From Earth orbit to the Moon and Mars, discover the world of human spaceflight with NASA every week on the official podcast of the Johnson House Middle in Houston, Texas. Hearken to in-depth conversations with the astronauts, scientists and engineers who make it potential.
On episode 329, the CHAPEA crew checks in on their eighth month in a Mars simulated habitat and a NASA biostatistician discusses the method of study, interpretation, and presentation of scientific knowledge. That is the eighth audio log of a month-to-month collection. Recordings had been despatched from the CHAPEA crew all through February 2024. The dialog with Dr. Younger was recorded on February 6, 2024.
Impressed by the CHAPEA Mission 1 crew and need to be part of an analog like this? In case you are and assume you have got what it takes to tackle this yearlong problem and contribute to our understanding of what it’s going to take to help human missions to Mars, purposes for the following mission, CHAPEA Mission 2, are open. Go to chapea.nasa.gov to fill out an software. Functions are due April 2, 2024.
Transcript
Host (Gary Jordan): Houston, we have now a podcast! Welcome to the official podcast of the NASA Johnson House Middle, Episode 329, “Mars Audio Log #8.” I’m Gary Jordan, and I’ll be your host in the present day. On this podcast, we convey within the specialists, scientists, engineers, astronauts, all to let you recognize what’s happening on this planet of human spaceflight and extra. We’re again with one other audio log from the CHAPEA crew. CHAPEA, or Crew Well being and Efficiency Exploration Analog, is a yearlong analog mission in a habitat proper right here on Earth that’s simulating very carefully what it might be prefer to reside on Mars. And we’re fortunate sufficient to have month-to-month check-ins with the crew Commander Kelly Haston, Struggle engineer Ross Brockwell, Medical Officer Nathan Jones, and Science Officer Anca Selariu.
To satisfy the wants of becoming in with this analog and simulating important communication delays between Earth and Mars that prohibit us from having a reside dialog, the crew is recording an audio log based mostly off of the questions that we draft for them. On this episode, we’ll play the recording of their eighth month within the habitat, which is right here on the NASA Johnson House Middle, and was recorded in February 2024.
We’re additionally bringing on a particular visitor to study much more about CHAPEA. This month is on one other angle of scientific analysis: biostatistics. We’ve reviewed quite a lot of totally different investigations taking place in CHAPEA from crop manufacturing to meals science, diet, train, behavioral sciences, and extra. Scientists in these respective fields are after all, gathering knowledge through the CHAPEA mission. However constructed into the scientific course of shouldn’t be solely amassing the information, however ranging from the bottom with the experimental design on how knowledge is collected to finest reply the analysis questions. Then there may be the evaluation, the interpretation, and the presentation of the information to summarize the outcomes of the experiments serving to the scientists to get probably the most out of their knowledge are the biostatisticians. And Dr. Millennia Younger is a type of biostatisticians based mostly right here on the Johnson House Middle, offering statistical help to analysis and medical operations right here for the previous 10 years. So, with that, let’s study extra from the CHAPEA crew on how they’re doing and from Millennia on the CHAPEA biostatistics. Let’s get into it.
[Music]
Host: First is CHAPEA Mission Commander, Kelly Haston.
Kelly Haston: Hello, my title is Kelly Haston and I’m the commander of CHAPEA Mission 1, a one-year Mars analog mission out of Johnson House Middle for NASA. To date, the mission has been going very well, and although I say this each month once we’re doing these audio logs for Houston We Have a Podcast, I hate to say it, however I’m going to be boring and say it as soon as extra once more this month. So I’ve to say that I’m amazed, consistently amazed, by the engagement and the passion that we get each contained in the hab, from the crew and in addition from our colleagues on the opposite facet of the analog which might be supporting us from the Earth facet. And it’s actually been only a delight and a real honor to be a part of such a dedicated group of individuals which might be doing such an important job. We’re actually simply chugging alongside and, you recognize, examine marking our milestones, which I’ll discuss just a little bit once more on the finish. So it’s been actually a delight up to now.
A few of the highlights of the final month. So I need to confess that January, which was a month the place we had fairly a distinct schedule than we had gotten used to pre previous to that, the place we had been actually used to being exterior a good bit, doing our Extravehicular actions, or EVAs, the place we both, you recognize, we accomplish duties which might be given to us in our mission log. We had actually developed a sample, main as much as January, however January had a barely totally different schedule for numerous causes and was quieter in numerous methods and rather more habitat-based. So we had been inside much more. And January, for that motive, amongst others, felt very lengthy to me. So I’m actually delighted to say that February, one of many highlights of February, is that it’s shifting very quick and we’ve been just a little busier. In order that’s been actually, very nice. We are also extra in direction of our regular schedule, which I actually get pleasure from. I do actually, actually love going exterior and doing the EVAs that we get to do. In order that’s been an actual delight.
However we have now had another highlights. We have now celebrated just a few minor milestones, you recognize, of form of time passing and so forth. However originally of the yr, after form of the celebratory season of December and the brand new yr, we realized that we had a giant lengthy hole in celebrations. So we truly arbitrarily picked a form of weekend in the course of February to have a celebration, and it ended up coinciding with the Tremendous Bowl and fortunately, after a request, the mission was capable of truly provide us with a one-time viewing of the Tremendous Bowl. So, we embellished the habitat for it in a really tropically themed, ornament, which perhaps doesn’t make sense for the Tremendous Bowl, nevertheless it was what we had, and it was very festive. We had a particular meal. Our engineer made us some particular treats, which was a mixture of among the meals that we already had within the have, however mixed in a particular manner that he had provide you with. So it was actually, actually a enjoyable night time of watching the sport, and it was an important recreation. In order that made it even higher. After which that weekend we had an extra celebration, simply form of like the unique one which we had deliberate. So it actually meant that this, the center of February, had a really festive feeling week that felt actually nice to expertise. So I might say that that was positively a giant spotlight for me of the previous month.
Kelly Haston: We additionally truly had some actually nice builds out on the Martian floor. So I might say among the stuff we’ve carried out within the final month has been actually, actually enjoyable. Actually, actually distinctive gadgets that basically challenged the crew and I feel the crew actually loved constructing them. In order that was one other nice spotlight for us, you recognize, as we form of transfer by this mission. I take into consideration what I’ve carried out in instances earlier. I’m a stem cell biologist by coaching. I exploit human stem cells to construct fashions of both improvement or illness, and I could make cell sorts like mind cells or liver cells or germ cells, however like sperm and eggs. So these are all issues that I’ve studied prior to now in my profession.
