- NASA’s MOXIE experiment aboard the Perseverance rover successfully generated oxygen from the Martian atmosphere 16 times, exceeding initial expectations.
- The technology could provide future astronauts with breathable air and rocket propellant, significantly advancing the prospects for human exploration of Mars.
September 7, 2023, Pasadena, California – When the first astronauts set foot on Mars, they may owe a debt of gratitude to a device no larger than a microwave oven. NASA’s Mars Oxygen In-Situ Resource Utilization Experiment (MOXIE) has concluded its operations aboard the Perseverance rover, and the results are promising for future human exploration of the Red Planet.
A Breath of Fresh Martian Air
MOXIE’s primary mission was to extract oxygen from Mars’ thin atmosphere, a task it accomplished 16 times. “MOXIE’s impressive performance shows that it is feasible to extract oxygen from Mars’ atmosphere – oxygen that could help supply breathable air or rocket propellant to future astronauts,” said NASA Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy.
Since its deployment, MOXIE has generated a total of 122 grams of oxygen, roughly the amount a small dog would breathe in 10 hours. At its peak efficiency, the device produced 12 grams of oxygen per hour at a purity level of 98% or better, doubling NASA’s original goals.
Living Off the Martian Land
The success of MOXIE opens the door to what is known as in-situ resource utilization (ISRU), a concept that has evolved into a growing area of research. “By proving this technology in real-world conditions, we’ve come one step closer to a future in which astronauts ‘live off the land’ on the Red Planet,” said Trudy Kortes, director of technology demonstrations at NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD).
Michael Hecht, the principal investigator of MOXIE from MIT, added, “MOXIE has clearly served as inspiration to the ISRU community. It showed NASA is willing to invest in these kinds of future technologies.”
Future Focus
While MOXIE’s mission is complete, the next steps involve scaling the technology. “The next step wouldn’t be building MOXIE 2.0. Rather, it would be to create a full-scale system that includes an oxygen generator like MOXIE and a way to liquefy and store that oxygen,” said Hecht.
More About the Mission
The Perseverance rover’s primary mission is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will also pave the way for human exploration of Mars and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith.
