Vladimir Pletser - Mars Exploration

MARS EXPLORATION

Having a keen interest in the Mars Exploration programme, Pletser followed the automatic missions to Mars and the preparation of future manned Mars missions.

The Mars Society is a private international group advocating the human exploration of the planet Mars. The Mars Society deployed in 2000 a first Mars Habitat on Devon Island in the Canadian Arctic with the NASA Haughton Mars Project (HMP). A second Mars Habitat was deployed in 2001 in the Desert of Utah.

During simulation campaigns, international crews, mixed in gender and in professional qualifications, conduct various tasks as a Martian crew would do including scientific experiments in several fields: Geophysics, Geology, Biology, Psychology, ..., allowing to assess the operational and technical feasibility of sustaining a crew in an autonomous habitat, while conducting a field scientific research program. Operations are conducted as they would be during a Martian mission, including Extra-Vehicular Activities (EVA) with specially designed unpressurized suits.

1. Mars Mission Simulation in the Arctic: FMARS-2

In 2001, Pletser was selected among 250 applicants by The Mars Society, to participate in July 2001 in the first international simulation campaign at the Flashline Mars Arctic Research Station (FMARS) (see here, here on p. 121 and here; in French here, here and here). During this simulation, he held a diary.

He co-proposed with Prof. V. Dehant (Royal Observatory of Belgium) and Prof. P. Lognonné (University of Paris, France) an experiment to assess the feasibility of an active seismic method to detect subsurface water on Mars. During the week-long simulation as a member of the FMARS-2 Crew, he conducted in simulated EVA conditions the seismology experiment involving the deployment of a 100 m long geoflute to detect refracted signals from underground layers generated by mini-seismic events. He was also involved in seven experiments in geophysics, biology, psychology and human performance.

2. Mars Mission Simulation in the Desert: MDRS-5

The Mars Society has invited him to participate again in April 2002 in the second international simulation campaign of a Mars human mission in the Mars Desert Research Station (MDRS) in the desert of Utah, USA, as a member of MDRS-5 Crew (see here and here in French ). He also held a diary.

Pletser proposed with Dr C. Lasseur (ESA) an experiment to assess the psychological impact of growing food in the Martian Hab. The simulation was conducted in strict isolation for two weeks, during which he was involved in 12 experiments in biology, geology, navigation and reconnaissance, human factors and psychology. See all mission reports here.

3. Mars Mission Simulation in the Desert: MDRS-76

In 2008, the EuroGeoMars project was proposed by ESA to The Mars Society to assess several human and scientific aspects of future manned missions on extra-terrestrial planetary surfaces. Pletser was ESA’s Directorate of Human Space Flight representative in the EuroGeoMars Campaign of 2009, a five weeks simulation at MDRS, with two series of experiments, a first series of field science experiments to be conducted from an extra-terrestrial planetary surface in geology, biology, astronomy/astrophysics and the necessary technology and networks to support these field experiments, and a second series of human crew aspect experiments covering crew time organization in a planetary habitat, an evaluation of the habitat different functions and interfaces, and an evaluation of man-machine interfaces of science and technical equipment.

He served as Commander of the MDRS-76 Crew in February 2009 and supervised and participated in 15 experiments in biology, geology, navigation and reconnaissance, human factors and psychology and was responsible for the human crew aspect experiments.

4. Experimenting at Martian g level

During ESA parabolic flight campaigns, he participated in 1997 and 2002 as subject for a biophysics experiment of walking and running at Martian g level of Prof. G. Cavagna (Univ. Milan, Italy) and Prof. P. Willems (Univ. Louvain, UCL, Belgium) on the Airbus A300 ZERO-G. He further supervised the deployment test in 0g of the Mars Archimedes balloon drag chute in 2005.

During the two Joint European Partial-g Parabolic Flight campaigns in 2011 and 2012, he supervised a test of technologies for ExoMars and he participated in three neurophysiology experiments in Martian gravity, the first on dexterous manipulation of Profs. P.Lefevre and J.L. Thonnard (Catholic University of Louvain UCL, Belgium), the second on the control of upper arm movements of Dr J. Mc Intyre (University of Paris, France) and the third on the influence of gravity on the size-mass illusion of Prof. G. Clement (International Space University, Starsbourg, France).

5. Mars Mission Simulation: MARS 500

In 2004, he was invited by the Director of the Russian Institute of Bio-Medial Problems (IBMP) to apply for the Mars500 programme, a joint ESA-IBMP programme aiming at studying the physico-psychological aspects of isolation of an international crew of six for 520 days in four modules installed in the IBMP facilities in Moscow. His application however was not retained.

6. Expert positions

In 2009, he was appointed by the ESA Human Space Flight Director as a member of the selection interview board of European candidates for the Mars500 programme, and in 2010 as a member of the final selection interview board at ESA’s European Astronaut Centre (EAC) for the two European crew members who would join the three Russian and the Chinese crew members.