However one query we additionally get requested is what drew us to science within the first place? So I’ve a non-traditional background in that I left faculty once I was 15, so I solely accomplished grade 9. I ended up coming again to highschool once I was fairly a bit older, after 12 years. So I began off at a group school, and there, you recognize, I took a plethora of courses. I didn’t actually know what I used to be excited about originally, however the science courses fairly rapidly popped out. I had some actually nice professors. My biology, my chemistry, and my natural chemistry professors stood out for me and actually inspired me as I began to consider transferring to a four-year establishment to get my undergrad diploma in interested by analysis. However at first, I used to be considering extra alongside the traces of like a medical career as my finish aim. However, as I mentioned, they actually inspired me. So as soon as I transferred to UC Berkeley, I truly obtained into analysis immediately. And I used to be fortunate sufficient to land in a lab that was learning the consequences of pesticides and different environmental components on gonad improvement in frogs. There was the lab of Tyrone Hayes, and specifically, there was a postdoc in Tyrone’s lab known as Anhthu Hoang. She and the professor and the entire scientists within the lab actually introduced me alongside, spent an incredible period of time speaking to me about science, encouraging me. I ended up spending a lot time in my lab, like I lived in my lab throughout my undergrad years after I obtained to Berkeley. And by the point I accomplished my first experiment, I knew that I used to be going to go to grad faculty and never go to med faculty. I simply liked it. I liked being within the lab. I liked doing experiments after which seeing the outcomes. And even to this present day, if I notice that I haven’t truly, you recognize, checked my cells on a given day, if I didn’t have something to do with them, I’ll. Even when I’m leaving the constructing and I’m already packed up for the day, I’ll return in and examine my cells. I really like seeing the outcomes that you just get out of your experiments nonetheless.
So among the issues that I’ve carried out, I’ve been very fortunate in my profession to have some actually particular issues. I got here into my grad faculty work proper across the time that stem cells had been actually taking off as a method to mannequin human improvement and illness. We had been fortunate sufficient to be shifting from a interval the place we used embryonic stem cells to what we name pluripotent stem cells, which is one thing the place we will truly make a stem cell line from a bit of a cell from any a part of your physique. So it actually opened up the expertise and enabled us to really create cell traces from anyone of curiosity, so folks with sure ailments and unfold that subject out. And it’s turn out to be a really highly effective approach, and I’ve been fortunate sufficient to work in that subject now for 20 years. However I might say that I additionally actually, actually liked the work that I did initially in with the frog work at Berkeley, the place we had been actually taking a look at do environmental components, get in the way in which of correct improvement, or alternatively, do they trigger ailments to kind? And so I used to be fortunate sufficient to be a part of a pivotal set of publications that got here out of Tyrone’s lab the place we had been displaying that sure pesticides that had been within the surroundings feminized male frogs. And this can be a critical factor that would truly even be true in people. We had been doing it within the frogs first as a result of there are causes to make use of specific fashions, which I received’t go into on this podcast. However it was thrilling to be a part of among the earlier publications together with others in that subject that had been actually pointing at, “Hey, we have to have a look at the environment and be sure that it’s truly not impacting our regular improvement and our regular well being.” And that’s true of us, and it’s additionally true of the animals which might be in our biosphere. So I feel that that has actually, within the years since then, we’ve seen an actual curiosity on this subject. And I feel that I used to be tremendous excited to really be a part of that. So I feel that that’s an actual standout for me, by way of my early science, being one thing that made me actually impressed me to proceed to consider science as one thing that may assist folks quite a bit.
Kelly Haston: If I used to be to form of take into consideration the sorts of experiments that I’d need to do, although, on both Mars or the Moon, someplace in house, and there’s already some work being carried out on this space that I’m actually excited about and have talked to folks about. However one of many firms I labored for early on after I completed my postdoctoral analysis was an organization that centered on miniaturization of programs to check mobile biology. Why I feel that is necessary is that it lowers the price of your experiments. It makes them, typically, just a little bit extra controllable. However it additionally simply makes it a small footprint of the place you’re going to do your experiments. And I feel that if I used to be to work on one thing for house sooner or later, which I hope I’ll, that concept of constructing automated miniature programs the place we will take a look at mobile biology in several environments is one which has appealed to me throughout my profession and has been a part of my profession, however is basically interesting to me by way of the kind of experiment I might need to do on Mars.
I feel that it’s essential that we have now as many programs as potential that we will use to check issues earlier than we go as a complete human being. I feel that constructing an automatic system that takes under consideration form of, it’s a closed system the place you possibly can take a look at issues like how do your muscle cells or your liver cells or your mind cells reply to those totally different challenges of being in house is basically critically necessary. And might iterate on this in so many various methods. You may make a system the place you possibly can mix tissue sorts in order that they speak to one another and you may see the influence of a system quite than only one cell sort, et cetera. However I feel the concept can be that we’d need to construct each the automated system that will truly do that work for us, and in addition a strategy for an evaluation in order that we will truly ship up one thing that doubtlessly is enabled by machine studying points or different automated evaluation methodologies as nicely. After which what we will do is we will digitize the outcomes and ship them again in a smaller kind. If we had been, for example, taking photos, as a result of photos are actually massive knowledge, but when we will truly digitize it in a roundabout way, analyze it, after which simply ship outcomes again, we will truly make much more knowledge after which convey it again to Earth. After which at that time, we may have methods to find out whether or not that’s truly good knowledge or not once we ship that system up. So I feel that that mixed side of each the bodily system it is advisable to do the experiments and in addition the evaluation points that it is advisable to have to have in place so that you just truly can cut back the information necessities of those experiments in house. These are two i concepts that I’m tremendous excited about interested by in a setting like Mars.
I feel that something that we will do forward of time the place we’re learning cell sorts from people in these settings will assist us make some good selections about the place to place the analysis efforts sooner or later for constructing mitigation methods for, you recognize, dangerous points of house journey for people. And I feel that that’s a essential space that I actually love interested by and actually would like to be part of as I’m going again to my regular life as a stem cell biologist.
(From left) Ross Brockwell, Nathan Jones, and Kelly Haston share a meal collectively contained in the habitat. Not pictured is Anca Selariu, who was taking the photograph. Credit score: NASA
Kelly Haston: Lastly, what’s arising in our subsequent month? So our subsequent month, we’ll have numerous thrilling stuff, but additionally numerous our norms. So we will likely be doing extra of our exterior actions, our EVAs, we’ll even be doing a little inside remote-controlled missions So these are each fairly thrilling and actually enjoyable. We truly at the moment are form of beginning to actually mark among the issues that we’re doing for the final time, the penultimate time, or the final time. And I feel that these are actually particular for us. And, and because the mission strikes nearer to its end line, I feel that we’ll actually begin to hit a few of these. So we have now some milestones like 250 days arising, which is a giant one, however we even have some smaller ones just like the final time you do, you recognize, a given exercise. And people will likely be, I feel, essential for the crew to have a good time as we transfer by this final set of months of the mission. So I feel that that’s going to be nice on high of the actions which might be deliberate for us by mission management and we’re actually trying ahead to it. So with that, I thank everybody for the continued curiosity and I hope you’re having an important day on Earth.
