User blog comment:Ygrain/Long Days, Long Nights 3/@comment-4721065-20121001034552/@comment-2228120-20121001065730

Ah, I see - I'm sorta dumb on Monday mornings.

Yes, they are the dead scientists from that mission, which made them somewhatmore pleasurable to write. That will happen off-screen, though, as the story doesn't continue that far.