Making Oxygen on Mars
- justin54534
- Jul 26
- 2 min read
April 2021, two months after the Mars Perseverance Rover delivered our MOXIE payload to the Martian surface, we made oxygen in-situ. This was the first ever successful demonstration of utilizing space resources in human history. The oxygen was generated by taking CO2 out of the Martian atmosphere and processing it at around 800 degrees Celsius (almost 1500 degrees Fahrenheit).
Lunar Outpost played an integral role in this groundbreaking project by:
Assisting in the design of MOXIE mechanical and electrical subsystems.
Developing the MOXIE calibration and characterization plan.
Contributing to the models used to simulate potential experimental runs.
Assisting in design of the parameter set points for operational runs on Mars.
Supporting MOXIE operations and service in the Payload Uplink (PUL) role to prepare MOXIE commands to be sent to Perseverance.
Supporting future experiment planning and design.
The science team for this project was led by NASA and MIT.
Why This Matters
Still operating on Mars today, MOXIE proves that humankind can reach other planetary bodies, create a sustainable presence there, and utilize the resources available. The oxygen MOXIE is creating can be utilized for a wide range of applications including:
Rocket Fuel
Breathable Air
Water
Fuel Cells
Life Support and much more...
Operating on Mars is no easy feat. The involvement of numerous organizations in the creation of the Mars Perseverance rover and all its scientific instruments is a testament to the collaboration required for establishing a multiplanetary presence. It also further proves the value of new types of organizations in the New Space economy, validating that meaningful impacts can be made by entities outside of industry giants and government bodies.
Bottom Line: There are near-infinite resources in space. Humanity can now access them.
Next Steps
We must now access resources at a larger scale both on the Moon and Mars. In the early stages of the New Space economy, resources will be utilized directly on the planetary bodies where they are found. As our technological and infrastructure capabilities advance, we will gain the ability to retrieve these valuable resources and transport them back to Earth.
Medium scale demonstrations of space resources are being developed throughout the industry and will be demonstrated by Lunar Outpost this decade.
