NASA Rover Makes Oxygen From Martian Atmosphere
April 22nd, 2021Via: NPR:
After making the first powered flight on another world, NASA’s Mars 2020 mission has managed another key first that could pave the way for future astronauts by making breathable oxygen out of the wispy Martian air.
NASA announced that an instrument aboard the rover had successfully extracted carbon dioxide from the atmosphere on Mars and then electrochemically split oxygen atoms from carbon dioxide molecules.
The Martian atmosphere is about 95% carbon dioxide. The remainder is mostly nitrogen and argon.
The feat, announced Wednesday, is considered vital to any long-term stay for humans on Mars, as bringing an ample supply of oxygen from Earth would likely prove impractical. It came ahead of a second successful test of NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter after its historic maiden flight on Monday.
