Freefall flights test feasibility of making oxygen on the moon and Mars

Electrolysis of water to produce oxygen to breathe on bases on the moon or Mars could be up to 11% less efficient due to their lower gravities compared with Earth, UK researchers have found. The finding supports the viability of the approach but it highlights the importance of limiting the effects of low gravity in the development of such systems for future missions.

Gravity on the moon and Mars is only 0.16g and 0.37g respectively, compared with the Earth’s 1g. Scientists knew that electrolysis of water is less efficient at zero-g, owing to oxygen bubbles being less buoyant and collecting around electrodes. However, technical challenges had meant that no one had studied the process at micro-g levels between 0.01g and 1g, and therefore how lunar or Martian gravity would affect oxygen production.