SILALIQ (CREW 17) Sol 3 REPORT 23-7-2025

Today was our last day on Devon Island. We all woke up with a bittersweet feeling in our hearts, but decided to make the most of our remaining time by packing in as much as we could before our scheduled departure at 5:00pm.

Phnam, Laura and I set off to collect water for Crew 18 while Terry stayed behind to prep the station for its next guests. After returning to the station, Phnam, Laura, and I decided to squeeze in an EVA to measure permafrost depths at two locations in the inner crater.

Our second permafrost measuring location was on top of a grey hill almost completely made up of breccia. When we made it to the summit, we all unanimously took a moment to marvel at the landscape around us. As the silence wrapped around us, we felt both at peace and completely alone. Our hike up the grey hill also taught us an important lesson: life is everywhere in the Arctic, you just have to look down. As we walked, Laura spotted a little caterpillar happily crawling around in this seemingly desolate environment. A few yards away, a burst of Arctic poppies bloomed in an unlikely little spot. It was inspiring to be able to see, first-hand, all the life that has adapted to thrive in this harsh environment. This EVA was magical beyond words and served as a wistful goodbye to the island we formed such a deep connection to in such a short amount of time. While we all could have happily stayed on that hill for forever, time was running out and we needed to hustle back to the station to help Terry clean up. We put our working hats on and managed get the station organized, clean up our trash, and eat a sweet Jell-O treat (that I had made the previous night 😋) all before Crew 18 touched down on the island. Once they landed, we said our hellos and quickly briefed them on some of the station’s pertinent maintenance issues before getting on the plane ourselves and heading off to Resolute. It was a successful hot swap, and a first for The Mars Society! We wish Crew 18 the best of luck and can’t wait to hear all about their adventures on Devon Island.