Mission to Mars 2030

Kyla Hadlock, Easton Stoep, Arianna Hix

11-15-17
Compass Academy Mission Panel
Mission To Mars 2030
Introduction
A group of scientists will land controllably on Mars in the Gusev Crater and will support
a life cycle of plants, animals, and humans. The structure will be built by the Structural
Engineer and used by the people going to Mars as a living space. The weather and
location these people will be going to is going to be decided by the Geoscientist. The
food sources, plants and animals, will be decided by the Biologist.

Geoscientist

The specific site where the structure will land and be built will be the Gusev Crater.
This is a Mars crater located at 14.5°S 175.4°E. It is also in the Aeolis quadrangle. The
Aeolis quadrangle is a shape (quadrangle) that covers a certain part of Mars. It is MC-
23 (Mars Chart 23). The crater is around 166 kilometers (103.148 miles) in diameter.
This crater is also near the equator of Mars. There are several nearby sites such as
Amazonis Planitia and Elysium Morris.
The Gusev Crater is the best location for the structure because there are really only
dust devils that can’t harm the structure. The structure can also is attached to the
ground, so the wind won’t blow the structure away or damage it in any way. It is the best
spot for the ecosystem because the greenhouse has plants and animals in it, which is
attached to our rocket, so no one will have to go outside of the structure. The
greenhouse also has some leaded acrylic, so the wind won’t damage that either.
Besides the wind, there aren’t really much there isn’t to worry about when it comes to
weather.
One environmental factor that this site will help with is that there are a lot of
sediments that can help with growing the plants. The sediments are about 3,000 ft thick,
so it really helps when it comes to the soil/fertilizer to grow the plants. The only
challenges that could possibly be a problem is if the wind gets really bad, but even then,
the structure is pretty heavy, so wind won’t to be able to do anything. The other possible
challenge could be sandstorms, which might do some damage to the structure, but
won’t be able to break through the structure itself, which means that the inside will be
safe.
If the structure were to miss the designated landing spot, the structure would be set
up at the spot that it landed at . Although it would be difficult to miss it because thrusters
are being used to land. If the spot was missed, though, there would be care packages
that would land in the original spot that the structure was supposed to land. However,
the care packages would be delivered by rovers of some sort and would be driven to the
structure from the crater.

Biologist

The biologist part of this plan is to find a way to create a thriving

ecosystem. To do this, they need to have a food source, oxygen, and
water. The human body needs the 6 essential nutrients, carbohydrates,
protein, fat, vitamins (A, C, D, E, K and the eight types of B vitamins),
minerals and water to live. The biologist figured taking chickens would be a
good idea because they will provide meat, eggs, feathers, and fertilizer.
Chicken meat contains loads of proteins, it is also high on cholesterol.
Chicken also provides selenium which contains antioxidants that help
control free radicals and improve your immune system. Protein is important
for growth and development of various organs in the body. Eating chicken
also helps in maintaining body weight. Furthermore, it gives zinc and iron
and is an excellent source for Vitamins B6, B12 and D. One chicken egg
contains Vitamin A: 6% of the RDA, Folate: 5% of the RDA,Vitamin B5: 7%
of the RDA, Vitamin B12: 9% of the RDA, Vitamin B2: 15% of the RDA,
Phosphorus: 9% of the RDA, Selenium: 22% of the RDA. Eggs also contain
decent amounts of Vitamin D, Vitamin E, Vitamin K, Vitamin B6, Calcium
and Zinc. The chickens will eat a wheat and burley mix, corn millage, hemp
seeds, and leftovers. Chickens live 8-10 years, they produce over 530 eggs
throughout their lifetime, and they need ¼ lb of food and 0.5 liters of water
a day. The group will bring lentils, sweet potatoes, cauliflower, carrots,
tomatoes, lettuce, bananas, mangoes, nuts, tofu, corn, wheat, hemp
seeds, and black beans to plant. Lentils are an amazing source of protein,
carbohydrates, and fiber. Lentils are considered to be a starchy protein.
Lentils grow best in cool weather. Lentils are ready to be harvested about
80 to 100 days after planting. Water about 1 inch weekly. 10 plants every
100 days, 1 inch by 12 inches apart. ½ to 1 pound of dry lentils per 100
square feet of plants. Sweet potatoes are high in vitamin A, vitamin B5, B6,
thiamin, niacin, riboflavin, and, due to their orange color, are high in
carotenoids. They grow best in 70 degree weather. They take 3 months to
grow. They need 1 to 2 inches of water a week, and should be planted 12
by 24 inches apart every three months. Cauliflower is an excellent source
of dietary fibers, vitamins C, K and vitamins of the B group and minerals
such as manganese, potassium and magnesium. Growing cauliflower is
best done in cool temperatures. It takes about 6 to 8 weeks for cauliflower
to grow. Cauliflower should be planted about 18 inches apart in the row
with 30 inches between. Keep soil moist. Carrots are a rich source of
vitamin A, particularly in the form of beta-carotene, Beta-carotene converts
into retinol. Retinol protects the membranes surrounding your eyes that
absorb light. They are grown in moderate temperatures, and need to be
planted 3 to 4 inches apart in rows. Tomatoes are also an excellent source
vitamin C, biotin, molybdenum and vitamin K. They grow best in warm
weather, and need to be plated 24-36 inches apart. Lettice has fiber,
potassium, zinc, calcium, folate, Vitamin A, and Vitamin K. They grow best
in cooled temperatures, and need to be plated 12 to 15 inches apart.
Bananas provide potassium, fiber, and vitamins b and c. They need
watered every water slowly and deeply every 2 or 3 days. Mangos have 20
different vitamins and minerals, mangos contain flavonoids like beta
carotene, alpha carotene, and beta-cryptoxanthin, which help vitamin A to
impart antioxidant strength and vision-protecting properties, maintaining
healthy mucous membranes and skin. Nuts are high in fiber, antioxidants,
and fats. Wheat includes vitamins like thiamin, folic acid, vitamin B6 and
minerals like manganese, magnesium, and zinc. Tofu has good source of
protein and contains all eight essential amino acids. Corn is good source
of protein and contains all eight essential amino acids. It is also an
excellent source of iron and calcium and the minerals manganese,
selenium and phosphorous. Hemp seeds are rich in healthy fats and
essential fatty acids. They are also a great protein source. Black beans
provide good amounts of fiber and fats. The group of scientists will be
bringing soil to plant the plants in the structure, the structural engineer
designed. The group will be getting oxygen that the plants produce. The
water will be supplied by drilling to an aquaphor underneath the structure
and will be filtered by s filter such as the lifesaver bottle created by Michael
Pritchard. To get rid of waste, the group will use it as fertilizer.

