The United States Space Agency’s (NASA) Perseverance Rover continues to make history.
An instrument attached to the six-wheeled rover turned the carbon dioxide in the Martian atmosphere into oxygen, the first time this happened on a different plane.and, NASA said Wednesday.
“This is a critical first step in transforming carbon dioxide into oxygen on Mars,” said Jim Reuter, associate administrator for NASA’s space technology mission.
The demonstration took place on April 20 and subsequent versions of the experimental instrument used are expected to pave the way for human exploration in the future.
Not only can the process produce oxygen for future astronauts to breathe, but it could also prevent the transport of large amounts of oxygen from Earth to be used as a rocket propellant on the return journey.
The Mars In Situ Oxygen Use Experiment (MOXIE) is a gold box the size of a car battery and is located on the front-right side of the rover.
Nicknamed the “mechanical shaft”, it uses electricity and chemistry to divide carbon dioxide molecules, which are made up of one carbon atom and two oxygen atoms.
It also produces carbon monoxide as a by-product.
In its first stage, MOXIE produced 5 grams of oxygen, equivalent to about 10 minutes of respirable oxygen for an astronaut performing normal activity.
MOXIE engineers – designed to generate up to 10 grams of oxygen per hour – will now perform additional tests and try to increase its performance.
Designed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), MOXIE was built with heat-resistant materials, such as nickel alloy, to tolerate the temperatures of 1,470 degrees Fahrenheit (800 Celsius) required for its operation.
A thin layer of gold ensures that it does not radiate heat and does not damage the rover.
MIT engineer Michael Hecht said a one-ton version of MOXIE could produce about 25,000 kilograms (25 tons) of oxygen needed for a rocket to leave Mars.
Producing oxygen from Mars’ atmosphere, composed of 96% carbon dioxide, could be a more feasible option than extracting ice from beneath its surface and then electrolyzing it.
Perseverance landed on the red planet on February 18 on a mission to look for signs of microbial life.
His Genius mini-helicopter made history this week by making its first flight to another planet.
The rover itself recorded the sounds of Mars directly for the first time.