Design an image with technological value that highlights and makes visible the role of women in science and the Hypatia mission. Unfold the drawing on a large scale in the desert and capture it with a satellite. Use the resulting image to send a media message on the International Day of Women and Girls in Science about the deployment of technology on Mars by an all-female analog mission, and about the power and value of satellites.
We planned to set up the macro piece of art during the first SOLs of the Hypata II analog mission. The first EVA would be dedicated to preparing the terrain using reference strings, followed by a second and third EVA to unfold the fabric. The artwork was intended to remain in place for the duration of the mission, allowing as many satellites as possible to pass overhead. This would increase the chances of capturing the image before retrieving the fabric.
The goal was to deploy a 65 m x 35 m footprint that would be visible from a Low Earth Orbit satellite. During the first EVA we would mark the terrain using Pythagorean principles and ancient measurement practice, already used by the Egyptians to redraw their fields when the Nile went down after the rainy season. Using three strings measuring 30 m, 40 m, and 50 m, perfect right-angle triangles on the ground to define the four corners of our art piece. From there, we could mark the different 5 m × 5 m pixels that would be covered with fabric, forming a footprint visible from the air.
Original plan for macro art project
Pitagoras principle to marc the terrain
The first EVA went smoothly. We marked the terrain, placed the strings that would serve as guides, and unfolded two rolls of fabric, securing them to the ground with pegs. Although the process was physically demanding, everything was progressing according to plan. However, around the second hour, problems began to arise. The wind started to blow, and the fabric tore in a way that prevented the pegs from holding it in place. We picked up nearby rocks to weigh it down, but the gusts kept getting stronger and even moved some of the stones. It quickly became clear that there was nothing we could do. We collected the fabric, aborted the EVA, returned to base, and began thinking of a solution.
The weather forecast predicted strong winds throughout the first week, leaving only a two-day window of calm conditions. This put the deployment of the footprint at risk before the scheduled satellite passes on SOL 6. After some deliberation, we decided to modify the art piece from a 65 m × 35 m footprint to a simpler design: a 40 m × 40 m cross. Despite reducing the complexity of the drawing, a 40 m × 40 m cross still required deploying five rolls of canvas side by side, unrolling them over 40 meters in one direction and then repeating the process perpendicularly. In addition, the deployment had to be carried out while wearing our 14 kg life-supportbackpacks, gloves, and helmets that limited visibility to the front only, while relying solely on radio communication between us.
For all these reasons, we had initially planned to carry out the deployment over several days in multiple EVAs. However, the new conditions forced us to complete it in a single outing, just before the satellite pass, to ensure that the wind would not carry the drawing away between placement and imaging. The satellite passes from OpenCosmos where scheduled for SOL 6, coinciding with a clear and windless day. However, wind gusts of up to 70 km/h were forecast for the previous day.
To increase our chances of success during the EVA on SOL 6, we decided to prepare the terrain in advance. During two EVAs on SOL 4—when the weather conditions were not expected to jeopardize operations—we staked two fully perpendicular 40 m strings into the desert, marking the “skeleton” of the cross. We also collected and placed a series of rocks along the esplanade where the cross would be deployed, so that when we unrolled the fabric on SOL 6, the rocks could immediately be placed on top to secure it.
On SOL 6, we began the EVA at sunrise and worked at maximum intensity for two hours to deploy the cross on time. Once the fabric was in place, we flew a drone to verify that the cross was properly orthogonal and had the desired dimensions. Fortunately, the weather remained calm throughout the day, and the drawing was fully deployed during both satellite passes. In the afternoon, the team conducted another EVA to retrieve the canvases, preventing them from being blown away, as stronger winds were expected the following day.
The cross was successfully captured by the satellite MANTIS from OpenCosmos, the company with whom we collaborated on this art project. The image was sent to us a few days later, and we felt an immense sense of relief. But this action was never only about geometry or satellite imaging. The installation formed part of Women Leave Their Mark, a macro land art and space-awareness project created by Hypatia Mars to commemorate the International Day of Women and Girls in Science 2025. By physically constructing a mark visible from space, under the operational constraints of a planetary simulation, we transformed the desert into both a scientific testbed and a symbolic statement.
