Scientists recently looked for a breakthrough as NASA’s Perseverance rover – carrying an experimental instrument – successfully produced oxygen from the Red Planet’s carbon dioxide-rich atmosphere for two years, but the landing There are many other logistical tasks ahead.
Despite the success, scientists at New York University Abu Dhabi are scrambling to analyze the first map – they created using the Hope probe – before moving on.
The instrument – the Mars Oxygen In-Situ Resource Utilization Experiment (MOXIE) – was taken to Mars when NASA’s Life Tracing Probe landed in 2021.
The recent findings exceed the expectations of scientists and strengthen the hopes of colonizing another planet.
The experiment also showed that not only life-sustaining gas but also rocket fuel could be made on the Red Planet, saving efforts to transport both from Earth.
Using images taken by the orbiting Hoop from 2021, experts created a detailed color mosaic of Mars.
Dimitra Atri, head of the Mars Research Group at the university, said: “It may sound silly, but maybe in the future it will be very common for people to go to Mars and live there.”
As efforts to leave Earth intensified, scientists were searching for routes and preparing their flight to Mars.
In June, a simulation of the Martian habitat was launched where scientists were supposed to live for the next year.
The exercise is part of NASA’s efforts to prepare for its first crewed mission to the Red Planet’s surface, which could take place in the late 2030s.
The four volunteers will be monitored remotely by a team of NASA researchers during their 378-day stay.
What is CHAPEA Mission 1?
According to NASA’s website, CHAPEA (Crew Health and Performance Exploration Analog) Mission 1 is the first of three simulated Mars missions to evaluate human health and performance in isolation and confinement.
At NASA’s Johnson Space Center, crews will work and live in Mars transits and participate in activities such as scientific experiments and crop development.
They will be staying in a 1,700-square-foot facility with a total of nine rooms, including private bedrooms, a shared bathroom and toilet, and a shared space.
Additionally, participants’ health will be continuously tracked during their time inside to help mission planners understand how a real crew would manage different aspects of a long mission to Mars. can do.
For maximum realism, four volunteers will experience such things as a 20-minute communication blackout due to the great separation between Earth and the Red Planet.
Participants will spend their time inside the facility conducting scientific research, habitat maintenance, crop cultivation, and a so-called “Mars Walk” on a ground-covered area modeled after the surface of Mars.
During their 12-month stay, if any of the participants find conditions unbearable, they will be allowed to leave the facility with a backup member in their place.
