FLASHLINE-16 Science Report-05 07-07-2024

Author: Natasha Nicholson – Chief Science Officer

Flashline Mars Research Station, Devon Island, 75°25’53”N,  89°49’27”W, Nunavut.

Expedition Commander: Natasha Nicholson

Team: Ilaria Cinelli, Mason Robbins

Destination(s): Scree slope northeast of habitat

Transport: On foot

Distance Travelled: <1mile

Furthest coordinates from the station: 75°25’58.65”N,  89°48’32.39”W

Expedition Duration: 1hr20

Time: 17:50 – 19:30

Aims:

1. To assess ease of motion across unstable terrain in the spacesuits
2. To return to the newly found suspected stromatolite from expedition 1.
3. To stabilise biological samples

EVA Observations:

Motion in spacesuits:

Now in full simulation, the three analogue astronauts, left the station after a 5-minute ‘decompression’ pause in the airlock. They explored the immediate area testing their ability to navigate difficult terrain with the bulky suits and limited field of vision in the helmets.

Two of the suits were the traditional FMARS suits used on the previous 16 campaigns, and one of the suits was new to this environment, a pressurised ‘Grissom Suit’ by Smith Exploration Garments. The Grissom Suit was pressurised using an air compressor run from a portable battery pack, connected to the suit via hoses. This model of suit has thick wide boots integrated into the suit, which did well on the rocky terrain.

All of the astronauts got used to manoeuvring across the terrain, and we decided to advance to our second objective, locating the stromatolite seen on our way to Trinity Lakes.

Stromatolite:

For this part of the expedition, the Grissom Suit was swapped out for the regular FMARS suit, as the compressor and battery add a lot of bulk and weight to any expedition. Smith Exploration Garments are developing a system to port the life support system across rocky terrain, and for EVAs further afield, the ATVs can carry the heavy compressor, but our target was a rocky scree slope only a short distance from the habitat.

Using the coordinates we had saved on our first expedition, 75°25’58.65”N,  89°48’32.39”W, we navigated across the ground – crossing hard ground, soft ground, snow and loose scree, all without incident. We found and photographed the stromatolite, then returned to the habitat.

Lab Work:

Fixing biological samples:

The samples collected from previous expeditions, algae, moss and the as-yet-unidentified ‘lab kelp’, were stabilised using RNAlater. The majority of the suspension water was drained from the 50ml falcon tube, and the samples were stored at a ratio of 1:5, sample material to RNAlater.

The samples will be stored at low temperatures, and the non-toxic stabiliser will preserve the integrity of the RNA and allow for species identification.