Host: Alright, that was Commander Kelly Haston kicking us off. Good to listen to that the crew remains to be sustaining that implausible enthusiasm, and it appears like just a little bit has to do with the truth that they’re extra busy. It’s humorous how that interprets. The busier they’re and the extra occupied they’re, the happier the crew appears to be. However even with every part happening within the month of February, it was good to listen to that the crew obtained to benefit from the Tremendous Bowl and actually add to that checklist. They talked about combining a few of their meals for a particular Tremendous Bowl meal. For those who’ve been listening to those audio logs, that is one thing that they began manner again. I feel even throughout month one, they began combining meals and making a working checklist of the totally different sorts of meals combos for Mars. I ponder how massive that checklist is in the present day.
They talked about among the initiatives that they’re doing, and it appears like—and we’ve visited this a few instances—a few of these initiatives are these development initiatives, which is attention-grabbing by way of how we take into consideration and characterize a mission to Mars. Early Worldwide House Station missions had been a part of the meeting part, so perhaps it’s harking back to a few of these days.
You heard Kelly go into numerous element about among the ideas about her background in STEM, in addition to some concepts about how you can enhance life within the habitat this month. We requested them some biographical questions and you would inform simply from Kelly’s reply, actually, I imply, she went into numerous element in regards to the science, however actually what got here throughout to me was simply how passionate she is about science. And that is one thing that I feel is true for any crew member that turns into an astronaut. It’s true of the category of astronauts that simply graduated as a part of our 2024 class. Hopefully you bought to hearken to that episode. And a standard theme, when you hearken to the numerous interviews we had throughout all 12 of them, was simply they had been obsessed with what they had been doing. I feel this can be a frequent theme for anybody that wishes to turn out to be an astronaut or be part of an analog mission similar to this. Similar to CHAPEA, on the very finish of the episode, we’ll discuss precisely the place to go to use to turn out to be a CHAPEA crew member. These purposes are open this month.
Okay, once more, that was Commander Kelly Haston. Let’s now go to CHAPEA mission Flight Engineer Ross Brockwell.
Ross Brockwell: Hiya, that is Ross Brockwell. I’m the flight engineer for CHAPEA Mission 1 for Houston We Have a Podcast. “How is every part going?” It’s nonetheless going nice. Identical as earlier than. Perhaps even just a little higher. Actually, I feel we’ve smoothed out a few little issues, hit a reasonably good rhythm. And with the place we’re on the mission, it’s fairly cool. , we have now numerous expertise and accomplishments behind us, however we will sort of see the top on the horizon, however there’s nonetheless good methods to go. So there’s loads of time, I feel nonetheless, to savor the expertise and possibly see just a few new issues alongside the way in which.
“Inform us about among the highlights and actions of the final month.” It was an excellent month. We handed three fifths. We handed T-150 days. It was a reasonably attention-grabbing milestone. We had a pair new EVA challenges that had been cool and we had a big day. We obtained to look at the Tremendous Bowl, so it was actually cool then to beam that to us. All of us do assume that was mission-realistic. I imply, it’s a big delay for it and it didn’t actually disrupt mission communications the way in which they might do it. So, I feel that’s one thing that will be actually necessary and an actual mission. And it was actually important to us. It was numerous enjoyable. It was a very significant connection to residence, and it was a very good recreation. However it was actually cool. It was numerous enjoyable. We actually loved it.
For me, what initially drew me to engineering as a profession? I at all times wished to construct issues. I had numerous pursuits once I was younger and I had numerous issues I used to be contemplating as profession decisions. One being an astronaut, in reality, I used to be, you recognize, at all times wished to be an astronaut once I was younger and actually wished to fly. However I had numerous different pursuits too. And I believed engineering can be a good selection to check formally as an excellent base for lots of fields. And it was in all probability one thing I wouldn’t have the ability to train myself very totally or, you recognize, casually. So I selected to check it. I actually did need to construct issues. I wished to construct cities and transportation networks. And I used to be positively excited about constructing house stations and Mars areas. And I bear in mind studying in regards to the idea of the house elevator, you recognize, constructing down from geosynchronous orbit and maintaining the middle of mass in orbit. Simply an incredible idea and know technically potential, however an unimaginable engineering problem and supplies problem. And people sorts of issues had been at all times fascinating to me. So I wished to check it.
Ross Brockwell: “What’s an expertise for my time as a structural engineer that I may share perhaps has an necessary lesson?” So much. So it’s actually gratifying to see a mission come to life that you just’ve helped conceive of and design. And I bear in mind one specifically once I was fairly younger, a mission I had been engaged on that had been irritating. And it was in New Jersey, and I used to be sort of on a highway journey, you recognize, at a while later. And I obtained an opportunity to go test it out. And I simply bear in mind being actually happy with the way it had come collectively and seeing the variations between what was, you recognize, in my thoughts from having checked out it solely on paper as a result of it was so far-off from the place I used to be designing it bodily. And it’s simply actually neat, actually satisfying, but additionally numerous classes about discovering an excellent steadiness between planning and making an attempt to think about all contingencies and all angles and getting happening one thing. , the entire concept of paralysis by evaluation could be debilitating, the place you don’t transfer ahead trigger you’re making an attempt to think about every part. However however, a whole lack of foresight and perspective can result in harmful errors and it may result in missed alternatives for actual innovation and effectivity and breakthroughs. So the lesson there may be to attempt to discover a good steadiness for every scenario.
And it’s additionally true that the issues you need to work the toughest for, that you just study probably the most by working by, are normally probably the most deeply satisfying. That’s an age-old lesson, nevertheless it’s very true. And in engineering, additionally working with the builders and the folks which might be going to make use of your initiatives and studying the ramifications of your design decisions firsthand is massively necessary. So it lets you know the way necessary it’s to consider issues in complete programs and design for a life-time cycle. From sourcing it to constructing it, to utilizing it, to deconstructing it. Not simply interested by components and your single goals in my space of specialization.
