Final Mission Report
05/17/2013
Georgia Tech Crew 130
Apr 4 – May 18, 2013
Commander’s Summary
On May 4, 2013 Crew 130 arrived at the Mars Desert Research Station. The following document outlines our research and educational outreach during our two week stay. I could not have wished for a better crew to spend the past two weeks with. Our crew consisted of four undergraduate and two graduate Georgia Tech engineering students. Each crew member had different skills and expertise to contribute to the crew. We had one nuclear, three aerospace and two mechanical engineers. Crew 130 had two eagle scouts, one amateur astronomer, one wilderness first aid and CPR certified crew member, one songwriter, three bakers and two crew cheerleaders who always maintained a positive attitude no matter the situation or challenge the crew faced. Crew 130 marks Georgia Tech’s 9th rotation at the MDRS.
Research Summaries:
HAM Radio Communication Study (Engineer)
Crew 130 used amateur radio communications, independent of the walkie-talkies already at the Hab, for communications while on EVA, using the 70 cm band. For nearby pedestrian EVAs, the range of this kind of communication was sufficient. For longer EVAs, a mobile repeater was initially attempted, mounted on an ATV, boosting the handheld signal strength. Terrain obstacles proved to be too much for even the increased power to overcome. Therefore, a 70 cm/2 m cross-band repeater was placed on the ridge near the Hab, providing long-distance line of sight communications. The repeater was battery powered with a solar charging system installed later. RF pathing range analysis was performed with Radio Mobile and tested with an EVA. Automatic Position Reporting System (APRS) was tested for tracking of EVA crew members. This functioned well for pedestrian EVAs; however, due to the limitations of the repeater the APRS signals were unable to be relayed to the Hab on long EVAs.
Aerial Terrain Scouting (Commander)
Much of the surface exploration can be assisted via topographic data from spacecraft orbiting Mars. However, the detail level of this data can be expanded further by aerial vehicles controlled by the crew members at the base. Since Mars has an atmosphere, vehicles similar to our present day UAVs can be deployed to map the terrain and make more efficient use of the
crew's time by directing them to areas of the most biological and geological interest. Originally, Crew 130 had planned to deploy UAVs mounted with video cameras in the areas surrounding the hab. Unfortunately, due to funding cuts the crew had to improvise. A small camera mounted inside of a foam ball was attached to a kite. The Crew was able to successfully take several high quality photos of the terrain surround the hab. These photos were then used to help the crew to evaluate and plan for our Geology sample collection EVAs.
Wind Power Verification (HSO)
A small scale wind turbine was erected at the MDRS hab to test the validity of using wind power as a viable means of power generation on Mars. The physical construction of various turbine components was performed within the Hab so that we would not have to work in the suits and gloves. This would also allow a relatively large structure to be taken out of the Hab through the air lock in pieces and assembled on site. The turbine was stabilized using a series of 8 guylines anchored to the ground using pieces of rebar/wrought iron approximately 2 feet long hammered into the ground. Despite strong wind gust during the mission (estimated at 20-30 + mph), the wind turbine was extremely stable, showing absolutely no signs of structural instability that would require lowering of the turbine. A completely dead 12 volt lawn and garden battery, measured at less than 6.5 volts upon connecting it to the wind turbine, was fully charged in less than two days. A charge controller initially installed on the power generation system was removed from the turbine for use in another experiment. Another battery was connected (12 volt battery reading about 7 volts) and upon inspection after 3 days of operation in high winds (greater than 20 mph), the battery was fully charged. However, the wiring on the turbine had melted entirely to complete failure. It is believed the voltage and current outputs of the wind turbine during the sustained high winds was too great for the 16 gauge wire that was used for the various connectors in the system. The charge controller would not have prevented the failure. Disassembly of the wind turbine was simple and quick as well, with no issues.
Weather Balloon Drop Test (XO)
Crew 130 planned to deploy an autonomous rover from a weather balloon to test deployment methods for similar robotic scouts. Due to an unexpected critical balloon failure Crew 130 was unable to loft the robot for testing and data collection. The test was designed to investigate parachute deployment, landing conditions, drift after release, and GPS tracking. The robot was going to be tested with two different style parachutes to test their effects on the drift during descent. The robot and drop release mechanism (in total about 1.5 kg) was going to be lofted with a 15 foot diameter weather balloon. The weather balloon was going to be moored to the ground with two to three tethers. The crew also planned to take video and images of the ascent and deployment of the rover and balloon as well as recording wind direction and speed. For future balloon deployed craft studies the crew plans to use a control net over the top of the balloon to keep it from striking the ground as well as a larger surface mat during inflation. It is believed that these precautions will keep future balloon failures from occurring. Future crews will also have a plan in case of balloon failure. This will include at least two pre-selected and approved backup drop locations where the test could be performed.
Astronomical Observations (Scientist)
The Musk Observatory was used to make astronomical observations. Crew 130 was able to observe Saturn, Jupiter and four of its moons, the Ghost of Jupiter, the Black Eye Galaxy, the Whirlpool Galaxy, the Cigar Galaxy, the Eagle Nebula, the Ring Nebula, and comet C/2011 L4 PANSTARRS.
Identification Of Local Rocks And Minerals (Scientist)
Rock and mineral samples were collected at various locations selected from our terrain scouting missions. Characteristics of the samples were then recorded in order to try to identify the type of rocks or minerals collected. This information gives us a better understanding of the geology of the area surrounding the Hab. Identification of these resources could potentially aid future crews with in situ resource utilization studies.
Water Usage Study (Scientist)
Water conservation is extremely important for a manned mission to Mars. We conducted a water usage study to determine what activities required the most water and how water usage could be reduced. The largest source of water usage was for flushing solid waste and was almost half the total water used even with minimal usage since the toilet uses about 2 gallons per flush. The second largest consumption of water was due to showers and washing up on days when we took showers but we conserved water by only using the shower about once per week. The third largest source of water usage or second largest source on days without showers was drinking water for the crew. The fourth largest source of water usage was cleaning dishes. The other sources of water usage were all less significant.
Educational Outreach
Bob Jones High School (Engineer)
Educational outreach was performed with two Advanced Engineering Design classes under the instruction of Jeremy Raper at Bob Jones High School in Madison, Alabama. The students used CAD skills developed in the class to design six possible wind turbine rotors. These designs were 3D printed and tested on an EVA. The turbines were attached to a small DC motor and a voltmeter, then taken out during a relatively windy time. The voltage generated by the spinning turbine was recorded, attempting to control for wind speed. These results were then relayed to the students for analysis.
Harris County Carver Middle School (Journalist)
Crew 130 had a great opportunity to share our experiences at MDRS with Harris County Carver Middle School. We sent a narrated PowerPoint to Mrs. Sill’s 6th grade classes, and we had a 30 minute question and answer session via Skype text message. The students had great questions and were very excited about space!
NASA INSPIRE Online Learning Community (Journalist)
Crew 130 also had their annual live chat with NASA INSPIRE. INSPIRE is an online learning community that unites high school students who love space exploration. The INSPIRE students sent us ideas for experiments in April, and we chose the top three to do at MDRS. During our live chat we had the opportunity to share a PowerPoint on our experiences here on Mars and update the students on the results of their experiments.