11:00 AM: The morning routine expands, and with it, the number of sensors we wear daily increases dramatically. This morning, for the first time, we put on all the sensors needed for the Orbital Architecture experiment. Its goal is to study the effect of architecture on our behaviors and performances. Until the end of the mission, we will wear a watch, a position and heart rate sensor.

This morning, Meddi and Quentin prepared their first EVA for stratigraphic geological studies in the “Martian” desert. In the long run, they hope to contribute to training an AI that will detect and map different rock layers in the desert using a drone—a revolutionary innovation that would delight geologists! Meddi and Somaya also made videos for public outreach in the GreenHab to keep students from the “Seeds of Mars” project informed, as well as Moroccan schoolchildren who were visited by Somaya regarding the mission. This year, we have conducted outreach projects in no less than a dozen schools! Among them are young people in Occitanie, Morocco, and the United States who benefited from our interventions. It is a great pride for us because it is through such interventions that some of our classmates were inspired to join ISAE-Supaero, and we hope to have ignited that spark in the youth we met.

On her part, Erin is doing much better! After working on debugging AMAIA with me during the morning, Robin and she are concurrently working on 3D printing storage for our numerous electronic devices.

4:48 PM: This afternoon, the wind is blowing so strongly that we fear damage to our tunnels between modules. The gusts seem to worsen the condition of the tarps at a hole that formed during previous missions.

The day ultimately lends itself well to working in the HAB, our main module. Crew members take advantage of this to install the last lamps for the LättaLL experiment. Designed to improve our well-being through light, these light sources change intensity according to the time of day, and we will study their impact on our crew compared to previous crews.

1:26PM: At the time I am writing this report, the schedule indicates that I should be on an
EVA (Extra-Vehicular Activity), installing atmospheric instruments. However, Quentin, Robin,
and I have finished our little expedition early! This was our first EVA of this length, and we
immediately feel the intensity of these outings. Indeed, the suits are heavy, and the longest
EVAs, which are planned for 4 hours, are supposed to be tiring. Once back inside, a pleasant
surprise: Célyan had prepared delicious little snacks that were not refused!

In the meantime, Somaya was the first to participate in Humanise, our tele-operation
experience. She has worked tirelessly with researchers over the past few days to ensure its
smooth operation, and it is a great relief and joy to see it working today, especially since it
appears to be very entertaining.

4:42PM: The crew took a short break this early afternoon. Everyone has been working intensely since the start of the mission; it was an opportunity to recharge, especially since Erin has been sick since the beginning of the mission, which must have made these first days even more challenging for her. I personally took advantage of it to build a small cardboard shelf and tidy up some of the equipment that had been lying around in the HAB since SOL 0, with the help of crew members waking up from their nap. Now, Robin is modeling another small storage unit in 3D to organize the batteries and phones necessary for certain experiments.

The GreenHab was also lively today. Yesterday, we discovered that the greenhouse did not contain any potting soil, and even after searching the station from top to bottom, we only found some at the base of already potted plants. Mission Support confirmed during the evening that there wasn’t any more, so Meddi had to dig up the useless plants in the GreenHab to recover their soil—a vigorous task to start the day, but it allowed him to finally plant the microgreens.

10:06AM: Second day at the station. This day seems more usual; no extravehicular activity is
planned. The crew focuses on assembling various experiments that need to be installed
throughout the station, and each member attends to their daily tasks. Quentin, Robin, and I
assembled and tested the atmospheric instruments. We were very efficient and plan to install
them outside tomorrow. Meanwhile, Célyan and Somaya are setting up the Orbital
Architecture experiment, which will track our position within the station. Meddi organized the
greenhouse to set up Micropouss’, an experiment in collaboration with the startup
Neopouss’, which allows us to grow microgreens that will enhance our meals. So far, we
have only eaten meals prepared from lyophilized ingredients or long-lasting ones. These
plants will have a significant impact on our well-being.