Structural Engineer
Structures’ overview, the design will be the spacecraft itself. The spacecraft will
land controllably so there’s no worry of it getting damaged. The spacecraft will house
the sleeping quarters and lab. Two bio tubes will make a passageway from the ship to
the plants, then from plants to the animals. The tube won't be very long but just enough
to make it to the structures that will be built. The green house doesn’t need sunlight,
some artificial light can work with plants for photosynthesis. But if they needed some
sunlight, they could use some leaded acrylic so they could have windows. The animal
pen will be longer and taller so the animals can have more space to live and breathe,
and have some space for storage for the feed for the chickens and cows. Everything will
be held down with stabilization spikes that will keep everything secure under the
structure. NASA will also to send up care packages, about the same time we launch,
with building materials so that when they get to Mars they can instantly start building.
Everything will be airtight and sealed so that they can pump oxygen through and make
everything pressurized. We will also have a multi-mission radioisotope thermoelectric
generator that will create 110 watts of power in general. This machine is powered by
Plutonium-238 dioxide, when this melts down it creates heat, then the heat is
transformed into power. This generator is lightweight and has a minimum life span of 14
years. Which is perfect for deep space missions. For our solar panels, each of our four
panels has an area of 5 square meters the four panels together produce 1,000 watts of
power, which is great. Materials that their buildings will be made out of. The greenhouse
can be made out of titanium, leaded acrylic, and aluminium. Leaded acrylic is still see
through and it has radiation protection. That will be very useful to make windows or
something that they need to be transparent. The Bio Tubes will be insulated and very
secure. It will also be made out of titanium, aluminum and leaded acrylic. The insulation
will be made out of multiple layers of plastic film with some low density foam insulation
between, and some lead sheets to block radiation. Every single thing will be insulated
with about 2 ½ feet thick insulation. The animal pen will also be made out of titanium,
aluminum and thick insulation and some leaded acrylic. The stabilization spikes will be
made of titanium, because these spikes will be in the ground and needs to have high
corrosion resistance. Everything will all be constructed already in the care packages. All
we have to do is snap it all together then add sealant. The ship materials are made out
of silica tiles with aluminum skin, of course there is other materials in the spacecraft, but
those are just a few main components.
How everything will be transported. The ship is their home so that will already be
transported. But it won't crash land, it will land controllably with thrusters. The materials
for the bio tubes, greenhouse, and animal pen will be shipped up 6 months before in the
form of care packages, preferably around our landing area. If they miss the target area,
the packages will have wheels and will have enough A.I. to be able to locate them and
drive over to where they are.
Protection against exposure. The spacecraft itself had to survive the cold
vacuum of space so it would have able to protect against radiation exposure and it will
some hydraulic poles that would go into the ground and stick in so the sandstorms or
anything else won't make our shelter move. For the side buildings that will house the
plants we will have to make that very sturdy and also root it into the ground so it won’t
move. The other buildings will also have thick insulation and radiation protection. The
insulation will be made out of multiple layers of plastic film with some low density foam
in between and some silica too, also some very thin layers of lead sheets to block
radiation.

Conclusion
Some setbacks that could be a possibility would be missing the landing spot, not having
enough supplies to live, and machinery problems. There are some possible solutions for
these problems, though. For the landing spot problem, the structure could just be built
where it lands and the care packages that would be delivered would be brought to us.
Speaking of the care packages, this is a solution to the supplies problem. The care
packages come whenever supplies are needed, so that wouldn’t be a problem. Finally,
for the machinery problem, a possible solution could be having extra tools and parts in
storage, so if something went wrong mechanically, it could be fixed. On another hand,
there is some technology in our mission plan that does not yet exist which is a robot-
rover type machine that carries care packages to it’s main target. So, if the structure
does miss the landing spot, the robot could just bring the supplies to the structure.