The Mars Society took a giant step forward this summer with the successful construction of the Flashline Mars Arctic Research Station on Devon Island. Devon Island is located circa 75 degrees north in Canada

We ended the simulation yesterday. Today we spent much of the day doing electronic paperwork such as email, journals and preparing papers. In the afternoon we bid farewell to Darlene Lim, Charlie Cockell and Dale Stokes who are all headed back to the “earth”. We did get one newcomer into camp. Dr. Baruch Blumberg who heads up the Astrobiology Institute at NASA AMES arrived. Dr. Blumberg is a Nobelm Laureate having shared the 1976 Nobel Prize for Medicine. We have invited our VIP to spend tomorrow night in the habitat with us.

Like yesterday we got up around 8:00 AM to start our day. The plan for the day was simple. Two traverses. One before lunch and one after. The first traverse would head to Exploration Office Valley by way of base camp and stop at Lake Cornell on the way back. This traverse should take about two hours. The afternoon traverse had not been decided yet. Once again a communications protocol was in effect. However since the EVA crew would be out range or line of sight at times they would contact us when they could. (See map and photos below) On EVA were Carol, Larry and Darlene. Marc and Bill stayed behind to catch up paperwork and to man the communications gear. Bob Nesson was away on other business. The traverse went very well.

With a sense of determination to try and get something done in our first full day of simulation as the “long term” crew this year we set about planning the day’s activities. The morning plan was to test the Mars prototype suit. This would be done by Carol, Larry and Darlene as they could fit in the suit. This was delayed until around noon as the suit was being used by a Haughton-Mars Project member. In the meantime the crew continued to fix up the habitat and discuss how the interior could be built out for future simulations.

In yesterday’s journal I omitted one important event. Late in the evening the habitat cast a long and wondrous shadow into the crater. It must have been 150 feet in length. The sun around 1 AM is lower in the northern sky. The shadows into the crater are very beautiful. The breccia is turned from its usual grey color to a milky white color which really contrasts with the surrounding dirty yellow-brown hills. I don’t have a picture of this to show you at this time. I will try to get one tonight.

One interesting happening at the habitat during the day was a test of the Hamilton Sundstrand Mars prototype suit. Peter Kinsman of Hamilton Sundstrand put the suit on in the habitat then EVA’d to the surface for a leisurely stroll followed by a drive on the “rover” (ATV). The suit is here as part of the Haughton-Mars Project. The test is the first in an effort to explore future collaborations between the Mars Society and the NASA led Haughton-Mars Project.

Well the day all of the Mars Society has finally been waiting for has arrived. Today we inaugurated the Flashline Mars Arctic Research Station. The ceremony started at 9:20 PM CDT. Most of base camp was here. There were camera flashes all over the place. It was quite a moment.

Today the construction team worked on finishing the floors of the habitat, tightening dome bolts, and installing the temporary interior furnishings. The weather was not good as clouds, rain and the cold came back. The good news of course is that the windows and roof had been installed and the crew worked in relative comfort indoors.

Today the final six dome panels were put into place. I helped move the panels from the ground to the second floor and watched as Frank, Matt and others placed them into their assigned spots. To see the dome come together piece by piece was great. We were worried that because of the geometry of the habitat as it had been constructed that we might not get a tight enough circle so that all of the pieces would fit together. But with some pushing, pulling and cajoling the dome came together nicely.

Today the construction team worked on the dome panels. The work is moving at a slower pace as it is much more difficult to get these panels in place compared to the side panels. Safety as always is the number one issue. So a lot of time was spent determining the best way to get the panels into place. By the end of the day though six panels were in place.