4:18PM: Finally, we got to taste the products from the greenhouse! At lunch, Meddi brought
us a little surprise: small tomatoes and radishes collected in the GreenHab. The evening
promises to be delicious as well, since Somaya prepared the dough for Moroccan bread that
we are eager to cook and taste tonight! The afternoon was productive: our progress on the
atmospheric instruments allowed Robin and me to set up AMAIA’s servers, the AI assistant
of Spaceship FR. Everything is not yet perfect, but this standalone AI, meaning it works
without the internet, could be very useful! However, its humor is unique… The title of the report bears witness to that. In parallel, Erin works on the crew schedules, and Quentin is
already developing his first photos of the sun taken in the observatory!

5:27PM: I finished my first cognitive assessment in the HAB, our main habitat. It was pretty
difficult to focus among the very animated crew members around. While some of them have
already set up the lights or LättaLL experiment in the core habitat, Somaya has cooked her
little breads. They are delicious!

6:30AM: First awakening in the station. After getting out of bed, the crew already get busy, checking their daily morning tasks. We measure our physiological data for the Core Data experiment, that will allow us to transfer data to the researchers needing them. After that, it’s time to follow our first sport session, animated by Célyan. No time to lose for Crew 311: as soon as finished, we clean ourselves (but with wipes, like in the ISS!), we dress up, and we finally close the door of the station. Let’s go for a busy day!

11:19AM: I just came back from my first EVA, an ExtraVehicular Activity. Meddi, Quentin, Robin and I did our first training. We found the perfect place for the atmospheric instruments: Marble Rituals. We will set them up later during the week. The analog Martian desert looked very vast, such as the sky that overlooked it. I had the honour to step on its ground first, and to pronounce our first words: « it’s a small step for me, a bigger one for Quentin ».

During this time, the rest of the crew did our food inventory. 3:00PM: During the beginning of the afternoon, every crew member goes to their business. Meddi waters the plants, Robin takes inventory of the RAM, whereas Somaya takes the Science Dome’s one, and Quentin takes charge of the solar observatory. Everyone got together then, to setup Somaya, Erin and Célyan for their EVA training.

6:50PM: The afternoon was productive. While some of us were preparing Orbital Architecture experiment, some other were managing the building of supports for our atmospheric instruments. The communication window is approaching, and now the whole crew answer their daily questionnaires.

“At that point in their lives, everything is clear and everything is possible. They are not afraid to dream, and to yearn for everything they would like to see happen to them in their lives.” – The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho

We started the day knowing very well that it would be our last morning in simulation… We took full advantage of our last workout session, during which Lise compiled all of the Crew’s favorite exercises! All Crew members loved the workout. As it had rained all night, and continued throughout the day, the weather conditions didn’t allow us to perform the scheduled EVA. During this EVA, we wanted to dismantle atmospheric instruments and bring them back to the station, but we couldn’t: the conditions were too muddy. In addition, because of the lack of sunlight, the solar panel providing energy to the station was not efficient enough, so we had to spend the day in the dark, to save electricity! The mood was very different than usual: EVA cancelled, lights off, the end of the simulation getting closer and closer… However, we had a lot of things to do to keep our minds occupied! We took advantage of being all together at the station to start and organize our luggage, to store and clean all the modules. We have a lot of equipment, we have to be careful in not forgetting anything!

Despite all of this, the last sessions of the neuroergonomics experiment and the last cognitive tests took place this morning. It is the end of studies and experiments for Crew 293! We are proud of all the experiments we led and all of the data we managed to generate.

We had fixed 4 P.M as the end of simulation time, to retrieve atmospheric instruments. We opened the airlock: we were officially back on Earth! Wearing our black flight suits to be protected from the recovered sensation would create! But we had no time to lose: the atmospheric instruments were waiting to be dismantled! Kneeling in the wet dirt, we dismantled and brought everything back to the station. In the Lower Deck, we cleaned everything (included ourselves!) and continued putting all of equipment safely away.

Even though the simulation is over, atmosphere is joyful in the station between Crewmembers! It is the end of the mission in the station, but we still have a lot of work to do. Ending the simulation doesn’t mean that the research stops! We still have to handle data, give feedback about results and procedures to researchers, and much, much more… In the end, the end of the simulation is just the beginning of a new chapter for Crew 293!