In 2009, he was appointed as a member of the Human Space Flight Directorate Inter-Department Task Force on Extra-Terrestrial Planetary Analogue Study to define the needs and possibilities for ESA to participate in extra-terrestrial planetary analogue simulations.

He served also as technical expert and subject for several studies related to future manned extra-terrestrial planetary missions:

- the 'Long Term Habitability and Ergonomic Study: Design of Habitat for a 1000 day Human Mission to Mars - Questionnaire to European Astronauts' (2004)

- the 'Mission Executive Crew Assistant' (MECA) (2004)

- the MECA walkthrough tests (2007)

- the 'Advanced Payload Laptop Application' (APLA) (2011)

- the DLR Greenhouse Module Questionnaire (2012)

7. Media Reports

- "Commentaires sur “Seul sur Mars”", (in French: "Comments on "The Martian""), Planete Mars, 31 October 2015.

- "Seul sur Mars : Matière Grise au cinéma avec un astronaute, Partie 1" (in French), Belgian Television RTBF, 26 October 2015.

- "Seul sur Mars : Matière Grise au cinéma avec un astronaute, Partie 2" (in French), Belgian Television RTBF, 28 October 2015.

- "Gesimuleerde Marsmissie van Belg ten einde" (in Flemish), Belgian daily newspapers Gazet van Antwerpen, Het Belang van Limburg, 13 August 2013.

- "Gesimuleerde Marsmissie van Belg afgelopen" (in Flemish), Belgian daily newspaper Knack, De Standaard, 13 August 2013.

- "Gesimuleerde Marsmissie van Belg bijna afgelopen" (in Flemish), Belgian daily newspaper Knack, De Standaard, 7 August 2013.

- "Belgen simuleren weer Mars-missie in woestijn van Utah" (in Flemish), Belgian daily newspapers Gazet van Antwerpen, Het Belang van Limburg, 10 December 2011.

- "Belgen simuleren Mars-missie in woestijn van Utah", (in Flemish),Belgian daily newspaper Knack, 10 December 2011.

- "Fête de la science: manifestations martiennes", (in French, "Celebration of Science: Martian events."), Planete Mars, 9 November 2009.

- "'NASA zendt zes Belgen naar Mars'" (in Flemish), Belgian daily newspaper De Standaard, 21 October 2009.

- "Lancement de la Mars Society Belgium" (in French), Planete Mars, 21 May 2009.

- "Fin de la mission MDRS 77" (in French, "End of the MDRS 77 mission"), Planete Mars, 7 March 2009.

- "MDRS équipage 77, (in French, "MDRS crew 77"), Planete Mars, 26 February 2009.

- "Deux missions européennes sur la base MDRS" (in French, "Two European missions on the MDRS base"), Planete Mars, 31 January 2009.

- "Un autre Belge, Vladimir Pletser et la recherche d'eau" (in French "Another Belgian, Vladimir Pletser and the search for water"), Belgian daily newspaper La Derniere Heure, 12 November 2008.

- "Twee Belgen bezoeken de rode planeet op aarde" (in Flemish), Belgian daily newspaper De Standaard, 17 January 2004.

- "Objectif Mars: Mars la rouge fascine et invite l'homme à s'y poser - En avant, Mars ! - Sur la Terre des martionautes «Symbole de progrès et d'humanisme»" (in French, "Objective Mars" Red Mars fascinates and invites man to land there - On to Mars! - On the Earth of the martionauts «Symbol of progress and humanism»"), Belgian daily newspaper Le Soir, 10 January 2004.

- "Sale temps pour l'équipage martien posé dans le Grand Nord canadien" (in French, "Bad weather for the Martian crew landed in the Canadian Far North"), Belgian daily newspaper Le Soir, 19 July 2001.

- "Espace: Un Belge sur Mars pendant dix jours - Le docteur Pletser séjourne dans un module martien... posé en Arctique - Un univers minéral" (in French, "Space: A Belgian on Mars for ten days - Dr. Pletser stays in a Mars module... landed in the Arctic - A mineral universe"), Belgian daily newspaper Le Soir, 12 July 2001.

- "Belg bereidt Marsmissie mee voor" (in Flemish), Belgian daily newspapers Gazet van Antwerpen, Het Belang van Limburg, 28 June 2001.

- "Belg zoekt mee naar water op Mars" (in Flemish), Belgian daily newspapers Gazet van Antwerpen, Het Belang van Limburg, 28 June 2001.

- "Espace2001: Mars Odyssey: l'aventure recommence - La conquête de la planète rouge redémarre - Dans deux ans, la Belgique sera aussi de la fête - Un Belge «sur Mars»" (in French, "Space2001: Mars Odyssey: the adventure begins again - The conquest of the red planet starts again - In two years, Belgium will also be part of the party - A Belgian «on Mars»"), Belgian daily newspaper Le Soir, 9 April 2001.