“What experiments would I need do on Mars and the way would I see them serving to humanity?” I’ve mentioned this earlier than, however I’m actually excited about the entire concept of the design of the self-sufficient closed loop system that’s going to be obligatory for us to reside on Mars. And I feel engaged on that, engaged on the challenges of attending to Mars and surviving there’ll assist once more, they’ll assist unite us and I feel they’ll assist us acknowledge the particular complexity and worth of our ecosystems, how we’re only a half. And we have now some tasks in that half. And, you recognize, Earth itself is basically not a closed system if you consider it. There’s an vitality necessity that comes from the Solar and actually unfathomable quantity of vitality on daily basis that we get from the Solar. And we take it as a right. And I feel engaged on smaller variations of that idea will assist humanity perceive how you can be higher stewards of the system we’re part of. I’m tremendous within the init useful resource utilization idea. I imply, I’d actually like to do experiments on constructing issues with the supplies accessible on Mars, determine precisely what we should always convey with this to assist us try this. I’m excited about constructing out infrastructure on Mars and perhaps experimenting with robotic development, how profitable it might be and tremendous excited about experiments in flight within the Martian ambiance. And I feel quite a bit in regards to the countermeasures for the biophysical challenges we’ll face, you recognize, some concepts about sort of harness programs and tracks perhaps for the house station or for lunar or Mars-base, the place you would nonetheless be cell inside your habitat, however it might apply some loading to your skeletal system to fight bone density loss. A number of experiments like that. Experiments and radiation safety all actually tremendous attention-grabbing to me. So I’d love to participate in that.
“What’s arising within the subsequent month?” One other couple milestones. So mission day 250 is arising, which is thoughts boggling. Two thirds across the similar time, T-100 days, and we get one other crop harvest quickly. So clearly we’re all actually enthusiastic about that. So heaps to stay up for and we’ll see you subsequent month.
Host: Once more, that was Ross Brockwell, the CHAPEA mission flight engineer. It’s good to listen to that he additionally seems like issues are getting truly higher is what he talked about. And that form of resonates with me from the truth that he talked about there being a rhythm for the crew. And I really feel like there’s a sure consolation that comes with the repeated duties and the predictability of a mission. In fact, there’s going to be unpredictable issues that occur and new issues that the crew is happy for. You bear in mind Kelly trying ahead to new issues subsequent month, however having that sense of consolation, it virtually seems like residence. And I feel that’s an necessary factor when you’re going to be spending a very long time on a distinct planet to have that routine established as a part of dwelling and dealing on a distinct planet. It was nice to listen to Ross’s perspective on engineering and his ardour for it.
He talked about totally different anecdotes and classes discovered from being an engineer that he’d applies to among the ideas and processes for his time right here in CHAPEA. One factor that basically resonated with me was simply these classes that he talked about, that he carries ahead, an necessary lesson in engineering for me. I feel actually what I take away was the truth that when you’re obsessed with one thing and also you’re have these challenges that you just encounter alongside the way in which, perhaps you have got this sense and among the issues he was speaking about simply appears, you recognize, virtually scary in a manner. , you introduced with massive challenges. The concept is to only press ahead and do the job and study from these errors and overcome these challenges. And that’s the way you turn out to be a greater engineer, a greater employee. And it may be utilized to engineering. However I form of resonate with it as a result of I feel it’s one thing that’s necessary to indicate into something actually that you just’re doing. In order that was Kelly Haston and Ross Brockwell offering their audio logs for this month. We have now two extra crew members to go, however first let’s take a pause and converse with Millennia Younger in regards to the biostatistics of CHAPEA and what precisely meaning. Millennia Younger, thanks a lot for approaching Houston We Have a Podcast.
Millennia Younger: No downside. Good to be right here.
Host: Yeah, you do some fantastic and attention-grabbing work and I’m going to study all about it proper now as a result of we had been simply speaking forward of the podcast right here. We’ve by no means actually dove into statistics very a lot, not to mention biostatistics. I feel a part of the reason being it’s not one thing we generally come upon once we’re on the lookout for people to speak to particularly at NASA. While you consider NASA, you don’t actually consider statistics at the very least at face worth. However perhaps you possibly can convey some gentle into that. Millennia, I wished to begin with just a little bit about how you bought to the place you’re proper now, doing statistics at NASA. Was there one thing in your childhood that sparked a love of math?
Millennia Younger: I really like math. Math and science. They’ve a solution, proper? And it is smart. I can by no means determine within the humanities like what the meant appropriate reply was, why it was the right reply, trigger there’s at all times a number of views, proper? There’s a complete lot of grey between the black and white. And I can by no means choose up on what the instructor thought was crucial factor, proper? However math, the reply is the reply. Even when that reply is doesn’t exist.
Host: Ha. Proper. Which is a solution, proper?
Millennia Younger: It’s a solution.
Host: So statistics in a manner helped you to get a greater grasp of the world round you. It’s virtually like a language for understanding the world round you.
Millennia Younger: Sure. However I didn’t discover out about statistics till like my senior yr of school, not likely. So I studied math.
Host: However you liked math earlier.
Millennia Younger: Yeah. So I obtained my diploma in utilized math after which we did a capstone mission, which is they provide you arduous, attention-grabbing initiatives in your subject. And you’re employed on them. And considered one of them occurred to be statistics, and I used to be like, “This is identical.” Like, you’re speaking about utilizing mathematical representations of the world, however statistics is speaking about expectations and chance and uncertainty. I used to be like, “Helpful issues.”
Dr. Millennia Younger, biostatistician at NASA’s Johnson House Middle. Credit score: NASA/Robert Markowitz
[Laughs]
Host: Yeah.
Millennia Younger: In order that’s what triggered me to check statistics.
Host: So at what level did the statistics marry with the NASA world? Was this even a world that you just thought you would enter or did you have got—You stumbled upon it. Okay.
Millennia Younger: Yeah. So I began an a statistics grasp’s after my utilized math bachelor’s. And I made a decision, I obtained into analysis, statistical analysis, and I used to be like, “Yeah, that is me, I’m going to do that,” and my professor truly beneficial Rice College. I had no concept how good it was. So I walked in there and I nailed that interview. Cool. All cool as a cucumber. And I obtained in, good. And it’s been implausible. And I did just a little bit in finance earlier than. I did make some firms some extra money. However I didn’t discover that fulfilling. And I’m glad I did that in between as a result of I noticed I didn’t need to do finance, I wished to do life. I wished to do biostatistics.
Host: And because you had been doing that right here in Houston, Rice College, NASA was proper there within the yard.
Millennia Younger: Yeah. However it was form of luck, proper?
Host: It was? Okay.
Millennia Younger: I noticed the contractor place open for statistics and it wasn’t actually clear what they had been doing, however I used to be in a part that I used to be making use of for every part trigger I knew I didn’t need to do grants. I didn’t just like the writer parish of the tutorial surroundings. I wished to do analysis. I simply obtained fortunate. I rolled into an interview and I came upon it was NASA. I used to be like, “Wow, that is actually cool. Now I really need it.”
Host: I ponder what that job description mentioned. So once they had been on the lookout for somebody to do statistics at NASA, what’s it precisely that they had been on the lookout for?
Millennia Younger: They had been on the lookout for statistical experience, however they had been additionally on the lookout for modeling experience for the built-in medical mannequin, which is a simulation mannequin. And that jargon, there have been so many acronyms and a lot jargon. I used to be like—
Host: Yeah, jargon.
