Report of Mission 38 in Habitat Marte
Days:
May 8th-12th, 2020.
Members of the mission:
Prof. Julio Rezende (Brazil)
Commander
Davi Souza (Brazil)
Executive chief
Eleftherios Karagiannis (Greece)
Vice-commander
E-mail: lef.karagiannis@gmail.com.
Nuria Ali (Kenya)
Chief-geologist.
E-mail: nuria.ali@spacegeneration.org.
German Sarmiento (Colombia)
Chief-engineer.
E-mail: germansarmientolopez@gmail.com.
Eva Blaisdell (United States)
Invited Researcher
E-mail: eva.blaisdell@californiaspacecenter.com
Marco Romero (Angola)
Invited Researcher
Eldridge de Melo (Angola)
Invited Researcher
General objective:
Evaluates sustainability issues in space habitats and test the methodology of virtual and missions with participants of different countries.
Presentation
The members of the mission 38 are Julio Rezende (Brazil), Davi Souza (Brazil), Eleftherios Karagiannis (Greece), Nuria Ali (Kenya) and German Sarmiento (Colombia). The mission presents the following invited researchers: Eva Blaisdell (United States), Marco Romero (Angola) and Eldridge de Melo (Angola).
On Saturday (May, 9th, 2020), was held a webinar with Marco Romero and Eldridge de Melo on Space Webinars - Business Space sector - Challenges and Opportunities with a great adhesion of participants from different parts of the world. On Sunday (May 10th, 2020) was held a live presentation, transmitted on Google Hangouts, about space education with participation of Eva Blaisdell, Susan Coupland, Marco Romero and Eldridge de Melo. Were very important the activities in Habitat Marte: Maintenance of grew bed aquaponic system and Deep Water Culture (DWC) Aquaponic System.
Activities developed during the mission:
- Improve the virtual and hybrid mission methodology;
- Broadcast of live about space business;
- Broadcast of live about space education;
- Broadcast of live from Habitat Marte;
- Maintenance of the grow beds aquaponic system in Habitat Marte.
- Maintenance of the Deep Water Culture – DWC aquaponic system in Habitat Marte.
MISSION TIMELINE
Day 1: May 8th, 2020 (Friday):
TIME (GMT)
|
Activity
|
0h-4h
|
- Preparation of methodology.
|
9h
|
- Sending the first messages to the team
|
11h-12h
|
- Preparation of methodology.
|
12h
|
- First contact with the crew.
- Beginning of the mission.
|
12h-13h10m
|
- video call with the whole team;
- Presentation of the Journey of fantasy;
- Mission reports;
- Next activities;
- Presentation of the basic guidelines for virtual missions;
- presentation of the offline task 1: space food system.
|
13h10m15h50m
|
Travel to Habitat Marte
City: Munich/Germany
Time: 17:05 Local time (15:05 GMT)
Temperature: 25°C
Humidity: 31%
Weather: Partially cloudy
Wind: West at 12 km/h
|
15h50m16h20m
|
City/ Location: Habitat Marte - Caiçara do Rio do Vento – Brazil:
Time: 16h:15 GMT Local time: 13:05 GMT.
Temperature: 35°C
Humidity: 40%
Weather: Partially cloudy
|
13h-16h
|
- Travel to Habitat Marte
|
16h-17h
|
- Lunch preparation
|
17h-18h
|
- Live from Habitat Marte. Some discussion about space food system.
|
18h-19h30m
|
- Preparation of the report and off-line activities. Interactions using Whatsapp group.
|
18h-19h30m
|
- Preparation of the report and off-line activities. Interactions using Whatsapp group.
|
19h30m-21h
|
- Install of more supply of oxygen in the Deep Water Aquaponic system
- Electrical inatalation maintenance of BioHabitat
|
21h-23h30m
|
- Cleaning and maintenance of the growbed aquaponic system
|
23h30m-0h
|
- Barbecue dinner in the lounge.
|
Day 2: May 9th, 2020 (Saturday)
TIME (GMT)
|
Activity
|
0h-1h
|
- Barbecue dinner in the lounge.
|
1h-5h
|
- Maintenance of BioHabitat Greenhouse.
|
5h-5h30m
|
- Report and preparation to sleep.
|
10h
|
- Wake up.
Location: Caiçara do Rio do Vento – Habitat Marte – Brazil.
Temperature: 27.
