Het logo werd ontworpen door crewlid Aster Stein (Crew Journalist/Education Officer), enkele wijzigingen werden nog aangebracht door Leandro Barajas (helm, zon en maan).
In het logo is het crewnummer verwerkt in Romeinse cijfers: CIX. De cijfers zijn in goudkleur verwerkt om het accent te leggen op de crew als één geheel. De C is ingekleurd met een astronaut met helm op een rode en blauwe achtergrond zijnde “Mars on Earth”. Op de achtergrond is de zon en de maan te zien. Het licht van de zon werpt een schaduw op het gezicht van de astronaut. Aan de rechterzijde zijn beide vlaggen van de crewleden verwerkt. De 4 sterren op de Amerikaanse vlag duiden op de 4 Amerikanen in het team.
Crew MDRS109
Crew MDRS109
Nicky De Munster (Waregem, Belgium) Commander
ICT BME-CTL Gent
Space teacher Euro Space Society www.eurospace.be
IT-teacher at CVO Waregem www.cvowaregem.be
Nicky De
Munster is
currently an ICT teacher at CVO Waregem, Belgium. He is 50 years old, married
to Katharina and has one daughter Anke. He is very grateful with the support of
his family concerning his space activities. At the age of eight, Nicky observed
the first landing on the moon, sitting in front of a tiny black and white
television screen. This turned out to be the first step towards a profound
space and science interest. He is a
member of and space teacher for the Euro
Space Society, which has Dirk Frimout as chairman, i.e. Belgian’s first
astronaut. Nicky organizes space lectures and space activities in primary and
secondary schools, as his main goal is to promote space, science and technology
to young children, the astronauts and scientists of the future. He is also a
member of the Belgian Astronomical Association and writes for the Belgian space
magazine “Heelal”. Presently, Nicky is taking part in a project named “With
your class to Mars”, organized by the University of Antwerp and the teacher
training center CNO. To promote space, he build up quite some experience by
means of space visits, activities and experiments. First of all, in 2002, he
got the opportunity to visit Belgian astronaut Frank De Winne during his
training in Star City, Russia. Sitting
in a Russian Soyuz capsule was a
dream that came true. Two years later, thanks to ESA, he could
participate in a parabolic flight with Airbus A300 ZERO-G at Bordeaux, in which
he experienced 31 parabolas. During this flight, he was a subject for a medical
experiment called ‘Cardiocog’, executed by the University of Leuven, Belgium.
This experiment was the same one that Belgian astronaut Frank De Winne had previously
done at the International Space Station ISS. Thirdly, in 2006, he could take
part in an experiment with the ESA centrifuge at the University of Antwerp and
in a second part of the Cardiocog Stress experiment at the University of Leuven.
Another example is that, in 2008, he was selected to represent Belgium at the
International Space Camp in Huntsville, Alabama, where he could share this
experience with 50 American ‘teachers of the year’ and 21 international
teachers. In 2010 he was the crew engineer of MDRS90. Finally, in April 2011,
he managed to visit the Mars500 project at Moscow. Overall, he met more than
one hundred astronauts, including 8 moonwalkers.
In his free time, besides organizing space lectures and activities, Nicky
enjoys astronomy, gliding, reading and cooking.
Onboard MDRS, Nicky will execute several school-based experiments and
will serve as general supportive crewmember. As commander of crew MDRS109 and
with the support of his teammates, he hopes to accomplish his mission
successfully and looks forward to share his experience with Belgian children and
students.
Aster Stein (Herent, Belgium) Crew Journalist/ Education Officer
From an early age on, Aster Stein has been very interested in manned spaceflight. Between
the ages of 16 and 27, he worked regularly as guide and space camp councellor
at the Euro Space Center in Transinne, Belgium. This was a perfect combination
between his passion for youth work and space education. At this time, he is
spreading the word about science and technology as an edutainer at Technopolis,
Belgium’s biggest hands-on science center.
