Endurance efficiently extracts oxygen from the Martian ambiance. About 10 minutes of respiratory time for an astronaut

Humanity has reached an incredible series of new milestones on Mars this week. It started on Monday, April 19, when the Ingenuity helicopter demonstrated the first powered, controlled flight on another world. And now, for the first time, the Perseverance rover has used ingredients from the Martian atmosphere to create breathable oxygen. This test could pave the way for future astronauts to live off land on the Red Planet.

The feat was achieved through Mars Oxygen’s In-Situ Resource Use (MOXIE) experiment, a gold-colored cube bolted to the rover’s belly. Within an hour on April 20, MOXIE produced 5.4 grams of oxygen, enough to keep an astronaut breathing for about ten minutes.

Data from MOXIE’s first oxygen production test. The two small reductions in oxygen production, known as the “current sweeps”, were made specifically to assess the status of the instrument. Photo credit: MIT Haystack Observatory

MOXIE sucks in carbon dioxide (which makes up about 96% of the thin Martian atmosphere) and filters out unwanted particles. The compressed carbon dioxide is then heated, breaking the molecules down into oxygen and carbon monoxide. Further heating is required to separate the two new gases, release the unwanted carbon monoxide back into the atmosphere, and leave the breathable oxygen behind. The gold-plated exterior of MOXIE protects the other instruments on the rover from the extreme heat of the process, which reaches over 800 degrees Celsius.

Like Ingenuity, MOXIE is a technology demonstration: neither has any influence on the primary scientific goals of Perseverance. Instead, they should provide proofs of concept for future missions. Future Ingenuity-like drones may be able to explore places where a rover cannot go, such as B. a cliff edge or a gap. Similarly, future missions could use MOXIE-like technology to enable long-term exploration.

Creating a breathable atmosphere for humans is not the only application. It could also be used to refuel a missile for its return journey home. MOXIE Principal Investigator Michael Hecht explains, “Removing four astronauts from the surface of Mars for a future mission would require 15,000 pounds (7 tons) of rocket fuel and 55,000 pounds (25 tons) of oxygen … The astronauts who spend a year on the surface maybe a ton between them is used to breathe. “In other words, most of the oxygen produced by future MOXIE-like devices is not for life support, but for propulsion.

NASA’s Perseverance Rover with MOXIE on board takes a selfie next to the Ingenuity helicopter on April 6, 2021. Photo credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / MSSS.

Future tests will push the boundaries of what MOXIE can do. It should be able to double its output to 12 grams of oxygen per hour, and over the next two years it will be tested at least nine more times under different conditions (different seasons and times of day). The team is currently also analyzing the purity of the oxygen produced: preliminary results show an almost perfect success.

In the meantime, Ingenuity still has about a week and a half for the test phase, during which the flights become increasingly complicated. When it’s done, Perseverance will do its own mission – bring MOXIE – to collect samples from Martian soil and rocks. The samples will be collected from a future sample return mission and brought to Earth for close examination.

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Featured image: MOXIE is lowered into the belly of the Perseverance Rover. Photo credit: NASA / JPL.

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