Humidity: 62%.
|
10h-12h
|
- Maintenance of grewbed aquaponic system;
|
12h-13h15m
|
- Webinar SPACE EDUCATION LIVE WEBINAR;
|
13h15m-15h25m
|
- Travel from Habitat Marte to Natal (Local time: 10h15m-12h25m).
|
15h25m-17h
|
- Lunch time;
- Preparation of the report and off-line activities. Interactions using Whatsapp group.
|
17h-18h
|
- Video call to evaluate the offline task 2: space food system
and Habitat Marte presents task 3: education.
|
18h-24h
|
- Preparation of the report.
|
Day 3: May, 10th 2020 (Sunday):
TIME (GMT)
|
Activity
|
0h-3h
|
- Preparation of report.
|
10h-12h
|
- Preparation of report.
|
11h40m
|
City: Natal/Brazil
Local Time: 8:40 AM Local time (11:40 GMT)
Temperature: 28C
Humidity: 79%
Weather: Sunny.
|
12h-13h15m
|
- Video call to evaluate the offline task 2: Space habitats management
Education. Habitat Marte presents task 4: sanitation.
|
13h15m-17h
|
- Preparation of the report. (Habitat Marte – Brazil).
|
17h-18h30m
|
- Live on Space Education with participation of Eva Blaisdell, Susan Coupland, Marco Romero and Eldridge de Melo.
- Video call to evaluate the offline task 4: sanitation.
|
18h30m-24h
|
- Report.
|
Day 4: May, 11th 2020 (Monday):
TIME (GMT)
|
Activity
|
0h-4h
|
- Preparation of report.
|
10h-12h
|
- Preparation of report
|
12h-13h
|
- Video call to discuss on energy and sanitation.
|
15h25m-16h20m
|
- Preparation of the report. (Habitat Marte – Brazil).
|
16h20m-17h
|
- Lunch time. (Julio Rezende– Brazil).
|
17h-18h30m
|
- Final guidelines for the end of the mission.
|
18h30m-24h
|
- Report
|
Day 5: May, 12th 2020 (Tuesday):
TIME (GMT)
|
Activity
|
0h-4h
|
- Preparation of report.
|
10h-18h
|
- Preparation of report
|
18h-19h
|
- Final meeting of the mission.
|
19h-24h
|
- Report.
- end of the mission.
|
Results and final considerations
From May 8th to May, 12th 2020, the 38th mission of the Habitat Mars research station took place. The members of the mission 38 are Julio Rezende (Brazil), Davi Souza (Brazil), Eleftherios Karagiannis (Greece), Nuria Ali (Kenya) and German Sarmiento (Colombia). The mission presents the following invited researchers: Eva Blaisdell (United States), Marco Romero (Angola) and Eldridge de Melo (Angola). The mission was developed during 120 hours.
Was the second mission with more foreigners than Brazilians. This was the fourth hybrid mission. Hybrid missions involve: 1) remote activities (remotely, developed in a virtual way) and 2) in person (involving in situ operations to support the operation of Habitat Marte).
In the first day of mission, during the first meeting was presented: 1) Introduction to the mission; 2) The participants; 3) Guidelines for virtual mission; 4) Space journey of fantasy; 5) Local Data Collection protocol; 6) Sharing the Initial Survey; 7) Presentation of the program and 8) Tasks to be developed in the next virtual meetings.
After the meeting, Julio and Davi travelled to Habitat Marte. Arriving in Habitat Marte happened a live showing the facilities of Habitat Marte and also de BioHabitat greenhouse. After the tour was developed an interesting discussion. Some questions were: how developed clay balls (observed in the aquaponic system grow bed) in Mars? How 3d printers would be a good resource to produce this important media to operate the grow bed aquaponic system? Also was considered produce bricks with Mars soil simulant from Cabugi Volcano, 1 hour driving (40 km) from Habitat Marte. Was mentioned that the UCF Planetary Simulant Database maintains up-to-date information on currently available and historic planetary simulants. If you would like a simulant added to the database, or can provide missing information, please email Kevin Cannon (cannon@ucf.edu). Note that we do not keep physical samples of simulants in the database: https://simulantdb.com.
Was also developed the maintenance and cleaning of the aquaponic system.
