NASA’s Perseverance rover is on a mission to become the ultimate oxygen bartender on Mars, and it’s breaking records like a cosmic mixologist. With its Mars Oxygen In Situ Resource Utilization Experiment (MOXIE), the rover has doubled its oxygen production, leaving scientists amazed and relieved that they didn’t accidentally blow up the entire instrument.
In an intense 58-minute session, MOXIE churned out a whopping 12 grams of oxygen per hour, proving that turning carbon dioxide into breathable air is no joke. “We rolled the dice a little bit. It was ‘hold your breath and see what happens,'” said Michael Hecht, MOXIE’s principal investigator, confessing the daring nature of their experiment.
But the future of MOXIE hangs in the balance, as funding is running out. Scientists are now frantically searching for new collaborators to keep the cosmic mixology going. After all, we can’t just leave Mars thirsty for oxygen. Cheers to a future where we’ll have Earth-sized oxygen factories on the Red Planet—time to get our Martian party started!
