We had visitors today - a film crew for the popular German Science TV program "Nano" and a photographer for the Los Angeles Times. They wanted a story and we gave it to them. We took them with us on our EVA to Lith Canyon.

The EVA team consisted of Steve, Troy, Jen, and myself. Frank also came along, operating out of sim to drive the film crews to the site, while Heather stayed behind to work further on her classification of our waypoint data base.

So out we drove, with the pickup truck in the lead, its flatbed filled with cameramen focusing on us as we followed in single file on our ATVs. We traveled in this fashion along the dirt road we now call the Lowell Expressway about 4 km to the north, after which the EVA team peeled away to head off road to the west and the canyon site. Since we had identified the location and its UTM coordinates during out scouting expedition to the area Feb 9, we found the site without difficulty

We then descended into the canyon, moving systematically along the walls. Jen concentrated on geological analysis, and Troy and Steve did sampling of suspected endolithic bacteria (those that live inside of rocks Ð it is hypothesized by some that such creatures could exist on Mars.) I did photo documentation and searched for fossils.

The day was sunny, and unlike the previous sorties where we occasionally walked but spent the large majority of our time on our ATVs, on this EVA we hoofed it for hours. What with the awkward EVA gear, the strong sun, and our increasing load of rock samples, the trek down the canyon became somewhat tiring Ð so much so that the media cameramen got exhausted just watching us, and opting for the better part of valor, asked Frank to truck them back to the hab.

The loss was theirs. As we continued down the canyon, the scenery became increasingly weird and the geology more interesting. We also spotted tracks of antelope and mountain lion. After three hours we went through a narrow pass, the canyon then opened up into a vista of bizarre formations, and then the floor on the canyon dropped away to a new boulder strewn bottom 30 feet below. When a flash flood sends water flowing down the canyon’s bed, this place must be a little Niagara, so for lack of a better term, I call it a dry waterfall. I really did not want to climb down the fall to the boulder field, but Jen was excited about the geologic potential of what lay at the bottom, and without further ado, made a nimble descent. This left the rest of us little option but to follow. I did a radio check to make sure that we could still access the repeater link to the hab should we need help, and that verified, started the scramble down, entrusting my soul to the designers of our spacesuit’s US Army cold weather boots. Bouldering on soft sedimentary rocks in these clunkers while wearing an EVA simulation suit is an interesting experience, but we all made it down okay.

I don’t know if it was worth the risk, but it must be said that Jen’s intuition of the geologic interest of the boulder field below the fall was correct. She collected a variety of rocks and minerals not seen by us here before, Steve discovered a fossilized bone, and I found a magnificent piece of petrified wood the size of a volleyball. Naturally I had to bring the thing back, which made the climb back up the dry waterfall and the return hike through the canyon even more memorable.

When we got back to the hab around 5 the Germans were still there, ready to interview us. I made them wait a little while we had a debriefing of the EVA crew. Overall the EVA was completely successful. We did, however, take a risk. It could be argued that the risk was small, and certainly taking risks is sometimes necessary if results are to be achieved. Going to Mars will require accepting all kinds of risks, including several big ones associated with major maneuvers like space launch and interplanetary travel and innumerable little ones comparable to our climb down the dry waterfall today. The point is not to avoid all risk, or even to minimize it. The point is to calculate all risk; to take risk, but do it with due deliberation. We may have fallen short in that respect today. But no matter, we are here to learn.

After each EVA, the scientists write up brief reports summarizing their observations. These reports are sent to Mission Support every night.