Aouda.X field test Innsbruck

Ulrich Luger and Anna Kluibenschaedl, members of the Science team are starting the training for the Contamination Vector Experiment on the, with moss and gravel covered, canopy of the Red Cross building in Innsbruck, Austria. Some of the rooms were kindly provided for the field test weekend. Filming, taking photos, giving remarks, doing corrections and documentation is part of the day.

Members of the rover team are preparing the brand new Phileas chassis for its field test assignment. Stefan Hauth is screwing some additional parts to get the wheels in the right position and mounts a camera on the rover.

In the laboratory the taken samples from the canopy are examined for training uses. Also Sebastian Sams and Reinhard Tlustos were busy and installed a working connection through Internet for OPS (Operations) and MCC (Mission Control Center).

Eva Hauth has a special task, she programs a simulation software to train OPS operators for emergency cases e.g. an elevated heart rate can be simulated with this software.

Also on the spacesuit simulator itself some final adjustions are made. Klaus Bickert, the OBDH (on board data handling) leader reports, that the fans get new wiring, that a test board is reconfigured and communications protocols are reviewed. In future the mechanic switching system should also get an additional electronic one.

For experiments with a Mars spacesuit simulator it's necessary to have also the right ambience, therefore the mars landscape is set-up on the canopy. Other team members are doing radio training, so that the correct communications language is learned.

Just before dinner time the donning and doffing procedures are discussed, reviewed and printed out. Others are diving deep into their system software and document late into the evening until the project lead commands everybody home to save some energy for the next two simulation days.

Whit Sunday. 8:30 a.m. The morning briefing starts and test leader Daniela Scheer explains the activities for the day: main focus of the first simulation day is the contamination vector experiment (CVE). "Goal is to measure the contamination of the taken samples but also of the suit" explains Gernot Groemer, project leader of Aouda.X spacesuit simulator, "with this experiments we are able to qualitative test a sterile sample taking on Mars" After the morning briefing OPS (Operations) and MCC (Mission Control Center) are occupied and the donning of the spacesuit simulator starts. ”OPS for MCC what is the status of the donning procedure?” asks MCC CapCom Reinhard Tlustos to the OPS team. OPS is directly at the test location and is in direct communication with the spacesuit tester. ”Donning procedures is 95% complete, we are about to close the helmet”, reports OPS CapCom Eva Hauth to MCC.

All systems are working and spacesuit tester Ulrich Luger gets the "GO" from MCC to start with the scientific experiments. His first task is to drill into ice to take a sample. The drill is contaminated with micro-spherules and later in the laboratory it will be detected how many of the spherules are in the melted ice and therefore a forward contamination took place. Anna Kluibenschaedl, experiment leader, is at the location and supports the suit tester with the procedures: ”It was really exhausting, because not only the correct order of the proctol is important but also the assuring of clean working is necessary to avoid contamination of the samples.”. Besides drilling in ice the suit tester drills also into concrete (which simulates a contaminated rock on Mars) and finally takes sample from simulated Mars sand with a small applicator. With analog gloves not an easy task.

After four hours all samples are stored and transported in the laboratory and the doffing (getting of the suit) is done. After a short break Ulrich Luger slips again into the suit. Ingemar Skoog, of the PolAres Advisory Board, has arrived especially for this field test and is logs the second donning procedure of the day. Just short before finishing the donning a problem with the air and power supply is noticed. ”There is hardly any air stream in the helmet”, informs Ulrich Luger OPS. Hence the second test is aborted due to security issues. The OBDH team checks the problem and is able to solve it during the evening.

Project leader Gernot Groemer during the debriefing: ”We did some errors but we learned a lot. Extraordinary was the great discipline among the teams and everybody is looking forward to tomorrows simulation day 2. - Slowly the first routine among the teams is visible during the procedures.”

The simulation day ends with a delicate barbecue.

At 8 a.m. the workshop members are back in the social room to begin Whit Monday with the morning briefing of simulation day 2. Daniel Schildhammer, today's suit tester, is looking forward to the tasks: “Today will be an exciting and exhausting day. First I have to do some fine motor tasks and afterwards I'll be driving with a quad bike. I'm excited how I'm able to controll the quad bike with the suit.” Before Daniel Schildhammer can start the task he has do go through the donning procedure. Three team members help him into the suit. A lot of small steps e.g. getting the exo-skeleton expander into the correct hoes or the batteries have to be plugged in to ensure the power supply. Ever step has to be executed in the correct order. OPS and MCC survey the procedures via audio and video connection. After two hours the suit is put on and the first task is challenging. Dignity (analogue Mars rover), controlled by Sebastian Sams from OPS, is part of the experiment. The suit tester has to unmount the robotic arm only to mount it afterwards on "Phileas" (PolAres analogue Mars rover) „We have chosen this task to see if it’s possible to handle fine motor works with the clumsy gloves. Moreover it’s necessary to apply more pressure to move the fingers. On Mars there would be an overpressure in the suit, which we are simulating with the exo-skeleton. “, explains test leader Daniela Scheer. The unmounting of the robotic arm works fine, only during the mounting procedure the suit tester needs some help.

Next activity is the quad bike driving. The whole team is excited how the quad bike is controlled through the suit. Carefully Daniel Schildhammer drives the first rounds and he has no problems to control the bike. A smile on his face can be seen through the helmet. „On Mars greater distances can be covered by astronauts on a quad bike alike gear. “, underlines OPS leader Willibald Stumptner the importance of this experiment – „We let drive the suit tester across the town and simulated a real distance on Mars. “ With two accompanying cars - OPS is now a mobile unit in one of the cars – it goes across Innsbruck, up to the "Hungerburg". Un front of the futuristic building of the mountain station, some photos are shot and the spacesuit simulator is THE attraction for tourists and natives there.

Back at the test location a surprise for the whole team is waiting. A Segway is part of the second last test of the day. Daniel Schildhammer steps on the Segway and drives without hesitation. A Segway is conducted by shifting your body weight and that’s without any difficulties possible in a spacesuit simulator.

Finally a real hard challenge has to be done. During summer temperatures the suit tester has to walk one hour. This pressure test brings suit tester and suit to their limits.

„We had three successful days, two of them simulation days. On the last day we noticed how good the teams are working together and follow the procedures. Also both suit tester Ulrich Luger and Daniel Schildhammer were extremely well disciplined and had great staying power. The next step is to optimize the available procedures and do some technical adjustments to get ready for the glacier test in July “ outlines project leader Gernot Groemer the successful test days.