[Laughs]
Millennia Younger: I don’t know what that is. So I utilized for the senior epidemiologist place as an alternative. trigger that made sense.
Host: Oh, actually? Okay.
Millennia Younger: However once I walked into the interview, they’re like, “You’re a statistician. We need to interview for the opposite one.” And I used to be like, “However that one doesn’t make sense to me.” They usually’re like, “However you’re okay with being interviewed for it?” I used to be like, “Certain.” However then that was nice trigger I obtained to ask them what these issues meant. What they had been making an attempt to say. And I may translate it to precise statistical language. It was like an engineer wrote it.
Host: There you go. So now that you’ve got a greater grasp, and also you’ve been within the position now for a way lengthy?
Millennia Younger: Nicely, that was my first position at NASA.
Host: Ah, okay. So that you’ve carried out some extra stuff ever since. Okay. However now you have got a greater grasp of what statistics at NASA actually means. And significantly, and we’ll dive into this trigger you talked that while you’re doing statistics, it’s for the scope of understanding the human factor of human spaceflight. And so when somebody asks you what precisely do you do and the way you employ statistics, how do you normally characterize that?
Millennia Younger: So even beginning with that first place the place I used to be like half a simulation modeler, that a part of me was about predicting medical dangers in flight. So we simulated whether or not folks obtained totally different medical circumstances and what they could have to deal with them and the way it may influence the mission to calculate these issues. In order that’s one space. The opposite space was working for the epidemiology group, however is form of doing occupational surveillance of the astronaut well being, like astronaut well being through the mission, across the mission and long run. What does it appear like? How does it examine to terrestrial populations? Though they’re not regular folks, they’re pushed excessive attaining. So it’s arduous to search out comparability teams for them.
Host: That’s honest sufficient. So, okay, you bought your entrance and then you definately talked about that was your first job and now what’s the position you have got?
Millennia Younger: So now I’m within the biostatistics lab. So now I work totally on analysis research, though I do assist out the epidemiology group sometimes, too.
Host: Okay. Most likely due to your experience. So when you had been to explain everyday, or simply basic overview of your position now doing biostatistics, what precisely does that entail?
Millennia Younger: So I get to investigate all the information from all of the totally different backgrounds and disciplines. I feel my scientific self-discipline is the very best as a result of it will get to the touch all of the pies.
[Laughs]
All of them. So in the present day I used to be taking a look at MRI photos of mind shifts. Nicely, not the pictures, the numbers from it, to see if there have been mind shifts in flight, like pre- to post-flight and the way these examine to people who find themselves simply on the bottom for a similar period of time. As a result of I feel one of many massive criticisms, like taking a look at change in flight is like, “Nicely, what if they only aged? What if that’s simply regular half a yr getting old?” As a result of it’s actually arduous. We’re taking a look at wholesome folks. We’re making an attempt to maintain them wholesome and the individuals who get imaged out on this planet are the people who aren’t wholesome which might be having some form of concern. And that’s what’s inflicting them to get imaging.
Host: I see. Okay. So if I had been to proceed to explain your position, you possibly can appropriate me alongside the way in which. Are you doing your individual analysis or are you working with scientists to assist make sense of different analysis?
Millennia Younger: So largely, I’m collaborating with different scientists right here, different disciplines right here as their statistical spine. However we’re doing just a little little bit of our personal strategies improvement now trigger we need to do extra machine studying and AI, however we have now to enhance trigger our knowledge’s particular. It truly is. It’s distinctive in comparison with the surface world. We we’re not some massive financial institution who’s gotten hundreds of thousands of shoppers which may repeat in two or thrice, or a retailer the place you may need some regulars, however lots of people simply come on one time. We comply with these folks intensely and take numerous measurements of them over time. And there’s only a few of them. And if we ignore issues like the way in which that knowledge was captured, we would have a look at the information and seize the information in the present day and say, “Look, it’s largely male, so we should always choose males.” When that’s simply an artifact of the way in which they had been chosen in historical past.
Host: That is the place making sense of the information is that rather more necessary as a result of your pattern measurement is manner smaller than what you, such as you mentioned, people within the exterior world are working with. And that’s the place you actually need to dig into the nuances of these stats to be sure that when you find yourself arising with an interpretation of the statistics, that it truly is smart. So that you do actually deep dives. Am I characterizing this accurately?
Millennia Younger: Sure, proper. Trigger we need to make certain there’s no bias. So if there’s youthful folks and older folks and we’re taking a look at opinions and it occurs that the youthful folks and the older folks differ. Like say in the event that they’re evaluating two totally different train units they need to use, and in the event that they actually, actually differ, however you have got extra older folks, then the information itself will say, choose what the older folks like. Until you account for that distinction, then you definately’ll be like, “Nicely, the youthful folks like this and the older folks like that, who’s most probably to be utilizing it?” to decide.
Host: I imply that is in all probability the sophisticated a part of your job. There’s not likely a lower and dry. Right here’s the components that you just enter for when knowledge is available in. You as a statistician are actively working with the information to make these corrections alongside the way in which.
Millennia Younger: Nicely, hopefully they ask us once they’re designing the examine after which we are saying, “Hey, take into consideration these items. Did you consider the position that gender may play? Did you consider what age may play? Can we attempt to steadiness the design throughout these items to be sure that we get an excellent pattern?”
Host: While you first began at NASA, did you end up extra in a reactive state to the researchers after which began changing into extra ingrained into the experimental design in order that it was considered upfront? Is that one thing that you just initiated or perhaps that was already established by the point you got here?
Millennia Younger: Nicely, once I began within the epi group, that’s observational knowledge. In order that’s not a examine. You get what you get, and also you don’t throw a match.
[Laughs]
Host: Okay.
Millennia Younger: You perceive that you’ve got biases. So generally you are able to do totally different statistical strategies to form of regulate for these biases, however I’m cautious once I make statements. The engineering statisticians actually like to make use of higher confidence limits to be conservative. So that they’re like, “We’d like a 97th and a half percentile to be beneath X to know that we’re fairly secure.” And I’m at all times like, “I don’t need to use these tails trigger these tails are a operate of pattern measurement.” And it’s at all times going to appear like my girls are worse trigger their tails are greater. Simply because there’s much less of them and that’s not a real truth of their threat.
Host: And so you need to stand there and struggle and to say, “, that is how you actually must be interested by the information from a statistician standpoint.”
Millennia Younger: Yeah. I’m like, “I received’t try this with people. You are able to do that with rockets. I’m not doing that with people.”
Host: There you go. You’re very obsessed with this. I assume you need to be, proper?
