"Whatever you vividly imagine, ardently desire, sincerely believe,
and enthusiastically act upon ... must inevitably come to pass!"
Meyer:

The driving force behind human exploration is the quest for knowledge. Studying the interactions of Crew Members within a restrictive environment is crucial in order to fully comprehend the dynamics of a martian mission and/or space settlement.

Today we came to the realization that our mission is coming to an end in just a few short days. Some of the Crew Members are very grateful for that due to the fact that they are tired. Tired of the long martian days catching up to them. Tired of the technical difficulties of the generator and GreenHab. But then there are those who wish they can stay longer in order to finish what they have started, conduct at least one productive EVA and continue research in geology, biology, engineering, and human Factors. Personally, I am getting my second wind. I really do not want to leave for there is so much to do here at the Mars Desert Research Station. There is a wealth of information that surrounds the Hab. I long for my next mission and yet this one has not ended as of yet!

Our Executive Officer conducted a morning EVA in which the Dutch media went along in order to get some PR shots with our international Crew Members. Some of the Crew Members took naps at midday due to a restless night of tossing and turning. Our Chief Engineer spent most of the day with her daughter going over her homework with her. Our Educator briefly went over the F.L.A.M.E. students homework and projects but all the children are showing signs of being tired due to the Wake and Sleep Cycle. Today the student's showed more enthusiasm when we went on our EVAs for the Dutch media. I could not help to notice that they wanted to get back to the Hab but only to go back on the internet to play their music videos and play their GameBoys. How will they feel when the day comes where we all have to say good bye?

We had a farewell dinner with the Dutch media this evening and then went straight to writing our reports. We have noticed that we have not met our deadline for turning in our reports to Mission Support. As I sit here to write this report we currently have no water, electrical or generator issues to report. All things considered, today was a very good day.

Will the F.L.A.M.E. students keep with them the experiences they have shared these two weeks where ever they go? Will they share their experiences with their children when the day falls upon them...sitting in front of their television sets with their children watching the first humans land on the desolate martian surface? We certainly hope so.

We have high hopes for future missions that of F.L.A.M.E. to educate and inspire a diverse world of explorers to the Moon, Mars and Beyond. We hope to develop human factors studies utilizing the Mars Desert Research Station as well as other analogue environments around the world. By doing so we demonstrate the capability and productivity of Crew Members and that of a family environment.

Veronica Ann Zabala-Aliberto
Commander, MDRS Crew 59