Integration to Increase the Return from Mars Exploration Missions
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Copyright © 2007 Ned Chapin. Published by the Mars Society with permission. INTEGRATION TO INCREASE THE RETURN FROM MARS EXPLORATION MISSIONS Ned Chapin, Ph.D. Information Systems Consultant InfoSci Inc., Box 7117 Menlo Park CA 94026-7117, USA [email protected] ABSTRACT While the number one goal of a human crewed Mars exploration mission may well be to assure the health and safety of the human crew, the number two goal is most probably to return to Earth a lot of knowledge about Mars, i.e., data. Such data acquisition has been simulated in part by activities done at The Mars Society’s analog research stations. The crew members on actual Mars missions will be applying their expertises in multiple science disciplines, and combining their observations and insights with already known data about Mars, and with the data gathered on-site by the use of tools and automated aids, such as rovers. Even here on Earth, each source, discipline, tool, and aid used tends to acquire, generate, or provide data in forms and media that are often cumbersome and incompatible. On Mars (it’s paperless), such characteristics will be costly. For example, a geologist and a biologist describe differently in data terms what they observe, even when they are both observing the same entity at the same time, such as an oddly colored rock. Usually, their choices for data representation result in needing to use different data-handling equipment. This report sketches some of the ways on Mars exploration missions that the integration of the data at its origination or capture can be done. These ways facilitate rather than hinder the varied work of the scientists in their various disciplines thus making them more productive, reduce the weight and volume of equipment and supplies taken to and from Mars, and improve operational simplicity on Mars. The net result can be more and better quality data about Mars returned to Earth by crewed Mars missions. Keywords: Data from missions, improving science data, acquiring data on Mars, information systems use on Mars, analog research station, paperless operations INTRODUCTION William J. Clancey’s presentation earlier in this Convention has provided some welcome groundwork for this more specific presentation.1 After covering a few of the expected goals of crewed Mars missions and some of the key circumstances of the crews’ work on Mars, this presentation covers some ways of facilitating the prompt integration of the research data generated on Mars from the science work of the crews. Let us start with some overview of some Mars goals. Goals of crewed Mars missions The common view for any crewed Mars mission is that the prime goal is to provide excellent crew health and safety.2 All of the human crew should arrive back on Earth at the end of the mission is no worse health or condition, mental and physical, than just before their departure from Earth for Mars. As Burt Rutan reminds us, the risk of NASA space flight related death thus far from going beyond Earth suborbital space has been about 0.014 per person per flight.3 Our historical Mars mission success rate has been worse than the average of space missions from Earth. Since for a person to land on Mars and return and land on Earth involves at least two space flights, each person on a crewed Mars mission probably faces at least a 0.028 risk of death, based on experience thus far. The potential hazards to crew safety (accidents, radiation exposure, etc.) have lead some people to question the value of sending crewed missions for Mars exploration when robotic Mars missions could be sent at less cost. This presentation does not discuss the many pros and cons surrounding crewed vs. robotic Mars missions. Instead, it addresses a secondary goal if crewed Mars missions are sent, what can be done to improve the integration of the data generated by and during the mission. The value from any science exploration missions to Mars is the data obtained. From crewed Mars missions, the data return can be increased by enabling more of each sol’s activities to be devoted by the crew members to doing science exploration. Also, the data return can be increased by making the science activities be more productive. This can be done for each individual science activity, and as focused on in this presentation, by enabling better integration between any specific science activity and relevant other science activities. Those other science activities might be from other science disciplines being done at the time or those done earlier. For example, for examining in the field a piece of rock on Mars, the biologist sees it differently than does the geologist, and both capture or originate different data about that rock. But how then (at the initial examination) can those different sets of data be integrated to aid subsequent science activities more effectively, such as in organic chemistry and mineralogy, and tied to the subsequent geological and biological science activities, both in the field and in the laboratory? Some major impediments exist to people’s doing science effectively on Mars, and have been described in prior Mars Society Conventions.4 The natural impediments include dust, a toxic to humans atmospheric composition, extreme cold, very low atmospheric pressure, skimpy natural radiation shielding, and close to nil humidity and surface water. In addition to such natural impediments, people will import additional impediments. A major one is the traditional paternalism of the scientific disciplines, in their practices, approaches, techniques, and terminologies, especially where they overlap, as in organic chemistry and microbiology.5 Related impediments are the commonly used tools, techniques, and methods for data capture and recording. The laboratory notebook with its ink entries is an example. Another related impediment is the common practice in exploratory science work (as will be a common variety of science work in early crewed Mars missions) of producing diaries, field reports, and periodic summary reports. The experience of the personnel in the Mars Society analog research stations has been that doing these is a drain on productive science work time for the personnel.6 A related drain but less complained about, has been time spent in searching previously acquired data for specific content. In this presentation, the focus is on data integration to reduce for the personnel on Mars the effects of the impediments on productive science work time. As has been noted at these Mars Society Conventions for some years, the science work on Mars will be best done in a paperless environment, with no paper, no pens, and no pencils—a working environment that thus far has not been simulated in the activities at the Mars Society analog research stations.7 To better assess how data integration could operate to improve the quantity and quality of the science work achieved on Mars, this presentation first sets out two general circumstances, and then looks into them individually. Overview of circumstances One general circumstance is work within a Mars habitat where the personnel will not be wearing Mars surface (EVA) suits. Another general circumstance is work outside of a Mars habitat where the personnel will be wearing Mars suits. The Mars suits limit physical dexterity and precision in human movement, but enclose the wearer in a human compatible atmosphere similar to that provided within a Mars habitat. A Mars habitat is expected to provide a “shirt sleeve” environment for human living and working, similar to enclosed usual sea-level conditions on Earth, such as in homes and places of work. In a habitat, people can move around although the quarters will seem cramped, do precise or delicate work, hold face-to-face meetings, converse, and do laboratory and bench science work including working over field-gathered material. A Mars habitat will normally be stationary, but an enclosed rover may be able to provide a limited temporary habitat environment for its few occupants. Outside a Mars habitat, a Mars suit will provide each wearer with his or her own individual human-compatible atmosphere.8 Wearers can give verbal commands to a computer just as they can do in a habitat, but all conversing and interpersonal communication will have to be carried out in a manner similar to using a mobile Blue-tooth telephone. While fine finger movements will be much restricted by the Mars suit, gross movements such as head turns and bending down to touch the ground surface will be somewhat limited and require additional effort. Outdoor use of science tools and instruments will tend to be cumbersome and take longer to do than on Earth. IN HABITAT WORK As has been noted at prior Mars Society Conventions, an information system to support personnel doing exploratory science work, should make a permanent record of all science-related data.7 Some of those data are likely to be expressed in off-duty unpreplanned informal conversations among the crew members. A strict implementation of the recording all guideline also keeps in the record a lot of informal chit-chat and personal comments (like “I’m bushed!”). To ease privacy concerns, some editing might be done, or at the cost of losing a minor amount of science data, the guideline might be to record nearly none of the chit-chat. Less controversial is to record all talk at the bench and whenever someone commands the information system to record. The usual criticism of such a guideline usually centers on the forgetfulness of the personnel about when to start and stop the recording. Some science data are likely to not get onto the record, as when a person while changing out of his or her Mars suit discusses some aspects of a field activity with another crew member.