Levine Reaches Mars

David Levine, faned, Hugo-winning author, and now simulated Mars explorer, has posted his first journal entry from the Mars Society’s Mars Desert Research Station.

David begins by admitting that finding the MDRS is almost as hard as working the ballistic math in a Heinlein novel:

We did get slightly lost in that last stretch — we were following a vague and extremely sketchy map drawn on the back of a cash register receipt by the clerk at the Hollow Mountain — but we were only half an hour behind schedule when the white cylinder of the hab, familiar to all of us from photographs even though we’d never been here before, peeked out from behind a rust-colored rock formation.

There’s a break in the simulation while the old and new crew are in transition, for orientation, move-in and setup:

The current crew (MDRS-87) greeted us warmly and gave us a whirlwind tour of the hab, complete with safety instructions, an EVA suiting demo, a short hike to a nearby fossil bed, and instructions on dealing with the temperamental ATVs (every one different from the others).

As you might expect, it’s by far the most colorful post from anyone in the crew (links to the others are here.)

David says the Martian simulation will resume on Monday:

We aren’t really on Mars yet. But we’re definitely a long way from home.

P.S. David is also doing updates via Twitter: @MDRSupdates