“He had only one explanation for this fact: things have to be transmitted this way because they were made up from the Pure Life, and this kind of life cannot be captured in pictures or words.” – The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho

On this 25 th Sol’s morning, our penultimate day of mission, we performed our penultimate EVA! Marie and Léa went to reach checkpoints placed at Kissing Camel Ridge, with Mathurin who counted their steps between each checkpoint. With the 2D map they had yesterday to prepare the EVA, they had more difficulties than Leo and I with the 3D map, because the topography of the area is complex. However, they managed to find 11 out of the 12 checkpoints, but they took almost one additional hour! During this EVA, the EVA Crew was helped by high schoolers from the CNES’s project PROXIMARS. They helped preparing protocols for both before and during the EVA. They even defined to report where were the 12 checkpoints and find the optimal path between them. This last photogrammetry’s EVA marks the end of the experiment inside the station. But Yves still have to handle data in order to analyze results.

During the EVA, there was a huge effervescence inside the Hab! Indeed, a surprise was set up: it was the birthday of Marie, our Commander! Leo, Yves, Lise and I, stayed at the station, preparing everything for her return! We decorated the Upper Deck with balloons and confetti, and cooked a cake to surprise her. When the EVA Crew came back to the station, we blindfolded Marie to guide her to her surprise. We sang “Happy Birthday” and offered a bouquet of sunflowers from the GreenHab! Balloons and flowers stayed at the Upper Deck, for the great pleasure of the whole Crew! Marie was very moved and happy to celebrate her birthday with the Crew, in the station, in this unique context! For the rest of the Crew, we were delighted to surprise her and to please Commander!

During the afternoon, we had to get back to work! We don’t have much time left in the station, we want to use it to contribute to science the best we can, by leading to the end all our experiments. So we had cognitive tests for the Orbital Architecture experiment and session of the TILT experiment, given by the Neuroergonomic department of our school ISAE-SUPAERO. Marie and I performed a session of the EchoFinder experiment, it was the last one of the mission! Ending experiments one by one made us realize that we are leaving tomorrow … but we still have a lot of work to do!

“Don’t forget that everything you deal with is only one thing and nothing else. And don’t forget the language of omens. And, above all, don’t forget to follow your Personal Legend through to its conclusion.” – The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho

To start the week on a good note, Yves and Mathurin initiated the last step of the Photogrammetry experiment. During their EVA, they went to Kissing Camel Ridge in order to take pictures of the area and to generate 2D and 3D maps of it. Twice we explored the northern part of station’s surroundings, but this time, we turned right after leaving campus, taking the southbound road! It enabled us to discover new Martian landscapes… During this EVA, Yves and Mathurin needed to be with another Crew member. This time it was Lise, instead of Leo the two previous weeks. Lise, who had loved searching for the checkpoints in the previous destinations, was on the other side of the experiment this time, and she loved it all the same! Her goal, with Yves, was to find where to put the checkpoints while Mathurin was taking the hundreds of drone pictures. During the week, there will be new exploration teams with the 2D or 3D map. This is the last iteration of an experiment we all very much enjoyed participating in!

Meanwhile, Léa and Marie wrote some new outreach articles for our website, and every Crew member who wasn’t out on EVA was busy accomplishing their planned tasks, from experimental data handling to cognitive assessments in the Hab or GreenHab.

The MELiSSA activity, prompting us to cook meals with fresh vegetables and not only dehydrated food, continues to delight the Crew! Today for example, Léa and I cooked a very tasty carrot cake for lunch. Crew members who were out on EVA enjoyed this great meal after being out for a few hours. Then, in the early afternoon, Lise and Mathurin tried to solve problems they had in their code for retrieving data from our smart watches and impedance meter. They put in common everything they had done on their own. At the end of the afternoon, we all enjoyed a virtual reality experience: in this personalized video for each of us, we were surprised to see Arnaud Prost, a French astronaut, wishing us good luck and giving us advice for the end of our mission! This video cheered everyone up, and gave us that final bit of motivation we needed, to end all of our studies and experiments in a grand finale!