This Hab is not self cleaning! One can only guess at the circumstances that must have led a frustrated crewman on a previous rotation to post that notice on the wall of our hab.

We have had a lot of excitement on analogue Mars over the last nine days. But not everything we do is exciting. There is mundane work as well, just as there will be on a real expedition to Mars.

This morning we awoke to the sound of rain drops on the hab roof, and when I exited the airlock just before 09:00 to assist our visiting support engineer (Don Foutz) change the oil in our large generator, I discovered that the ground had changed into a caking mud that clung to my boots in great clumps.

I decided that this was not a good morning for an EVA, not just because of the mess that it would make of our ATVs and suits, but also because of safety concerns on the muddy tracks.

It was not beyond us to mount an EVA in the rain, but if we had work to do around the hab, this was the time to do it. Everyone pitched in as we mopped, vacuumed, sorted, tested and generally performed a thorough spring clean of the wardroom. At the same time, other crewmembers conducted a thorough audit of the workshop area, sorting the tools and equipment so that we knew what we had and where.

By lunchtime our living area was transformed, and we were rewarded by a break in the weather and a return to the sunny conditions that we had enjoyed for most of the rotation. I gathered my crew after lunch and and nominated an EVA team for a short geological EVA to the North East lasting about two hours. The team reported that conditions had improved since the morning, but the going was still slow and muddy. But at least we got another EVA in in case the rain settles in. We will be hoping for some more sun in the morning to dry things out, in which case conditions should be more favorable by the afternoon. If not, there is always work to do about the hab.