Millennia Younger: You need to be, or they received’t hear. Individuals can get actually slowed down within the uncertainty and act like we don’t actually know something. And I’m like, however that is our greatest guess. So we should always in all probability go together with that.
Host: And so that is the necessary factor while you’re interested by characterizing human knowledge. You and I talked about this just a little bit forward of time. , such as you simply mentioned, you are able to do that with a rocket. Trigger they do have to function inside the black and white, both move or fail. This rocket works or it explodes. So you need to consider that mindset. There’s numerous grey in the case of working with knowledge for people.
Millennia Younger: Yeah.
Host: If I’m not characterizing it proper.
Millennia Younger: Appropriate. Yeah. You need to enhance issues. But additionally, people can consent, proper? So when you can provide them correct data, like that is your threat, I feel folks could make a few of these selections themselves. We don’t have to determine for them.
Host: Ah, okay. Proper. So is it simply you doing the statistics or you have got a bunch?
Millennia Younger: So I’ve a bunch. A really small group. I’ve an information wrangler. He’s like a cowboy. He brings collectively horribly formatted knowledge from particular person folks, like on their lab notebooks and makes them lovely, tabular, useable, coding-wise. Which is nice. After which two different statisticians. So there’s three of us.
Host: Okay. Three of you set working with all people, proper? Such as you mentioned, working all of human analysis.
Millennia Younger: That’s why we will’t assist folks exterior of NASA. Sorry, you guys are swamped as it’s. I do know you guys ship us emails and I attempt to reply, however there’s three of us.
Host: Your time working with the entire totally different knowledge throughout human analysis. Is there a theme? Is there a studying curve? Is there one thing that, while you’re working with all of the totally different analysis, you attempt to encourage others to contemplate from a statistical perspective? Trigger I’m positive that’s perhaps not one thing that each one the researchers contemplate proper up entrance.
Millennia Younger: No. So in the event that they do their very own stats, I can’t inform you what number of instances they overlook to account for repeated measures inside the similar folks. So I’m at all times like, “No, that’s the half you want me for and I’ll aid you with that.” However I really feel like that’s the place our juice is on this fruit. We’re seeing how folks change over time. And that’s the place we’re getting probably the most data.
Host: So examine smart, in the case of human analysis and among the belongings you do, are you doing analysis? You’re seeing analysis from above the Worldwide House Station? Are you additionally working with analysis in several analogs? What are among the issues that you just obtain then?
Millennia Younger: All of them. Antarctica. The mice.
Host: Okay.
Millennia Younger: The vegetation in house. Like how gentle—
Host: Really all of them.
Millennia Younger: Cells being irradiated to see what injury they do. So yeah, we will hit all types of knowledge.
Host: Oh, man. You’re proper in the course of all of the motion. That’s spectacular. Now when CHAPEA got here up, inform me about that. Each time they had been like, “Hey, we’re designing this examine known as CHAPEA, we’re going to place people in a habitat for a yr,” when had been you approached?
Millennia Younger: Instantly.
Host: Oh, implausible.
Millennia Younger: To start with. So that is the primary analog the place they actually obtained us all in a room, each self-discipline and statistics and mentioned, “Let’s do an built-in examine. Let’s do it collectively. Let’s see how these measures go collectively.” Trigger the opposite analogs, folks pitch concepts, proper? So that they’re competing and so they might not learn about one another, though they’re working all on this similar group.
Host: In isolation. Yeah. In silos.
Millennia Younger: Proper. So CHAPEA is particular in that we’re getting all these immune and train and EVA and behavioral well being, all of them collectively. And I obtained to be there to be like, “Let’s make certain the timing’s good. We wish them in an in depth sufficient window to one another, the measures in order that we will actually see how issues are trending collectively.” However on the similar time, not so shut that they’re ruining one another, proper? For those who get faint from a blood draw, you’re going to need to save that for final. You’re not going to need to try this earlier than you are taking the SATs.
Host: Proper. Not do a blood draw after which go train.
Millennia Younger: You don’t need to have an effect on downstream measures.
Host: So the method you had been taking with the built-in examine is specializing in that timing to ensure your knowledge was going to be fairly good coming in.
Millennia Younger: And giving them like “That is the way you arrange a tidy knowledge set.” But additionally when you don’t know the way to do that, don’t observe stuff round in Excel. I’ll get Thomas, the information wrangler, to repair it.
Host: The man who makes issues look actually good. That’s the cowboy. The man’s the cowboy. Good. So, this will need to have been fantastic for you guys since you obtained to be a part of the experimental design. And so you have got a reasonably good understanding of what sorts of knowledge is coming in and perhaps the way it matches into the puzzles items that it is advisable to create to complete the puzzle.
Millennia Younger: Sure. And with this primary mission, you recognize, nothing’s ever good. Nothing ever goes completely to plan. In order little issues occur, they name me in to be sure that I do know and that I’ve obtained a plan for dealing with it inside the knowledge, or what do we expect is the very best recourse going ahead? And we’re capable of repair and easy these issues. And I’m simply so excited. Each week I’m like, “They collected this, this, and that.”
[Laughs]
Host: So it appears like your day-to-day for CHAPEA is perhaps just a little little bit of these course corrections alongside the way in which. Making these little asterisks subsequent to the information level. So, you recognize, on the very finish, however actually your job goes to begin after CHAPEA. So that you’re nonetheless doing all of your day-to-day stuff of analyzing all the opposite items. That by no means stops. It’s a small staff of three. So after all, you possibly can’t simply dedicate your self to CHAPEA. Now this query I’ve been asking numerous our particular friends that come on these audio log episodes, and also you’ve form of answered it, however simply so as to add onto it’s why a examine like CHAPEA is so nice for the analysis group. You’ve already addressed the built-in nature of it, and I feel you’ve already addressed the truth that attending to be part of it from the very starting was that rather more particular. So I assume, you recognize, that is in all probability one thing you’ll in all probability need to repeat. Going ahead for future analogs, for future research, please contain the statisticians.
Millennia Younger: It actually helps. It’s very nice. So CHAPEA is nice in that sure, we’re randomizing these items in order that they’re balanced. We don’t actually know if some outcomes are generalizable till they replicate in one other group.
Host: So this leads completely into my final query right here, which I’m asking my friends the identical actual query. , CHAPEA is a superb built-in mission, has a pattern measurement of 4, and also you already mentioned you’re working with small pattern sizes. That’s like your job, proper? The significance of repeating a examine like this so that you get extra pattern sizes and you may flush out the information to have a greater understanding.
Millennia Younger: It’s essential. Crucial. As a result of it might be a one-off, proper? I imply, you’re not presupposed to win the lottery while you purchase only one ticket. However generally you do.
[Laughs]
Host: However you shouldn’t wager on it.
Millennia Younger: Yeah, positively not.
