HMP Research Station | Haughton-Mars Project: HMP Research Station Status Report

Of course the first event of the day was to be awakened in time for the total solar eclipse! The umbra of the eclipse passed directly over us on this cloudy day, and totality was at 4:25 am CDT. Indeed, the weather did not cooperate in the least, with a solid blanket of clouds before, during, and after the eclipse. However, for HMP participants who have been in 24 hour solid arctic daylight for multiple weeks, the complete darkening of the sky for the duration of totality - 1 minute and 41 seconds - was very dramatic in itself!

Not to be dismayed by the clouds, HMP participants happily flocked to a good viewing site at the HMP Research Station, while [yours truly] Elaine Walker (EPO, HMP, Mars Institute) provided live commentary over streaming video in the Core Module, with some additional commentary by Dr. Pascal Lee (Director, HMP / NASA Ames, Mars Institute, SETI Institute). Thanks to Dr. Stephen Braham (SFU / HMP Associate Director) and the rest of the communications team Christine Pires (SFU / HMP System Support) and Steve Baird (UBC / HMP Field Assistant) for getting the streaming video up and running, in addition to other web cams that captured the dramatic darkening of the sky.

To take full advantage of this rare celestial event, Bill Atwood (Morehead State University) performed radio frequency observations of the total solar eclipse in three different frequencies. This particular experiment worked with cloudy skies, and he collected some solar eclipse data that he and his team will be analyzing in the days to come.

Although the eclipse event was a thrilling change of pace for most HMP participants, the normal HMP schedule was not altered, due to how valuable time is here with the sheer amount of science planned. HMP participants met for breakfast at the normal hour of 7:30 am with our morning meeting at 8:00 am, led by Dr. Pascal Lee (Director, HMP / NASA Ames, Mars Institute, SETI Institute). The field season is about to get even busier with the Mars1 Humvee Rover scenarios and walk-back experiments in the late planning stages.

The Drilling Automation for Mars Exploration (DAME) team put in a very long day, reached their core sampling goals and started packing up the equipment and tents. Brian Glass (NASA Ames / PI for DAME Project) and his team, Sarah Thompson (NASA Ames), Sarah Huffman (NASA Ames) Shannon Statham (Georgia Tech) and Joanna Cohen (Honeybee Robotics) were congratulated during the breakfast meeting and awarded HMP badges.

The twin otter arrived and several HMP participants departed: Mike Langenhan, camp cook, said goodbye to the assistant cook, Mia Bourne. The DAME team bid farewell to Joanna Cohen (Honeybee Robotics) and Shannon Statham (Georgia Tech) who have worked long hours every day with the DAME since they arrived on July 21. Former mayor of Grise Fiord, Jarloo Kiguktak, and son Joseph Atchealak boarded the twin otter. Also departing was short story writer, Eleanor Whitworth, who says her time here will inspire some new writings. Her father, Alex Whitworth, is currently sailing the Northwest Passage and has been calling into the HMP base camp from time to time to check in. We wish him a safe passage.

Without the help of his assistant cook, Mia Bourne, Mike Langenhan still managed to present us with a fabulous turkey dinner with blueberry cobbler and ice cream for desert. He makes it look so easy. Sasa Simeonie from Resolute Bay carved a beautiful arctic scene into a whale bone that we admired during the dinner meeting. There was much to talk about during the meeting, as the HMP camp is kicking into high(er) gear for the rest of the season with Mars1 Humvee Rover traverse scenarios, walk-back experiments, and other research surrounding those activities.

Related to these activities, Tom Chase of Hamilton Sundstrand is working out a way to secure the space suit in the Mars1 Humvee Rover. Marcelo Vazquez (NSBRI, Space Radiation Liason) finished the site selection for the walk back experiments with Dr. Stephen Braham (SFU / HMP Associate Director) and Brian Glass (NASA Ames).

John Parnell (University of Aberdeen), Prof. Charlie Mason (Morehead State University) and his student, Megan Ennis, traversed to Trinity Lake for the day, doing geological mapping and research.

Meanwhile, several participants took video footage from the total solar eclipse event that needed editing and uploading. [yours truly] Elaine Walker (EPO, HMP, Mars Institute) is editing the streaming video with live commentary from herself and Dr. Pascal Lee (Director, HMP / NASA Ames, Mars Institute, SETI Institute) down to a 10 minute piece. Elaine also set her "Devon Island" song to Marcelo Vazquez's (NSBRI, Space Radiation Liason) real-time video of HMP participants watching the eclipse event. Christine Pires (SFU / HMP System Support) worked on a time lapse video from a camera she set up overlooking HMP base camp. Film Director, Laurent Lichtenstein, put together a very dramatic time lapse of the eclipse as well.

Photo Sets: Total Solar Eclipse at HMP RS | HMP RS - August 1, 2008

Video: Laurent Lichtenstein, Film Director
Music: "New World" from the "Mars" CD by Elaine Walker
HD Time Lapse Video of Total Solar Eclipse at HMP Research Station, Devon Island

Live Comentary by [yours truly] Elaine Walker (EPO, HMP, Mars Institute) and Dr. Pascal Lee (Director, HMP / Mars Institute, SETI Institute, NASA Ames)
Streaming Video With Live Commentary of Total Solar Eclipse at HMP Research Station, Devon Island

Videography: Marcelo Vasquez (NSBRI, Space Radiation Liason)
"Devon Island" song by Elaine Walker (EPO, HMP, Mars Institute)
Real-Time Video of Total Solar Eclipse at HMP Research Station

Written account of the eclipse by Dr. Pascal Lee
(Mars Institute, SETI Institute, NASA Ames Research Center)
Total Solar Eclipse of 1 August 2008 as experienced from the Haughton-Mars Project Research Station, Devon Island, High Arctic

One of the HMP scientists, Bill Atwood from Morehead State University, did some radio frequency observations that did not require clear skies.
Watch his science report here

"HMP7SFU Portable Elaine out and clear"