Before he could be interviewed, Allen Mirkadyrov needed to hunt for shade.
The NASA aerospace engineer has spent eight months confined to a dome at 9,200 feet on the slope of Mauna Loa, part of a cohort of six researchers testing ways to better prepare a crew for a grueling, long duration space mission. The Mars simulation by the Hawaii Space Exploration Analog and Simulation team had many cold moments as mountain temperatures dipped and power had to be conserved for more important things.
Besides the climate factors and sharing a 1,000-square-foot area, being limited to the diet appropriate to a space mission meant Mirkadyrov was also hungry.
“I hope to get a steak at some point,” he said. “That would be my dream.”
Saturday afternoon, family members who had not seen the group since last October gathered on a soccer field at Kona’s Old Airport Park to watch them “re-enter” by skydiving with the U.S. Army’s Golden Knights parachute team.
“They’re out, they’re out!” could be heard ringing down the field as the specks of the jumpers appeared in the air behind a Chinook helicopter flying at 11,000 feet.
Rose Burgoyne made the trip from Abbotsford, British Columbia to watch her niece, mission commander Martha Lenio, return to earth. Lenio was the first female to be selected to lead a HI-SEAS mission. Burgoyne squinted into the haze as the jumpers made long, slow circles in the sky.
“I’ve never seen anything like it. It’s breathtaking to see them all come back,” she said. “It’s beyond words.”
Since October, the group has been allowed outside the dome, or “Hab,” 83 times on various projects — once to hide in a lava tube in a simulated solar storm. Each time they have been required to wear spacesuits.
Prior to being whisked off the mountainside in the helicopter, the group was able to nosh on fresh fruit and other special breakfast items while navigating a media blitz as the simulation came to an end. Lenio was able to grow small amounts of dill, cilantro and even small tomatoes, but they didn’t stretch very far, Mirkadyrov said, leaving the group hungry for fresh foods.
Team member Jocelyn Dunn said the experience was almost like living in a family. With loads of work to do, she sometimes felt like the working father who is unable to spend time with the rest of the family. The lack of sound-proofing meant she was privy to most conversations, and the lack of privacy was probably the most challenging aspect, she said. The simulation was designed to test how well members bonded and communicated under the confining circumstances.
“Communication, miscommunication, how to communicate better,” she said. “The first six months, there were zero problems. The last couple of months were more difficult. I think people were on edge.”
After the jump, group members were set to go their separate ways. Dunn planned to travel in Europe this summer and return to her doctoral work in engineering and data analytics at Purdue University in Indiana. Mirkadyrov was set to return to work at NASA in Virginia on July 1.
Analysis of the team’s behavior under various circumstances will help NASA understand how teams can live and work together in confined spaces for long periods of times. It will also show ways to better foster cohesion in the group, explained Wendy Bedwell, a research scientist from the University of Florida, who is working on the project.
“Overall, we’re glad we made it all the way together,” said Mirkadyrov. “We hope to have a reunion at some point.”