Host: You shouldn’t. That is all I would like. That is my retirement plan. Yeah. One lottery ticket. There you go. Okay. Understood. Nicely, Millennia, you have got introduced such vitality to this dialog. I positively see the significance of statisticians in human analysis. And I hope that folk listening to this additionally see the identical profit. Thanks a lot for approaching and sharing your vitality and experience.
Millennia Younger: Thanks for inviting me.
Host: Thanks once more. That was Millennia Younger on biostatistics, an important dialog. I’ve discovered a lot about what that was. Now we have now two extra audio logs to go. So let’s first begin with Medical Officer Nathan Jones.
Nathan Jones: Hiya, my title is Nate Jones. I’m the medical officer of CHAPEA Mission 1. The whole lot remains to be going very nicely. One notable factor for me is that I’ve the privilege of trialing parenting with a 20-minute time delay every manner. Nicely, this previous month, my oldest son wanted to put on a tie for an occasion. Neither he nor my spouse knew how you can tie one. So my spouse despatched an OS one night asking me to ship a video to show him how you can do it. Because of the time delays, although I obtained the request simply to lights out as I used to be preparing for mattress. And there aren’t many, if any, events for carrying a tie on Mars up to now. So I didn’t convey one with me. What I did have although was a few pairs of knee excessive socks. One was clear, the opposite I had worn on an EVA earlier that day and so they smelled fairly ripe, nevertheless it was all I needed to work with. So I tied three socks collectively and made a video displaying my son how you can tie a tie. It ended up working fairly nicely. My son was capable of tie a tie for the primary time utilizing the pungent sock video that I despatched him.
Other than that, this final month we had Valentine’s Day, 250 million miles away from residence. The flowers that I ordered for my spouse virtually didn’t occur attributable to a billing concern. Fortunately, a buddy of mine was capable of get all of it sorted out and it’s a very good reminder that I couldn’t do that with out such an important staff supporting my household and I again at residence. And NASA as nicely.
I used to be requested what initially drew me to a profession in medication. I used to be drawn to emergency medication as a result of I wished to offer medical care on worldwide medical mission journeys to distant areas. And people medical mission journeys are nonetheless so necessary to me that I’ve plans to go on a visit inside per week of ending my time at Johnson House Middle. I’ve numerous nice tales of issues that I discovered from the air, nevertheless it’s just a little tougher to inform tales which might be G-rated. One ability necessary to emergency medication, worldwide medication, tactical medication, aerospace, is studying to keep up your composure and moments of intense stress. I bear in mind studying one thing in medical faculty that basically caught with me. It mentioned, the primary pulse it is best to take while you’re headed to a code is your individual, whereas truly taking your individual pulse isn’t essentially necessary. I feel the concept is once I was beginning out in emergency medication, I had a affected person who got here in with a sudden imaginative and prescient loss. Everybody was nervous about him having a stroke and he was carrying glasses. I additionally bear in mind noticing instantly that he didn’t have a mirrored image coming from the left lens of his glasses, and that was a facet that he had sudden imaginative and prescient loss in. It turned out that the lens had simply fallen out and that the many individuals who had already cared for them hadn’t seen it someway. So it makes you marvel, how may you speak to or study a affected person with out noticing one thing on his face? Nicely, as a result of we all know that point is tissue in medication, it typically leads us to get in a rush when somebody is available in with some regarding signs. However once we let an intense second take over our feelings and ideas, we frequently make foolish errors. So it’s been an necessary form of lesson for me all through my profession to keep up my composure in these moments.
Nathan Jones: I feel some issues that would actually assist with Mars and humanity sooner or later as we proceed to discover house can be to proceed to work to combine AI to enhance medical care. One other concept I feel can be to research the bounds of how robots can help with caring for sufferers. That’ll be more and more necessary on Earth, however particularly helpful in house as we get additional away from residence. And I feel for example, that if we will learn to have them take over among the duties, with them, since you wouldn’t actually have the ability to take a full medical staff with you, it’s actually going to assist. So can they reliably begin an IV whereas the doctor attend to different duties? Can they safe an airway and actively handle that? And eventually, one device I’d prefer to see somebody develop is a method to mix a number of ultrasound sources right into a 3D picture.
Within the subsequent month we’ll attain the 2 thirds milestone and Mission Day 250. My spouse’s birthday additionally falls within the subsequent month, and at the very least one of many items I bought appears to have gotten misplaced, we’re unsure what occurred to it. And so I’m engaged on ordering one other one and the opposite one which I’m positive she’ll get as a result of we already know the place it’s. I feel she’ll get a reasonably good kick out of. That’s all that I’ve for proper now. I respect everybody’s curiosity in our mission. Have an important day.
Host: Alright, that was Medical Officer Nathan Jones. I really like listening to about his connection to his household. He talked about that fantastic story of instructing his son how you can tie a tie remotely and naturally, at all times interested by his household and their birthdays and at all times establishing that connection all through the length of his mission appears to be a theme. So it’s nice to listen to from Nathan. Cherished his tales of his time in emergency medication. One other very passionate particular person about what he does, and simply understanding that story and the lesson from it. I’d definitely resonate with that. The stakes, after all, in my job, and I feel a lot of ours, will not be at all times as excessive as emergency medication, however at all times taking a beat to only form of notice the place you’re and ensure you’re coming into into the following part of resolution making of no matter it’s you’re doing with a way of composure, I feel is only a very useful train for actually something that you just do. Alright, once more, that was Medical Officer Nathan Jones. Final however not least right here is Science Officer Anca Selariu.
Anca Selariu: Hiya Earthlings and Houston We Have a Podcast. That is Anca, science officer of CHAPEA Mission 1. Nicely, nicely, we’re almost at two thirds of the mission. We have now already discovered enormously from this expertise, however there’s nonetheless an infinite quantity of knowledge to gather and analyze. This previous month, we celebrated the primary ever Mars Day, which we randomly chosen to be February 17. We had a particular meal, which included some additional scrumptious butter cookies, that are my favourite. And we had enjoyable adorning the hab with Mardi Gras, tropical Fiesta decorations as a result of that’s all we have now. Additionally, NASA floor help stunned us on Valentine’s Day with one thing extraordinarily treasured in our media-sparse, internet-free world, which is a recording of the Tremendous Bowl occasion. I had enjoyable watching it, although I don’t usually comply with sports activities. In any other case, we did extra EVAs, extra upkeep and began some actually cool initiatives on the floor for science and life help programs.
