MDRS 165 Journalist Report
Tomoya Mori
Sol 7
Earth date: 03/13/2016
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It took me 6 days.
Today was our 6th EVA, and I finally mastered it. I used to joke that I’m going to be the first filmmaker on the Moon — well, I’ve gone past the Moon and here I am on Mars, finally mastered how to shoot a movie with my bulky spacesuit on, and these thick gloves ain’t pulling me back anymore.
Climbing up those steep hills with a tripod and a camera is quite a challenge. One missed step and you end up in a Martian hospital. But Marsonauts are risk-takers, right? I’d do anything to capture the beautiful red scenery that quietly surrounds us.
Solution is quite simple. I basically auto-focus on my subject before pressing the record button. That’s it. You just shoot the movie as you normally would. But no manual focusing. With the helmet in the way, you can’t rely on your vision. Human-machine collaboration right there.
Speaking of machines, I’m going to be planning for my human-robotic interaction research using the Nor-Cal rover. This is going to be an improv, but one of the things I learned is that spacesuits are freakin’ heavy. Sometimes you wish robots served you a nice cup of coffee while out on your EVA.
Let’s see what I can workout. There’s got to be a way for humans and robots to work together so we can optimize the outcome.
I have 5 more days.
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Tomoya Mori
Crew Journalist MDRS 165