By: Kate Greene
Most of the crew has worn the sleep-monitoring headbands and used the
bedside monitor for a number of days. They have had a chance to set up
the data-collecting bedside unit, set the time on their clocks,
explore the menu options, and wear the headband for at least a night.
Crew reported various impressions including: bright screen on the
bedside unit, headband slipped out of place in the morning,
discovering the headband on the floor in the morning, a software
glitch in the monitoring of one night’s sleep for one crew member.
Some crew members have expressed enthusiasm at being able to see the
provided visualization of their sleep quality (time in REM, light, and
deep sleep). This visualization could be a potential motivator to keep
the crew compliant to sleep-data collection during HI-SEAS.
The screen brightness can be adjusted by controls on the unit,
although the menus to do so are somewhat buried in the interface. One
crew member completely covered the screen to keep his crew quarters
dark. This has the added benefit of hiding the sleep graph which
indicates the levels of sleep attained through the night, sometimes a
distraction to a restless sleeper. So there is some question of
whether it’s best to cover the screen or leave it uncovered.
Conversations with crew have helped to refine possible protocols
during HI-SEAS. They may include blocking the bedside monitor display
for some crew members during part of the study and leaving it
unobscured for other members during part of the study. This could be a
good test for motivations to continue to actively collect sleep data.
In addition to sleep monitoring, I introduced two crew members to the
cognitive assessment test by providing the background, motivation, and
an example test.
My plans for the remainder of the week are to sort out issues with the
cognitive test software, to continue to get feedback from the crew on
wearing the sleep monitoring headbands, and to explore potential
software for sleep data analysis.
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Astronomy
By: Simon Engler
Sian and I got out first use of the telescope. We had some trouble
with the two star alignment. We later realized that this was because
the finder scope is not centered correctly. We will correct that at
the beginning of our next session. The sky was amazing, and we
manually guided the scope to the Orion Nebulae and Jupiter. The rest
of the crew came out to look at Jupiter, and it turned out to be a
good night for all of us. Next time, I am confident we will be able
to get the calibration done, and then we can take some good pictures.
If the night is clear on Saturday, we will take spectroscopic
observations of a binary star through the entire evening.
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Astronaut-Robotic Interactions
By: Simon Engler
Upon exiting the airlock at 13:54, I began using the Clearpath Husky
robotic platform in the area immediately in front of the habitat.
While operating the robot with a wireless hand controller, I
field-tested the robot acting as a sample collector, where the robot
would accompany the EVA member from one location to the next, for the
purpose of taking on new materials. In using the robotic platform in
this manner, I came to two conclusions. The first operation of a robot
through a controller was cumbersome, the robotic platform should be
there to help the astronaut collect samples and move around, not the
other way around. The robot should be outfitted with a touch terminal
interface that can be strapped to the operators arm, or, the robot
should be able to follow general commands by voice. Additionally, the
robot should be able to navigate an area and follow the astronaut
around without the operator having to worry about him. Both these
specification can be achieved with today's technology and should be
implemented for the HI-SEAS mission.
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Green Hab Activities
By: Angelo Vermeulen
Covering chard with a plastic bag cover seemed to have a clearly
positive effect on plant growth. All individual plants have clearly
grown in the past two days and were in excellent condition. The cover
kept humidity high (indicated by moist present on the inside of the
cover), and most probably also protects the plants from low night
temperatures. The herbs (dill, thyme, parsley and mint) were also
covered but here it is difficult to assess whether this has any effect
at all. The plants are in a poor condition with dead leaves and broken
stems. However they’re still partially alive and might recover. Kale,
collards and strawberries are all in excellent condition. The
(partially) submerged watercress cuttings clearly showed rooting. This
was somewhat unexpected since the leaves were all dry and crumbled.
Tomorrow, I’ll be setting up an aquaponics system to continue growth
of these cuttings. A seedling heat mat has been tested and will be
used from tomorrow onwards to boost sprouting. Regular maintenance was
done, and all plants except the 4 trees were given water.