Brief Summary: There were Two (2) EVAs today
EVA-14: Deploy newly designed Radios
EVA-15: Muddy Creek water Identification and Sample Return

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EVA-14
Deploy newly designed radios

Duration: 10:12 - 12:05

Weather: Sunny turning to clouds and lightning; Wind: light breeze 5 - 14KPH; 17C to 19C

Maximum distance from Hab: 300m

Participants: Wil McCarthy, William Foltyn, and Pete Collins

Equipment: (You know the deal) Volt Meter, wire cutters, wire strippers, cordless drill, Hand made wire couplings, 2nd radio, Digital camera, protective remote radio cover

Route: Like a Tennessee Chain gang, we marched the route from the Hab to the 'Rock Pile' where the MDRS remote radio will someday be deployed, and work.

Objectives - Work Done: Objective was to reinstall the remote radio. This has been the two-week mission, to discover strange new problems, to seek out new wiring and new radio functions to boldly go were no signal has gone before. With toolboxes in hand and space suits on, the three of us headed up the rock pile again. With hand made wire connectors and several practice crimpings we were sure we could not fail. After cutting splicing and crimping the new dual radio assembly together -- it failed!! We are at the end of the line (get it?). Final assessment is that the electric line is too old and spliced too many times; there is degraded insulation that is causing too much resistance and interference. Need to replace the line. (SEE ALSO - XO Wil McCarthy's and Pete Collins' report).

Pete Collins - EVA14 (Team1): While Wil and Bill were fixing the radio I took the opportunity to scout around. The area in the vicinity of the radio is a sandy conglomerate with a lot of gravel scattered around. They're also a variety of plant species. About 40m from the remote radio is a fossil bed, composed entirely of snail type fossils. In that area, it was very difficult to find something that wasn't a fossil

Lessons Learned:

1. Wiring does not last forever
2. A splice in line is not worth the time
3. Space suit helmets and digital cameras on tripods don't mix.
4. Fossils turn up in the darnedest of places

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EVA-15
Muddy Creek water Identification and Sample Return

Duration: 10:44 - 12:38

Weather: Scattered clouds turning stormy and lighting; Wind: Breezy 12-23KPH; 19C-21C

Maximum distance from Hab: 2.7Km

Participants: Julie Wardlow and Alex Diaz

Equipment: ATV tools, Map, GPS, Survival gear, Digital Cameras, Sample return kit

Route: South on Lowell Highway, then northeast on a track marked 4WD, and then follow the path of a stream east to Muddy Creek.

Objectives - Work Done: The main objective of EVA15 was to locate Muddy Creek and take samples for later analysis. However, due to the bad weather front that was sweeping in, we had to return to the Hab before the river was reached. This is a mission that we would still like to complete, hopefully on Thursday or Friday. Water samples returned from Muddy Creek, east of Cactus Road (position: UTM12 0523600E, 4251200N) were to be compared with the water taken yesterday from Muddy Creek at Eden.

Lessons Learned:

1. The ATVs can be started using the 'pull cord' if necessary.
2. The GPS is very useful for locating trails.
3. Be aware of the changing weather conditions and be prepared to return to the Hab.