NASA’s Perseverance Mars Rover Extracts First Oxygen from Red Planet.
                     NASA’s Perseverance 
Mars Rover Extracts First 
Oxygen from Red Planet
Introduction
The growing list of “firsts” for 
Perseverance, NASA’s newest six-
wheeled robot on the Martian surface, 
includes converting some of the Red 
Planet’s thin, carbon dioxide-rich 
atmosphere into oxygen.
Source: www.nasa.gov
Mars Oxygen In-Situ 
Resource Utilization 
Experiment (MOXIE) 
A toaster-size, experimental instrument 
aboard Perseverance called the Mars 
Oxygen In-Situ Resource Utilization 
Experiment (MOXIE) accomplished the 
task. The test took place April 20, the 
60th Martian day, or sol, since the 
mission landed Feb. 18.
Source: www.nasa.gov
Technology 
demonstration 
While the technology demonstration is 
just getting started, it could pave the 
way for science fiction to become 
science fact – isolating and storing 
oxygen on Mars to help power rockets 
that could lift astronauts off the planet’s 
surface. 
Such devices also might one day provide 
breathable air for astronauts themselves.
Source: www.nasa.gov
Mars Environmental 
Dynamics Analyzer 
MOXIE is an exploration technology 
investigation as is the Mars 
Environmental Dynamics Analyzer 
(MEDA) weather station and is sponsored 
by NASA’s Space Technology Mission 
Directorate (STMD) and Human 
Exploration and Operations Mission 
Directorate.
Source: www.nasa.gov
How did Perseverance 
produce oxygen on 
Mars?
In its first operation since arriving on the 
Red Planet, the Mars Oxygen In-Situ 
Resource Utilization Experiment (MOXIE) 
produced 5 grams of oxygen from carbon 
dioxide in the Martian atmosphere, 
enough for an astronaut to breathe for 
10 minutes.
Source: indianexpress.com
Why is producing 
oxygen on the Red 
Planet so important?
A substantial amount of oxygen supply 
on Mars is essential for crewed missions 
that plan to go there not just for 
astronauts to breathe but for rockets to 
use as fuel while coming back to Earth.
Source: indianexpress.com
Oxygen 
Requirement
As per the NASA press release, for four 
astronauts to take off from Mars, a future 
mission would require around 7 metric 
tons of rocket fuel and 25 metric tons of 
oxygen– around the weight of an entire 
space shuttle. 
In contrast, astronauts living and working 
on Mars would require far less oxygen to 
breathe, maybe around one metric ton.
Source: indianexpress.com
Liquified oxygen
Scientists believe that it will be an 
enormous challenge to haul the 25 
metric tons of oxygen from Earth to Mars 
for the return journey, and that their job 
would become significantly easier if the 
liquified oxygen can be produced on the 
Red Planet. This is where MOXIE’s role 
comes in.
Source: indianexpress.com
Technological 
descendant 
NASA hopes to build a larger 
technological descendant of the 
experimental MOXIE that can do this job.
A one-ton oxygen converter of this kind 
would be much more economical and 
practical to take to Mars, instead of 25 
metric tons of oxygen, the agency 
argues.
Source: indianexpress.com
The Future
MOXIE has more work to do, but the 
results from this technology 
demonstration are full of promise as we 
move toward our goal of one day seeing 
humans on Mars. 
Oxygen isn’t just the stuff we breathe. 
Rocket propellant depends on oxygen, 
and future explorers will depend on 
producing propellant on Mars to make 
the trip home.
Source: indianexpress.com