NASA was able to produce 122 grams of oxygen on Mars: enough to keep a dog alive for ten hours (video)

This development holds great promise for future human missions to Mars and beyond. Not only does it paves the way for the sustainability of human life on the Red Planet, but it also opens up the possibility of using local resources.

in A pioneering achievement Which represents a great leap in space exploration, h NASA Successfully produced Oxygen to Mars for the first time. The historic experiment conducted by the Perseverance spacecraft, which landed on the red planet in February 2021, demonstrated the possibility of… Producing vital resources to sustain life on Mars.

this pioneer This achievement was made possible by the use of a small sized device known as a Moxy, which is no larger than a microwave oven. Over more than two years, Moxy periodically extracted oxygen from the Martian atmosphere, burning its contents into carbon dioxide.

The result of this amazing effort is the production 122 grams of oxygen In total. To put this feat into perspective, just 5 grams of oxygen is enough to sustain a human life astronaut for approx 10 minutes. Therefore, the 122 grams produced could provide the necessary oxygen to the astronaut for about three hours.

This development holds great promise for future human missions Mars And beyond. Not only does it pave the way for sustaining human life on the Red Planet, but it also opens up the possibility of using local resources for rocket fuel in future explorations.

Deputy Program Administrator Pam Milroy was pleased with MOXIE’s impressive performance, emphasizing its importance in leveraging the resources needed for space missions. He said:MOXIE’s impressive performance shows that it is possible to extract oxygen from the Martian atmosphere, oxygen that could help provide breathable air or rocket fuel for future astronauts.».

The implications of this achievement extend far beyond Mars. NASA envisions a future where similar technologies will enable resource exploitation on the Moon and Mars, facilitate long-term lunar existence, create a robust lunar economy, and ultimately support human exploration missions to Mars.