Postcards from Mars

Greetings CAPCOM,

“I’d like to share the important take-away from my daily mission report as the opening of today’s communications.

“For the past 5 days, I have watched four people who met a week ago in person live together in close quarters in a Habitat that at times has felt scary, inaccessible, and exhausting. But we have also seen the great in this place: found work arounds, engineered things, problem solved, got creative, reflected on our life on the Moon, and made some damn good bread.

“On the eve of our final day in space, I am proud of my crew for how much we have adapted and all that we have learned. I am proud of them for believing in our mission, even if at times that felt daunting and frustrating. I’m proud of Sheri for playing and recording instruments in the lung. I am proud of Bailey for sharing her Rubik’s Cube wizardry. I am proud of Eiman for making sure we’re all in good health after taxing EVAs. I am proud of Sheri for making the Hab more inclusive for blind astronauts of the future. I am proud of Bailey for showing us her passion about ECLSS engineering. I am proud of Eiman for willing to great creative with recipes and food (and for bringing the weird robotic seal, I guess). I am proud to be their commander and I am glad they are my new analog family.

“The adaptability and perseverance of Inclusion-1 gives me hope for the success of future crews at the SAM Habitat.” –Cassandra Klos

Please find the following attached reports:

• Inclusion 1 Mission Schedule (please review today and tomorrow)
• Commanders Daily Report
• Medical Officer Daily Report
• Accessibility Officer Daily Report
• Engineer Officer Daily Report

The Engineering spreadsheets and photos will be sent late, as we are working hard to get everything done before egress tomorrow.

Thank you,
Cassie, CO

> On May 1, 2023, at 5:00 PM, Eric Shear wrote:
>
> Hi, crew. The comm window is open and we are ready to receive your reports.
>
> In Tucson, it’s 86 degrees F (30 deg C) with 12% humidity and 14-mph (23-kph) winds. The moon is at 82% illumination. It looks like we’ll have a full moon during the Analog Astronaut conference.
>
> Today’s science news is a bizarre exoplanet that “breaks” all the rules of orbital mechanics. It’s just a sensational headline, as anyone who understands orbital mechanics would know. As written by Brian Koberlein in Universe Today, the exoplanet WASP-131b is a gas giant with a density lower than that of Saturn, and orbits its star at an inclination of 160 degrees. One theory about how this planet got into this odd orbit is the Kozai Effect, which describes dynamical interactions between the planet and its star that might have shifted its orbit over time. This is similar to how Pluto is thought to end up in its inclined orbit, but that doesn’t seem like a good explanation for bigger planets.
>
> Eric Shear
> —
> ME, Chemical Engineering, University of Florida
> M.Sc, Earth and Space Science, York University
> HB.Sc, Physics and Astronomy, York University

Dr. Jensen has completed a sample return EVA while wearing a fully pressurized space suit. As a woman who is blind, she relies heavily on audio cues to navigate the world. But when in the pressure suit, the sound of the air moving from the umbilical into her helmet drowns all but the radio communications, making it nearly impossible to hear the crunch of the basalt beneath her boots, or the tap of her cane against the rocks. She must rely entirely on tactile feedback, and did so expertly.

Sheri has concluded what just might be a world-first. The smile on her face says it all.

Crew Inclusion I has completed their first two days in the Space Analog for the Moon and Mars (SAM) at Biosphere 2. These early hours bring the realization that this is their new home for nearly a week, and that there is much to learn beyond the training provided by the SAM staff. They must find a balance between dedication to their research objectives, maintenance of the complex SAM pressure vessel, and preparation of food, water recycling, care for the hydroponic lettuce and soil-bed herbs, time with crew and time alone too.

All photographs (top and below) are for SAM promotion only, credit Cassandra Klos (@cassandraklos).

Crew Inclusion I engaged in a 13 hours training session at SAM, learning from Director of Research Kai Staats, and the SAM design and construction staff Luna Powell, Sean Gellenbeck, Matthias Beach, Atila Meszaros, Trent Tresch, and Tasha Coelho.

This intense process took the team through the exterior and interior of the complex SAM pressure vessel, with elements of design, physics, chemistry, and safety for each component. As this was the first time the SAM team had trained an external crew, the process required patience and good communication on both sides. Given that Inclusion I includes a blind crew member, it was a steep learning curve for how SAM can improve some its form and function to be more readily accessible for a greater diversity of bodies and abilities.

In the end, it was clear that the training process should instead be one and a half or two full days to dive into the depth and breadth of the multi-faceted machine that is SAM.