Mission Overview:
Melissa Battler

The Crew 58 rotation served as the training mission for the FMARS 2007 long duration expedition. The seven core crew members, as well as our crew alternate and engineering advanced team came together at MDRS to meet each other (in some cases for the first time), to get to know each other, and to learn some very specific skills, which we will need before we embark on our 4-month Mars Analogue expedition to the Flashline Mars Arctic Research Station. Living and working in isolation in the Canadian High Arctic for an extended period of time would be a formidable challenge for anyone. Factoring in a few of our Mars simulation constraints, our task becomes even more daunting: much like at MDRS, we will live in the small, enclosed habitation module; trips outside will require spacesuit simulators; communication with the outside world will be extremely limited. But, this time, the environment will be extremely unforgiving, and in the case of emergency help will be hours to days away. To ensure not only mission success, but survival of the crew, it is extremely important that we acknowledge all challenges and begin to prepare for them in advance. After spending two weeks training together, bonding as a team, and learning to trust each other, we feel confident that we will achieve mission success in the Arctic, and we are eager to embark on what is sure to be an incredible, life-altering adventure.

Crew Dynamics:
Kim Binsted

This rotation was as much about crew bonding as it was about planning and training. Despite (or perhaps because of) our extremely tight schedule, we have developed both efficient working relationships and firm friendships.

One thing we quickly realized is that four months at this pace just isn't going to work. We're feeling burnt out after two weeks! At FMARS, we will have to pace ourselves, stepping away from our computers at a reasonable hour (i.e. not 3am!) to watch a movie, play a card game, or just relax. We will also need to get a lot more exercise. Although Mel gamely scheduled yoga for every morning, it was overrun by other events (or much needed sleep) about two thirds of the time.

We're excited about the potential for more active forms of mental relaxation. In particular, each crewmember is going to be ready to lead everyone else in learning one non-work-related subject. For example, Simon is going to help us improve our French, and Kim will try to remember how to do Tai Chi.

To get our creative juices going, Bob McNally has generously agreed to donate a set of strumsticks. As Bob wrote:

The Endurance expedition had in its crew Leonard Hussey, a scientist who also played (initially not well) the banjo. Shackleton himself said, as they abandoned a camp amid breaking ice, and were deciding what to bring and what to leave, "We must have that banjo if we lose all our food, its vital mental medicine."

The crew is particularly stoked about the prospect of learning to strum the theme song for Firefly!

Human Factors Summary:
Ryan Kobrick

During the four-month FMARS duration, planned human factors studies include analyzing distance communication technologies, physical training, group dynamics and perception of situational factors, station environment habitability, and a sleep study. In addition the operational monitoring and analysis of space, time, and schedule as part of the mission will be analyzed. The analysis from monitoring the four primary studies will provide useful design information for mission architecture planning, as it gives both the crew and the remote scientists a personal perspective in a relevant analogue environment. By treating the allotted time for human factors research as an operational task, a comparison can be made to the actual time spent on the studies during the mission. In addition, comparing a planned schedule of events for human factors testing to a more flexible science field orientated agenda can provide insight to a crew's work preference and compare it to the demands of working with remote science teams. During the MDRS rotation, the human factors studies were scheduled and PI Marc O Griofa visited the crew to explain the importance and method of his sleep study, CASPER.

FMARS Safety Training:
Matt Bamsey

The crew is well on their way to ensuring safety during our four month stay on Devon. Several months ago we began compiling a list of critical safety items that we wish to have sufficiently dealt with before the expedition. This list includes such things as protocol for polar bear encounters, medical emergencies, ATV safety, gas and fire danger and so on. Our two week stay at MDRS provided us with considerable time for both training and testing out a number of these items. Specifically, much discussion and training went into polar bear safety including deterrent use, encounter protocol and proper field site operations in bear country.

Biology Summary:
Kathy Bywaters

Several studies will be conducted to evaluate the winter to spring transition in the arctic permafrost on Devon Island. The physical and chemical parameters of the permafrost will be examined as this transition occurs. The biological parameters will also be monitored. The physical and chemical conditions create microclimates in the upper zones of the permafrost, which affect biological activity. During the four-month stay core samples will be taken at different intervals over the winter to spring transition. The core samples will then be analyzed, at approximately 2 cm intervals, to investigate the biological parameters. This will be used to determine the biological zones of activity. It is hypothesized that as the physical and chemical conditions change during the transition period that there will be a migration of biological activity through vertical zones within the upper layers of the permafrost. We will also be looking at the snowpack bioload to see if there is any relevant change.

In addition, a survey of the paleolimnology of Trinity Lake will be conducted to characterize the past conditions of lake.

Geology Summary:
Simon Auclair

The geological investigation at FMARS 2007 will focus on four distinct projects chosen for their relevance to the Arctic environment as well as the Haughton meteoritic impact crater, with consideration given to the Mars base simulation context. More precisely, two of the studies will be focused on surface geological processes, one being the study of winter to spring transition in permafrost, the other being mapping of regolith landforms. The two other studies will be conducted in order to find out more about the aftermath of the meteoritic impact on the area. Here we will be looking at transient hydrothermal habitats and tracing the contribution of basement and carbonate lithologies in the impactites. Samples in the field will be gathered by prospecting on the surface and by drilling the upper first meters of material. The use of geo-positioning systems (GPS) and geographic information systems (GIS) will help to record, map and correlate the findings of the various projects to refine the current maps of the Haughton Crater by identifying regolith present and altered hydrothermal zones and impactites. Field work areas of interest will often be tightly linked to the biological surveys.

Water Utilization Study:
Matt Bamsey

The MDRS training session was used to trial a number of water monitoring sensors and associated software. The sensing system to be used at FMARS will allow for the monitoring of drinking water, food prep, dish wash, clothes wash and a number of other water use categories. As MDRS is the most operationally relevant test-bed to FMARS, deploying a basic component of the full sensing system proved quite useful and has provided the opportunity for a number of system improvements.

Engineering Summary:
James Harris

With all the training and planning meetings taking up most of the engineers' time this rotation, there was not much engineering to do. This is considered a good thing in general since there was not much engineering that had to be done to make the meetings and training proceed at MDRS. One notable exception was the installation of a new set of hab stairs which are a prototype for FMARS. In addition we accomplished testing of our engineering monitoring systems and measured the rate at which propane is consumed in the MDRS Hab. Both the datum and experience will contribute to our FMARS mission.