Extracting oxygen from the Martian atmosphere

ArabiaWeather - Mars exploration is one of humanity's greatest challenges in the field of space and space exploration. In order to achieve this goal, the American space agency NASA has carried out innovative research and experiments, and one of the most recent dazzling discoveries announced by NASA is the possibility of extracting breathable oxygen on the surface of Mars.

Space journey towards oxygen extraction on Mars

An experiment on Mars has shown that it is possible to extract breathable oxygen from the red planet's thin atmosphere. NASA announced the success of a small toaster-like device carried by the Perseverance rover in this important achievement.

This experiment was carried out at the "Moxy" site on the surface of Mars, where the small device used the oxygen resources available in the Martian atmosphere by repeatedly decomposing Martian air molecules; This device succeeded in producing a constant supply of breathable oxygen, which is an important development that contributes to the advancement of future space research and exploration on Mars.

How does the Moxy device work on Mars?

Answer: The Moxy device works by performing electrolysis processes. It begins its work by drawing air from the surface of Mars through a filter that is cleaned to remove impurities. The purified air is then compressed, heated and directed towards the carbon dioxide electrolyser. Here, an electrical current is used to stimulate an electrochemical reaction that splits carbon dioxide into carbon monoxide and oxygen ions. The carbon monoxide is then removed, and the oxygen atoms are recombined to form molecular oxygen, which can be used for breathing. This gas is measured in terms of quantity and purity. Before draining it again.

"Moxy" extracts oxygen quickly and effectively, producing about 10 grams of oxygen, equivalent to about 20 minutes of breathable oxygen for astronauts, within one hour for each experiment followed by a period of pause, and a variety of amounts of oxygen that was produced was successfully achieved. The production reached about 9.8 grams in one of the rounds, which is very close to the target. This achievement shows the possibility of producing oxygen on the surface of Mars, and enhances the chances of sustaining space missions and future explorations on this planet. Even in the worst cases, the “Moxy” device can That supplements other oxygen supplies, reducing the load necessary to transport oxygen from Earth.

Innovative technology... development of "MOXI" to enhance space exploration

In light of what the researchers learned from the “Moxy” experiment during this period, they believe, under the supervision of Michael Hecht, a physicist and principal investigator from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, that they are able to develop a large-scale system that includes a new and improved version of the oxygen extraction device, in addition to a way to liquefy this gas and a method. To store liquid oxygen.

Hecht said in a statement published by NASA on September 6 :

“We need to make wise decisions about what to investigate on Mars, and I think there are many technologies to test, and I'm very pleased that Moxy was the first step.”

Future Mars explorers will need all the support they can get to achieve self-sufficiency. This requires meeting the breathing needs of the astronaut team that will live on Mars for a year, and also meeting the needs of liquid fuel needed to power the spacecraft, and they are expected to need about 500 tons Metric of oxygen.

They will have to wait, though, as many challenges remain to be tested and solved before humans dare to settle for long periods on the surface of Mars. Oxygen is just one part of those complex challenges.

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Sources:

aljazeera

bbc