Mars Oxygen ISRU Experiment

Mars Oxygen ISRU Experiment
	Mars Oxygen In-Situ Resource Utilization Experiment (MOXIE)
Operator	NASA
Manufacturer	NASA/Caltech/Jet Propulsion Laboratory; OxEon Energy
Instrument type	ISRU (in situ resource utilization) experimental technology
Function	Oxygen production
Began operations	20 April 2021
Ceased operations	3 August 2023
Website	mars.nasa.gov/mars2020/mission/instruments/moxie/
Properties
Mass	15 kg (33 lb)
Dimensions	24 × 24 × 31 cm
Power consumption	300 W
Host spacecraft
Spacecraft	Perseverance
Launch date	July 30, 2020
Rocket	Atlas V 541
Launch site	Cape Canaveral SLC-41

The Mars Oxygen In-Situ Resource Utilization Experiment (MOXIE)^[1] was a technology demonstration on the NASA Mars 2020 rover Perseverance investigating the production of oxygen on Mars.^[2] On April 20, 2021, MOXIE produced oxygen from carbon dioxide in the Martian atmosphere by using solid oxide electrolysis. This was the first experimental extraction of a natural resource from another planet for human use.^[1]^[3] The technology may be scaled up for use in a human mission to the planet to provide breathable oxygen, oxidizer, and propellant; water may also be produced by combining the produced oxygen with hydrogen.^[4]

^ ^a ^b Hecht, M.; Hoffman, J.; Rapp, D.; McClean, J.; SooHoo, J.; Schaefer, R.; Aboobaker, A.; Mellstrom, J.; Hartvigsen, J.; Meyen, F.; Hinterman, E. (2021-01-06). "Mars Oxygen ISRU Experiment (MOXIE)". Space Science Reviews. 217 (1): 9. Bibcode:2021SSRv..217....9H. doi:10.1007/s11214-020-00782-8. hdl:1721.1/131816.2. ISSN 1572-9672. S2CID 106398698.
^ Beutel, Allard (2015-04-15). "NASA Announces Mars 2020 Rover Payload to Explore the Red Planet". NASA. Archived from the original on 2021-02-19. Retrieved 2021-02-25.
^ "Nasa device extracts breathable oxygen from thin Martian air". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on 2021-04-22. Retrieved 2021-04-22.
^ Potter, Sean (2021-04-21). "NASA's Perseverance Mars Rover Extracts First Oxygen from Red Planet". NASA. Archived from the original on 2021-04-22. Retrieved 2021-04-22.