Persistence was able to produce oxygen on Mars

NASA’s Perseverance rover is popular mainly for its stunning images of the Red Planet. In addition, we cannot forget the mission to bring samples from the bottom of the ancient lakes that inhabited the neighboring planet. However, these missions seem to be just the tip of the iceberg, as recent experiments show that Perseverance may also be able to generate oxygen on Mars..

Let’s see, Perseverance can do a lot. From an atomic planetary explorer to a communications platform that allowed the first helicopter to fly to another world. But that’s not all and that’s what the MOXIE project team said that it also works as a kind of mechanical tree..

MOXIE, the acronym by which the Mars Oxygen In Situ Experiment is identified, is described as “the first demonstration of in situ resource exploitation on another planet to produce oxygen from the electrolysis of carbon dioxide.” Solid carbon dioxide in the Martian atmosphere. What exactly does this technical feature mean? This is a method that can recycle carbon dioxide in the Martian atmosphere and turn it into oxygen.

Can we breathe on Mars?

Since April 2021, MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) has been leading the details of the MOXIE project.. However, only at the end of August did they decide to publish the results of the investigation in ScienceAchievements. This is the first update regarding the project and the results seem very encouraging.

The study suggests that in the near future we will be able to produce breathable air on the surface of Mars, even with its thin atmosphere. To do this, MIT and MOXIE developed a method for processing the components of the Martian atmosphere. The result was six grams of oxygen per hour.an achievement they achieved in each of the seven tests they conducted with the Perseverance rover on Mars.

MOXIE devices take up no more space than a Perseverance lunch box., and the achievement was quite large. We can only imagine what could be achieved with larger devices or more devices.

This is the first demonstration of the actual use of resources on the surface of another planetary body and their chemical transformation into something useful for the human mission.

Jeffrey Hoffman, former NASA astronaut and current professor of aeronautics and astronautics at MIT

How Perseverance Oxygen Production Works

Meanwhile, the air on Mars is made up mostly of carbon dioxide. This air is then filtered to remove impurities and contaminants.and then subjected to pressure to make the process work more efficiently.

After the previous step, the air is redirected to a device called the Solid OXide Electrolyzer (SOXE). Electrochemical charges separate carbon dioxide molecules into oxygen and carbon monoxide ions.. After this process, oxygen ions combine into pairs, forming molecular oxygen. The latter, of course, is what we need to breathe.

Yes indeed Perseverance can’t store oxygen. After production, the MOXIE equipment checks for purity and then releases oxygen and carbon monoxide back into the Martian atmosphere.

However, the MOXIE team continues to work to verify that this procedure is feasible under various conditions on the Martian surface.. Thus, the ability to produce oxygen under various conditions and temperatures, such as sunrise and sunset, periods when the temperature of the red planet changes dramatically, still needs to be tested.

On the other hand, MOXY will try to produce oxygen in more gramsexceeding the 6g limit that we know so far.

Anyway, this MOXIE study is needed to establish a human base on Mars. After all, one of humanity’s current plans is to lead our species to the colonization of the red planet, a plan that seems as far-fetched as it is impressive. Of course, the production of oxygen is necessary for the development of plant and animal life, and even for the return of our ships to Earth.