Considering the need for recycling in a physical area of BioHabitat greenhouse, the activities developed were designed to permit the reuse of available resources. This activity of maintenance in closed systems, such as aquaponics, is indispensable. The excess of organic matter accumulated in the pipes, cultivation beds and fish tank made the circulation of water in the system considerably difficult, a fact that may have driven the death of 7 fish during mission 37. Thus, the following directions were taken:
1. The roots of the uprooted plants were used as a substrate for the seedlings of the DWC system;
2. The residual water present in the cultivation bed was separated and stored in closed containers for the action of anaerobic bacteria;
3. The organic matter removed with the cleaning of the pipes served to supply the Economic Bed;
4. The excess organic matter in the cultivation beds was drained and reinserted, part in the DWC system and another part returned to the beds.
In a first time, the crew worked in local time from 3 PM to 8:30 PM and also in the last stage of maintenance of the grow bed aquaponics system, we (Julio Rezende and Davi Souza) worked from 10:30 PM Brazil Local Time to 2:00 AM Brazil Local Time (Saturday), when we slept at 2:30 am. Local Time in Brazil is GMT – 3.
The crew started these activities different from the other times done in Habitat Marte. During the activities was implemented an approach to evaluate the development of new protocols for recycling and reuse of materials. Recycling on Mars will be an important challenge that future astronauts will need to overcome efficiently. All the materials, wastes and unused equipment need to be evaluated thought in a sustainable way for its reuse. For Davi Souza, Habitat Mars' sustainable initiatives are unique comparing to other analog stations. The lack of financial support makes the station's researchers think of innovative ways to find new uses and purposes for materials that no longer serve what they were built for. Some examples are the reservoirs that were discarded from laboratories and that today are being used as cultivation beds for the DWC system, and also the styrofoam boxes initially used to transport food that are now functioning as a growing place for the grow beds system.
Saturday, during the morning, was done the maintenance of the grow beds aquaponic system and the Deep Water Culture – DWC aquaponic system in Habitat Marte. After this was accompanied the webinar with Marco Romero and Eldridge de Melo on Space Webinars - Business Space sector - Challenges and Opportunities.
During the afternoon was discussed how would be produced food in climate change affect areas? How would be in the country of participants. According to Nuria, in Kenya: 70% of the country is arid and semiarid, presenting challenges for food security. According to Marco, Angola is having problems related to food cultivation losses. For Lef, Greece is self-sustainable in terms in food production and with luck in terms of food production. Sometimes they are trying to cultivate something not very adapted to the region or soil. In Germany, where Lef is living now, there is problems to produce some kinds of fruits. There is challenges for food self-sustainability producing food without impact in atmosphere. The soil is always producing different kinds of food.
Sunday (10th) morning was discussed about space habitats management. During the afternoon happened a Live on Space Education with participation of Eva Blaisdell, Susan Coupland, Marco Romero and Eldridge de Melo.
The live allowed the participants of the mission to become aware of different educational initiatives focused on space. The crew members were also able to present their activities related to the topic space education and contribute to the discussions held during the live. It was interesting to connect educational actors from different regions of the globe and promote an exchange of experiences. The coordinator of Habitat Marte and mission commander, Julio Rezende, presented the initiatives that are being developed in the communities of the Brazilian semiarid region.
During Monday (May, 10th, 2020) was discussed about sanitation. In the second meeting was presented the final guidelines to the end of mission prepared the final report and was done a final evaluation of the mission. Was evaluated the last live about space education with Eva Blaisdell participation. After was introduced the topic on sanitation (water, sewage and waste). Professor Julio Rezende talked about Bio Sewage Treatment Plant BioMarte operating in Habitat Marte. Was also mentioned the protocols to safe the water during clean dishes and the bath and about Installation of water tank and hydrometer. In the next missions will be interesting have data related to water consumed.
Lef commented that In Lunares was installed a treatment sewage plant, but not is available many details about. Complementing what Lef commented in other meeting, it is interesting to think how to treat water in space travel to Mars, during 8 months.
Julio Rezende mentioned the Oxidative Reactor Technology Experiment (VORTEX).
Davi presented arguments agreeing with Lef: the use of spirulina in space would be a more economic way to recycling in space. In the video, Samantha Cristoforetti (ESA astronaut) presented the use of Spirulina to produce oxygen and food in space: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y4itO-JJhRg. In the video Samantha Cristoforetti conversate with Dr. Natalie Leys, Dr. Gilles Dusap, Fracesc Gòdia and Christophe Lasseur (Melissa research group) about this topic.
The mission finished Tuesday. During the day were discussed aspects related to the final version of the report.
More information about the missions and the Habitat Marte can be found at www.HabitatMarte.com.
Prof. Julio Rezende (commander) and Davi Souza (chief-executive).
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