We were up pretty early this morning; Jody reported a beautiful sunrise, and I took some pictures of the nearly-full moon dropping over the hills. Breakfast was prepared by the cook team of Tim and Derek: home fries from potatoes leftover from supper, English muffins, yogurt, cereal, and fruit. Even a mostly not-cooked meal like this tripped the breaker on the backup generator twice. We are pretty tired of not being able to heat water and make toast at the same time.

The kitchen has a number of small electric appliances, like a toaster, microwave oven, coffeemaker, hot plate with two burners, wok, and rice cooker. We are learning, for example, that we cannot use both burners and the coffeemaker at the same time. If we want to run the microwave, we have to turn off all the other appliances. The electric wok and one burner is a maximum load. On the backup generator, we cannot heat the Hab and run the water heater at the same time. So we'll all be glad to see the return of the Generac from Grand Junction, whenever that may be. We heard today that parts are on order, but not when the repairs will be complete.

After breakfast cleanup, David led a planning meeting to set priorities for the day. As a part of the meeting, Jody gave us a very informative talk on the geology of the area and outlined some research that we are to get started on. We leaned over maps, looked at a geologic time scale, and studied sketches that Jody had done to show us the relationships of the various rock layers in the area. We wanted this background so that we could all understand the focus and purpose of our observations and rock collecting.

After a pre-briefing, Jody (EVA leader), Derek, and I went on the first EVA of the day, a short trip to take GPS coordinates at the observatory and the radio repeater. We also collected rock samples to confirm if possible whether they are sitting on the Dakota formation. Tim came along out of sim to film the crew. He got some good pictures of Jody using the rock hammer and me trying to manipulate pen and paper to make notes and to put rock samples in Ziplock bags, both frustrating efforts. Derek led the group and chose the routes up to our collection sites. We were surprised at how hot we were in the EVA suits and also how breathless we were, even after very little climbing. The higher elevation than we are used to, combined with the restrictions of the suits, makes us work harder to move around than we do under normal circumstances at home.

Upon our return to the Hab, we discussed the technical and interpersonal issues that came up during the EVA. Communication was an issue; we have continual radio problems. But we collected the samples we went for with no mishaps. While out in sim, we felt much more like we were on a space mission than we have before; much of our time up to now has involved so much repairing and cleaning that we have felt more like a maintenance crew than a space crew. But today we have made the transition. In fact, we came back hot and somewhat tired but exhilarated from our experience. We discovered today that the whole world looks different from the inside of a space helmet.

We had a lunch of sandwiches and did our own projects and reports for an hour and a half (my projects included taking a half-hour nap; Kim cleaned the tubing and water bladders for use on EVAs) before we met again to prepare for the second and longer EVA. Derek manned the Hab comm. as Kim (EVA leader), Tim, and David went out on a mission to some nearby hills to collect rock samples for study in the lab. I went along with them out of sim to serve as mission photographer. Our route out was about 1.6 kilometers, or about two miles round trip.

As they moved southeast from the Hab, I ran ahead of the group and took pictures as they did interesting things like walk in single file, pick up things they dropped, talk on radios, climb precariously balanced rocks, collect rock samples by knocking off pieces of boulders, and admire the amazing views. And the views were indeed amazing. White streaks broke through red streaks in the rock; yellow rock sat on top of red. As we made our way further from the Hab, we could see that the Hab is backed by higher rocks; beyond them in the distance we could see the Skyline Rim, and beyond that Factory Butte.

The group walked through a wash, and David noticed some interesting paw prints in some sand; this was indeed a sign of life! We studied them a bit, and I took a couple of pictures so that we could compare these prints to sketches of cougar prints that we found in the Hab. Indeed, we do believe that the prints are cougar, based on our comparisons, and a pretty big one at that. When we did our debriefing after the mission, we reviewed instructions for what to do if we should encounter the actual animal himself. (What to do: look big, make eye contact, and don't run. We all agreed that a cougar would not be likely to show himself to a group of folks wearing space suits, what with their appearance, the shrilling of the radios, and the fans blowing air in the backpacks.)

The group left the wash and began to climb. As we stopped to catch our breaths, and to look in the distance, I noticed that a storm was coming in over the Henry Mountains, and I could see in the distance dark blue clouds looming. Then a long flash of lightning broke the dark sky. In other parts of the sky I could see rain falling from the clouds, long wide streaks broken by clear patches of light. The rain hung over the mountains and bluffs in the distance as the crew toiled their way up the rocky slope to the top of the hill that was their goal. The incoming storm created an urgency and tension to the mission, and radio messages to Derek back at the Hab reflected this pressure. Kim, Tim, and David debated whether to follow through and climb to the top or whether to turn back to try to beat the storm.

They decided to go for the top, and they did make it. Tim, the science officer on this mission, collected some more rock samples, and the crew quickly began their descent, hoping to arrive back at the Hab before the storm caught them. On the way down, they noticed an oddly shaped deposit of flat rocks that looked like shards of glass spread on the clay. Kim radioed Jody and received instructions to collect yet another sample. This they did and then quickly made their way down the hill.

The EVA group stepped up the pace when they reached flat land and purposely headed for the Hab. Derek filmed them on their way in to the Hab compound, and I was politely radioed to get out of the way of the camera's view so as not to ruin the shots by being caught on camera out of sim.

The wind and rain hit us within fifteen minutes of the crew's return. We were all back safe and dry and rode out the storm in the comfort of the Hab's living quarters. Snacks and tea for everyone!

At the post-EVA briefing, we agreed that it was a good mission, but several issues came up: the tendency for a crew to have "get-there-it is," a term David taught us. "Get-there-itis" can endanger a crew if members make decisions based on the desire to reach a goal rather than safety in the face of bad weather, thirst, fatigue, or some other compromising condition.

Again the problems with radios came up, as we are sending out teams of three, but we have only two headsets that work consistently. This means one member of the EVA team has less ability to communicate than the others-he is more isolated as a result, and the crew must use hand signals to communicate. More frustrating than not having a radio is having one that doesn't work correctly.

After causing us stress, now the storm caused us some inconvenience, as it was time to refuel the backup generator, a job we try to do when it is not raining to avoid getting water in the gasoline. But David persevered, and soon the generator was ready to support (somewhat) Tim and Derek's supper preparations. Supper tonight was spaghetti with vanilla pudding for dessert.

After supper, we all worked on our reports while Tim washed dishes. At about 9:30, we took a break and watched a DVD Kim brought called "From Earth to the Moon," a series based on the Apollo program that she and Derek had both seen before and thought we'd like. We watched episode 10, about a geologist, to inspire us in our geological research.

Tonight, as many nights have been here on Mars, was overcast, though the storm passed through before we finished supper. We won't see the moon tonight. But last night, for the first time, we did see the moon. Up to then we had had heavy cloud cover day and night. It's almost full, and it shone last night through the large window over the work desk in the living quarters. As we looked out, the landscape glowed quietly pink beneath it.