Aster holds a Master’s degree in Communication Science
and a teaching degree from the Vrije Universiteit Brussel. One of his mission
goals is sharing his personal and scientific adventures on board MDRS 109 with
as many people as possible. This will be accomplished by creating a set of
educational materials and doing outreach projects. For this mission he was
designated as Journalist. He will also serve as general support crewmember,
helping the other crew members with scientific experiments and day to day
activities.
In his free time, Aster enjoys scuba diving, skiing,
geocaching, gaming, watching movies, cooking and traveling a lot.Dr. Ir. Leandro G. Barajas (Michigan, USA) Chief Engineer/Robotics
Leandro Giovanni Barajas, Ph.D., PMP
is a Staff Researcher with the Advanced Robotics Group at General Motors Global
R&D. He is currently focusing his research on the areas of safe human-robot
interaction, robot task learning, dexterous end-effectors, and intelligent
perception. For the last few years he has been part of the interdisciplinary
GM-NASA team developing the humanoid dexterous robot, Robonaut 2 (R2). R2 was
designed to be a robotic assistant that can work alongside humans, whether they
are astronauts in space or workers at GM manufacturing plants on Earth. R2 was
launched up to the International Space Station (ISS) on 2/24/2011 as part of
the STS-133 mission, fulfilling a 15 year dream to put a humanoid robot into
space. As recognition for his contributions to R2, he has received the Federal
Laboratory Consortium (FLC) Award for Excellence in Technology Transfer, the
NASA Exceptional Space Act Award, and the NASA Johnson Space Center’s
Exceptional Software Award.
Leandro
will be the Chief Engineer and Robotics Specialist of the MDRS Crew 109. He
will responsible for maintaining all systems necessary for routine Habitat
operations including power, water, electrical, plumbing, ATV, and Green Habitat
systems. He will also work with the remote engineering team to ensure safe and
functional operations of the mission.
Leandro
received an Honors degree in Electronics Engineering as Valedictorian from the
Universidad Distrital F.J.C., Bogotá, Colombia, in 1998, and the M.S. and Ph.D.
degrees in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the Georgia Institute of
Technology (Georgia Tech), Atlanta, GA in 2000 and 2003, respectively. During
his graduate studies, he developed and patented novel surface mount technology
manufacturing control methodologies at Georgia Tech’s Manufacturing Research
Center. Leandro has been distinguished with over 30 corporate, academic and
professional awards. He is also the author of over 50 technical publications, as
well as more than 30 patents & patent applications.
Leandro
is also a certified Project Manager Professional (PMP) and a Project Management
Institute (PMI) member. He is a IEEE Senior Member, a SME Senior Member, a SAE
International Member and an Elected Full Member & GM Chapter Past President
of SIGMA XI (The Scientific Research Society). In addition, he has been a
dedicated FIRST Robotics Competition mentor for the Rochester High School/GM
R&D team (FEDS 201) for last 8 years.
Leandro
is a certified YMCA-PADI Open Water II SCUBA Diver and a FAA licensed Private
Pilot (ASEL, HP) currently flying Cessna 172s & 182s and Columbia 350s.
David K. Weiss (South Carolina, USA) Crew Geologist/Executive Officer
David Kutai Weiss is currently a senior and member of the class of 2012 at the College of Charleston. David is a geology major with a passion in planetary geology and future human missions to Mars. He began his interest in planetary geology by participating in two academic NASA space mission design competitions involving the College of Charleston and several other participating U.S. and international universities. His passion for spaceflight took off when he was able to present his mission proposals before a review panel at NASA Marshall Space Flight Center. This past summer, he conducted research at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Solar System Exploration Division in the Lunar and Planetary Science Academy. His research at Goddard involved modeling the thermodynamic evolution of flood basalts on Mars using HiRISE imagery from the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter with implications for Martian paleoclimate. David’s current research includes modeling crustal delamination, and he is using finite element analysis software to answer the question of whether Large Igneous Provinces and continental uplift can be answered through brittle extensional sub-lithospheric processes. David also enjoys spreading his passion for space science, and co-teaches professional development courses on planetary science for elementary through high school teachers through the South Carolina Space Grant Consortium.