The CHAPEA crew will return to planting and harvesting extra crops in March. Pictured listed here are some tomato vegetation they grew contained in the habitat. Credit score: NASA
For subsequent month, I’m particularly excited in regards to the return of the crops, which I’ve missed an important deal. Some questions from Houston We Have a Podcast are “What initially drew you to science as a profession?” Nicely, I’ve at all times been mesmerized by the world and liked observing every part, ever since I can bear in mind. I can’t ever think about not being moved by how a set of recognized and unknown forces and subatomic particles work together to create galaxies and viruses and cultures and tectonic plates, or how issues transfer and evolve. At timescales, we have now no intuitive understanding of as a result of they’re so radically totally different from our personal tiny lifespans. I really like science as a result of it’s actually the closest factor we have now to magic, as a result of with each reply we receive, hundreds new questions come up as a result of the thriller continues to deepen and the journey appears infinite. In order a scientist, you get to at all times be emerged in some fascinating story of discovery. You’re at all times venturing into an unknown with a childlike curiosity and open thoughts and unassailable enthusiasm, even when the possibilities of failure are 98%.
As a U.S. Navy microbiologist, I’d prefer to share an expertise with the viewers that comprises a lesson that I carry with me in the present day. One is that the Navy prepares you for lots greater than you notice. Residing at Mars Dune Alpha shouldn’t be in contrast to a deployment that takes you away from residence right into a distant and remoted surroundings the place communication will not be accessible in actual time, and the place crew welfare and mission success rely on the energy of your staff. One thing that I preserve coming throughout is how terribly tough it’s for contemporary human to know life offline. At Mars Dune Alpha, we have now no web. It’s not a short lived intermittent Wi-Fi is out sort of situation. We merely don’t have any web for the whole length of the mission. That’s 378 days totally offline. No private electronics both, no cell telephones, no private laptops. You solely have a delayed slim bandwidth and size-restricted electronic mail, which solely communicates with Earth with a restricted variety of folks. And we have now to be very considered with knowledge transmission. As a Navy scientist, I’ve had the privilege to study to reside and work offline throughout deployments. And being at all times prepared and counting in your staff within the absence of outdoor assistance is a life ability I’m very glad I’ve acquired and I consider it’s going to be completely important for crewed Mars missions.
Anca Selariu: “What experiment would I need to do on Mars and the way I see it serving to humanity?” Wow, this can be a very tough query to reply in just some minutes. What we learn about life on Earth is that it’s resilient and resourceful and never simply at a person or a species stage, however quite as a complete large system that’s about 3.8 billion years previous that stretches throughout the planet like a patchy, uneven-skinned heteromorphic bios shell with components that preserve altering and die off after which strive once more throughout mountains and underneath the oceans, et cetera. Earth has been a playground for biomolecules and the shapes life has taken throughout eons places Hollywood to disgrace. Life by no means ceased to exist in some kind or one other ever because it began when there was no oxygen to talk of and subsequently no ozone layer and the UV radiation was blistering someway. Life retains discovering a manner. Mars appears resolutely unfriendly to advanced life. Perhaps some microbial extremophiles may have the ability to tolerate its surroundings as a result of they’ve been round when Earth appeared not a lot totally different and perhaps discovered a trick or two. People are just too advanced and too specialised for such a radical change of surroundings. What pursuits me is whether or not there’s a center floor, a method to not solely construct containment and safety and substance for people, however to pre-AP Earth organisms and assist them turn out to be more and more extra tolerant to extraterrestrial circumstances with the top aim being to create a self-sustaining ecosystem in any alien surroundings during which people could possibly discover sources to outlive as nicely.
One small step in studying—I’m imagining how Earthlings naturally adapt to deep house—is to watch what occurs in a mini closed loop organic system when uncovered to deep house circumstances and alter gravity. A number of questions may, once more, if not reply, at the very least clues into how life finds methods to adapt. Finally, clearly, it will likely be a matter of narrowing it down to what’s possible and cost-effective within the foreseeable future. However I do assume that posing the query from the attitude of a full ecosystem stage may be very useful in creating holistic options to the local weather challenges that life is going through now on Earth.
Host: Alright, that was the final audio log from Science Officer Anca Selariu. All the time nice to listen to from Anca and such an interesting perspective on the world, and I suppose the universe since she is simulating being on a distinct world. February 17, people, mark your calendar, is Mars Day. I ponder if the CHAPEA 2 crew will bear in mind this and have a good time that as established by the CHAPEA Mission 1 crew. It looks like for Anca, numerous her pleasure, she had some fascinating solutions to a few of our questions, however I feel numerous her ardour and numerous her pleasure and numerous her perception is in that true pleasure for simply curiosity. She talked about having that bug early on and it maintained all through her whole profession only a sense of simply marvel and curiosity when approaching any query or fixing any downside. Her reply to only among the issues to contemplate for, you recognize, how you can enhance life on Mars and how you can enhance issues was simply so holistic and so philosophical. It was such a beautiful and large-scale method. I ponder what her reply would’ve been if we may have extra time along with her. After we first talked along with her, she talked about approaching a few of these issues and her thoughts is at all times considering 5,000 years into the longer term, just a little bit totally different from others. So it’s at all times fantastic to listen to her perspective in addition to the distinctive perspective of every of the crew. Realizing that Anca matches in with the crew and so they all have this staff spirit is simply important to what includes of a beautiful Mars crew.
[Music]
Host: In order that’s it for Audio Log #8 from Dune Alpha. Thanks once more for sticking round and I hope you’re having fun with following alongside on the crew’s journey. Once more, that is the eighth audio log in our collection. You’ll be able to tune in as soon as a month to examine in on the CHAPEA Mission 1 crew.
In case you are excited about changing into a Mars analog crew member, purposes are open for CHAPEA Mission 2, take a look at CHAPEA.nasa.gov, that’s CHAPEA.nasa.gov, to start your software. The deadline ends shut of enterprise on Tuesday, April 2. Take a look at nasa.gov for the newest on the CHAPEA crew nasa.gov/podcasts to take a look at our full assortment of episodes in addition to the numerous different exhibits we have now throughout the company. If you wish to speak to us particularly, we’re on the NASA Johnson House Middle pages of Fb, X, and Instagram. You’ll be able to take a look at #AskNASA in your favourite platform to submit an concept for the present or ask a query, simply make certain to say it for us at Houston We Have a Podcast.
Recordings had been despatched in from the CHAPEA crew by February, and we had the dialog with Millennia on February 6, 2024. Because of Will Flato, Dane Turner, Daniel Tohill, Abby Graf, Jaden Jennings, Dominique Crespo, and Anna Schneider. Because of Millennia Younger for taking the time to come back on the present. Because of Grace Douglas and Jennifer Miller for his or her efforts in reviewing these audio log episodes. And a giant thanks once more to Kelly Haston, Ross Brockwell, Nathan Jones and Anca Selariu for sharing their experiences for this viewers on Houston We Have a Podcast. Give us a ranking and suggestions on no matter platform you’re listening to us on and inform us what you consider our podcast. We’ll be again subsequent week.