The crew began the day with Mission Specialists Malnack and Turner heading out for an EVA. They did a perimeter check and then scoured the area for any geological significance. They found two rocks that the crew named Rock Balboa and Jessica. They then completed some mobility trials to determine suit capabilities.
Malnack’s MRE study continues, and unfortunately, cycling through the same few meals is getting tiring. In a new development for the wear-and-tear study, some small repairs are being made to the ILMAH hab by the Martian AI Avatars available to do repairs, and once those are complete Malnack plans to survey the repairs with a drone. During the EVA today Malnack took readings of power consumption for the habitat as this is an incredibly important factor in viability.
Mission Specialist Turner is feeling bittersweet as the mission winds down. She has enjoyed her GreenHab research and has so much more that she would like to test with the soil. The English Lavender seeds have made their debut and are doing well. Still no growth from the Mars regolith, but she has ideas for testing this in the future.
For the communications research project, the crew was prompted to run through an off-nominal situation while communicating with MCC. The scenario went smoothly, and the crew identified some good lessons learned for the future. The 20-minute delay showed how important organization and autonomy are when needing to act quickly.
The human factors studies are going well, and the crew is pleased to say that their day of rest provided them all with a very good night’s sleep. They woke up refreshed and ready to take on the last part of the mission.
Stay tuned for MD10!
ARG-4i Crew:
Crew Commander - Dennis Miller
Mission Specialist - Olivia Turner
Mission Specialist - Beau Malnack