HSO report and project suggestion

Today was our first day of sim. Since we still have not received
science protocols for the biochemistry project up to today I had time
to be HSO / hab control full time.

1) Today I collected next of kin and emergency contact information for
all crewmembers. I was wondering why this was not done centrally before
the mission started – there should be a way to contact families if accidents or
emergencies occurred. I also collected insurance information for the
crewmembers and the same comment applies.

2) I tested the fire and CO alarms in the hab. Below is the result of
these test:

Engineering section

CO detector labeled: “discard / replace 22/1/2003” – passed
Fire / Smoke detector: : “discard / replace 10/2009” – failed

Stairs between lab and crew sections

Fire/Smoke detector - passed

Roof-hatch section

CO detector labeled: “discard / replace 02/2003” – passed
Smoke detector labeled: “discard / replace 10/2009” – passed

Escape ladder for crew section window was found under the table and
returned to the spot marked for this purpose.

3) On the subject of smoke / fire

There are a number of ex USSR surplus gasmasks scattered around the hab
– with a number of them in the “attic”. Can I enquire about the status
of these with regard to their functionality as escape aids. Are these functional
and should crew be advised to use them in case of emergency?

Furthermore, thinking about possible fire scenarios, it occurred to me
that in the event of a rushed evacuation, the crew may be stranded
(possibly in their sleepwear) outside the hab without key for the
escape vehicle and without means of accessing the emergency response
system. I was thinking of placing an emergency pack (mobile phone,
first aid kit and water) in the “escape vehicle” and to place the key
outside the hab (e.g. in the box of one of the ATVs) to provide crew
with means of escaping and obtaining help.

4) Medical problems / events

a) Injuries

One crew member suffered a slight abrasion on his/her hand which was
treated with iodine (povidone) and band aid.

b) Illness

One crewmember suffered from a slight sore throat following yesterdays
heater failure. We are now running the downstairs heater continuously
to compensate for the faulty upstairs system. The crew member has been
advised to drink plenty of fluid and to consider increased zinc intake
(via supplements available in the HSO cabinet).

c) Hydration

Following todays EVAs (2.5hr and 45min) the fluid intake has markedly
increased. Up to 1930h we have had 18.5L of rehydrating fluids compared
to 11 yesterday. All crew members have been very diligent in refilling
“on tap” drinks and hydration seems to have been accepted as an
important consideration for overall well being.

For long EVAs I will make use of personal hydration system mandatory as
todays long EVA turned out to be rather strenuous for the crewmembers
involved.

d) GreenHab

Today I assisted the chief engineer with the GreenHab operations and
noticed, following current SOPs and setup, the raw grey-water has to be
pumped through the crop section of the GreenHab. The pump/hose system
used for this purpose is also stored in the crop section. I feel that
this poses an unnecessary risk of contamination of food with
unprocessed grey water. A possible solution would be to run the
greywater line and pump power supply outside the GreenHab instead of
through its interior. However, this would necessitate some
modifications and I am not sure if we have time to make them. But this
could maybe added to the wish list for future crews.


4) Radiation / Emergency sim ideas

Because of the uncertain status of the RSL / Biochem project as far as
crew 70 is concerned, I have been considering alternative - possibly HS
related - projects.

Talking to the crew Radio-Astronomers and looking at a radio telescope
spike originating from a solar flare, the chief astronomer and I came
up with the idea of having a radiation sim coupled to real solar data.

It might be interesting to convert the radio-telescope data about solar
activity into a time-delayed surface radiation dose for EVA purposes.
We could assume that a strong solar flare could affect crew radiation
doses when unprotected but that ATVs provide some and the hab total
protection from this effect.

Our chief engineer has some relevant programming skills and may be able
to extract the raw data from the radiotelecope into an Excel-friendly
format which I could then convert into a radiation dose (depending on
crew location (EVA, ATV or HAB) ) at the time when the radiation of the
flare would have hit the surface.

Since there is a time delay between the warning from the radiotelescope
and the radiation spike, this would force us to abandon, delay and
modify (seek shelter in the ATVs, return to hab, etc.) ongoing EVAs. If
a crewmember were to fail in this, the “model” would potentially result
in a radiation dose sufficient to “ground” them for a given amount of
time.

Additionally, I thought it would be interesting to do a EVA first aid /
evacuation scenario (potentially related to the radiation sim).

I would be very grateful for any feedback / suggestions on this.