Onboard MDRS, David will use ArcGIS,
ASTER satellite data, coring, cone penetrometer, and a rover to create a map
detailing potential rover routes for exploration and water acquisition based on
hydrous mineral locations with absorption minima at 2.2 μm, soil strength, soil water content, and terrain gradient.
In his free time, David enjoys rock climbing,
bouldering, caving, white water rafting, sea kayaking, wilderness backpacking,
reading, sailing, and designing and building longboards. He also enjoys boxing, wrestling, taekwando,
and Jiu Jitsu, and is the founder, vice president, and assistant coach of the
College of Charleston Martial Arts Club.
After he graduates from the College of Charleston in May, David hopes to participate in a Ph.D program starting in the fall of 2012, with a research focus in planetary geophysics and geodynamics. His ultimate goal is to become an astronaut and travel to Mars and beyond.
After he graduates from the College of Charleston in May, David hopes to participate in a Ph.D program starting in the fall of 2012, with a research focus in planetary geophysics and geodynamics. His ultimate goal is to become an astronaut and travel to Mars and beyond.
Victoria Grudzinski (Rome, New York, USA) Crew Biologist
Victoria Grudzinski was
salutatorian of her graduating class at Rome Catholic School. While there, she
was a member of the National Honors Society and the Principals List. She was
awarded the President’s Education Awards Program, Outstanding Academic
Excellence Award 2009 and the Rome Academy of Sciences, 2009 Science Award, for
Mathematics and Science. She tutored elementary and high school students during
her junior and senior year in high school. Victoria
is currently a junior of the class of 2013 at Wells
College in the Finger Lakes region of
central New York . Victoria
is currently a biology major with plans on pursuing a graduate degree in
astrobiology. In this way, she is pursuing her interest of wildlife along with
a future goal of being a part of human missions to Mars. She developed her interest in biology during
family vacations, visiting her mother’s family’s farm(s) in Poland . She has done volunteer work at the Humane
Society of Rome. Her interest in Mars comes from her interest in space
exploration and establishing a permanent human presence off the planet Earth.
As
the Crew Biologist, she has prime responsibility for developing the biology
goals for the mission. Based on these science goals, field EVAs are planned and
subsequent laboratory analysis is performed to achieve these objectives. Collection of biological/geological
samples will be done using sterile protocol, using a penetrometer, and testing
a portion of these samples will take place in the MDRS laboratory. Packaging and sending out the remaining portion
of these samples will occur at the end of the rotation. The Crew
Biologist documents all work and findings to report to Mission Support each
evening.
To relax, Karon Wynne (Philadelphia, USA) Crew Health & Safety Officer/Biologist
Karon Wynne
is currently pursuing her Ph.D. in Neuroscience and Masters in Public Health at
the University of Texas Medical Branch. As a Ph.D. candidate her research is
focused on the development of novel technology for both the diagnostics and
treatment of traumatic brain injury. Karon also works at NASA Johnson Space
Center developing a countermeasure for radiation induced cellular damage. She
was recently awarded a scholarship by the Texas Space Grant Consortium. Since beginning at UTMB in 2010, she has
served as treasurer for the Galveston Chapter of the Society for Neuroscience,
Student Government Association Senator, as well as Vice President and Community
Service Coordinator for the Public Health Organization.
Karon
received a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics from West Virginia University. At
WVU, Karon was awarded a university scholarship, the Mickey Leland Energy
Fellowship and was a member of the Honors College. After graduating from WVU,
Karon worked for the U.S. Department of Energy at the National Energy
Technology Laboratory and Argonne National Laboratory developing alternative
energy technology. She has also interned
at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, where her research was focused on
the use of microfluidics for pathogen identification in the event of biological
warfare.
As
part of MDRS Crew 109, Karon will serve as the Health and Safety Officer (HSO)
as well as assisting in the Crew Biologist role. As HSO she will be responsible
for crew health and telemedicine sessions with the Flight Surgeon. Karon is
also planning to run a study that correlates environmental factors at MDRS with
team morale.
Karon
plans to obtain an M.D. as well as a Ph.D. and specialize in surgery or anesthesiology.
She hopes to work to improve patient safety, developing novel medical
technology for critical care monitoring and traumatic brain injury.
