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Technicians from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory lower the Mars Oxygen In-Situ Resource Utilization Experiment (MOXIE) to the Perseverance rover in Pasadena, California, USA. Photo / NASA / JPL-Caltech / Reuters
A NASA-backed team of scientists say they have converted the Red Planet’s carbon dioxide to produce more oxygen over the past 18 months. This success paved the way for the support of human life on the planet Mars.
Since landing on Mars in February 2021, the MIT-led Mars Oxygen In-Situ Resource Utilization Experiment (MOXIE) has converted carbon dioxide (CO2) into oxygen (02) at the speed of a small tree on seven experimental occasions .
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Oxygen is produced during the day and night and in different seasons. This means that astronauts sent to the Martian region will be able to breathe without any other aid. It also provides enough oxygen to power the rocket on its return.
Researcher Prof Michael Hecht, who worked on the project, said it would help in future investigations into the possibility of sustaining life on other planets. Even if only a small step, scientists have hailed it as a giant and promising step for humanity.
“We have learned a lot and will inform future systems on a larger scale. This is the first demonstration of the actual use of a resource on the surface of another planetary object and its chemical transformation into something that would be useful for human missions, ”said MOXIE Deputy Chief Investigator Jeffrey Hoffman.
Read also; NASA confirms readiness to create oxygen on Mars
With the MOXIE capable of producing oxygen, scientists want to increase its ability to convert carbon dioxide into more oxygen. They also want to do more of the instrument this spring.
One thing scientists haven’t been able to do so far is produce oxygen during sunrise and sunset on Mars. Because there is a drastic change in temperature on the planet during sunrise and sunset.
“We have an ace that allows us to do that. And after testing it in the lab, we were able to hit the finish line to show that we can really race at any time, “said Professor Hecht.
(Spider web)
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