Erin Foley
AP Biology C Block Odd
Current Event 20
April 25th, 2021
Grossman, Lisa. NASA. “NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover extracts first oxygen from Red
Planet.” April 21, 2021.
On April 21st, NASA’s Perseverance rover split carbon molecules to create oxygen on Mars. Carbon dioxide molecules are made up of two oxygen atoms and a carbon atom, thus when the rover split them into their component parts, it created 10 minutes worth of breathable oxygen. There was actually enough oxygen to make tiny amounts of rocket fuel. The rover’s ability to perform this mechanism comes from its instrument called MOXIE (Mars Oxygen In-Situ Resource Utilization Experiment), which scientists like principal investigator Michael Hecht of MIT have called an “electrical tree” that breathes in CO2 and pumps out oxygen. Oxygen is necessary for most fuel-burning activities on Earth, from burning gas in a car to burning a log in a fireplace. In space travel, oxygen is also needed for rockets to fly to and from Earth. Since Mars’ atmosphere is primarily composed of carbon dioxide, which we now have the ability to convert to oxygen with MOXIE, astronauts could potentially create enough rocket fuel to power a trip home to Earth. To create this amount of fuel (about 25 metric tons of oxygen) would save astronauts from having to take such a massive amount with them on a trip to Mars. Although MOXIE would need to run continuously for a very long time in order to create such a large amount of oxygen, this innovation makes a human trip to Mars seem much more attainable.
The successful use of MOXIE proves that we are closer than ever before to achieving a trip to Mars. For years, a human trip to Mars has seemed too dangerous to ever pull off. Mars’ atmosphere is thick enough to burn a spacecraft up upon entry, its temperatures are extreme and dangerous, and its dust storms ensure that no traveler to Mars will be welcomed with open arms. However, one obstacle to traveling to Mars - the large amount of fuel required to lift off from Mars - has been broken down with the innovation of MOXIE. When human travel to Mars is achieved, the benefits to us on Earth are endless. As climate change ramps up around us, more and more land is becoming uninhabitable for crops, but we may find out how to overcome these conditions by learning how to grow food on Mars. Moreover, as researchers try to figure out how to make Mars’ atmosphere habitable using microbes - a practice called “terraforming” - they may come to understand how we can use microbes to clean up air pollution and oil spills on Earth. Finally, the prospect of 3D printing on Mars’ zero-gravity surface has led scientists to believe that printing out body parts would be possible if done on Mars. According to a researcher at Techshot, Dr. Bolan, with zero gravity, “we can print complex structures and they will stand up. If you print here on the ground, it’s a puddle”. By traveling to Mars, humans will have a world of research opened to them, and in a hundred or so years, could find a way to make Mars habitable. The invention of MOXIE will not allow us to immediately pack our bags for the Red Planet, but it speeds up the mission by at least a decade.
This article was informative and engaging, albeit a little lacking in background information. The author, Lisa Grossman, effectively opens up the article by saying that “NASA’s Perseverance rover just created a breath of fresh air on Mars,” which really drew me into the rest of the article. Moreover, Grossman demonstrates high-level writing as she notes the successes of MOXIE as well as its room for improvement. She writes that “MOXIE can’t run continuously” and that its oxygen production didn’t make “enough to breathe for very long,” but clarified that MOXIE is a prototype, allowing the reader to see how improvements to MOXIE can be made in the future. However, Grossman did not really discuss the societal impact of MOXIE past the fact that it will allow astronauts to create fuel for their return rather than bringing it on their trip. This in itself is obviously a huge impact, but if she wanted to make a greater impression on the reader, she should have discussed why a trip to Mars would be such a big deal to humans - that it’s not just another box to tick off on the space race's list of goals. Still, Grossman’s summary of the events of last Friday illustrates how the movement of humans closer and closer to Mars has been propelled by oxygen-creation innovations.
Kelly Baclija
ReplyDeleteMr. Ippolito
AP Bio
April 26, 2021
Foley, Erin. NASA's Perseverance Mars Rover Extracts First Oxygen from Red Planet., 1 Jan. 1970, bronxvilleapbiology.blogspot.com/2021/04/nasas-perseverance-mars-rover-extracts.html.
Grossman, Lisa. NASA. “NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover extracts first oxygen from Red Planet.” April 21, 2021.
Erin’s article on “NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover extracts first oxygen from Red Planet” by Lisa Grossman is very well written and capsulating. She provides plenty of background information to the reader which helps them understand the topic entirely-- “NASA’s Perseverance rover split carbon molecules to create oxygen on Mars. Carbon dioxide molecules are made up of two oxygen atoms and a carbon atom, thus when the rover split them into their component parts, it created 10 minutes worth of breathable oxygen”. Later on, she includes a quote from an expert researcher, increasing her credibility as an author to the audience; “According to a researcher at Techshot, Dr. Bolan, with zero gravity, ‘we can print complex structures and they will stand up. If you print here on the ground, it’s a puddle’”. Finally, she provides a thought-provoking statement to the reader, leaving them with a significant understanding of the new discovery, “By traveling to Mars, humans will have a world of research opened to them, and in a hundred or so years, could find a way to make Mars habitable. The invention of MOXIE will not allow us to immediately pack our bags for the Red Planet, but it speeds up the mission by at least a decade”.
Although Erin’s article is well-written, there are a few areas for improvement. Firstly, she could have gone into more detail concerning the mechanics of MOXIE-- “which scientists like principal investigator Michael Hecht of MIT have called an ‘electrical tree’ that breathes in CO2 and pumps out oxygen”. Also, she could have further explained the benefits of human travel to Mars to us on Earth, aside from “As climate change ramps up around us, more and more land is becoming uninhabitable for crops, but we may find out how to overcome these conditions by learning how to grow food on Mars”. Both of these aspects would allow the audience to gain a stronger understanding of this discovery.
I chose to read this article because I was intrigued to learn about the idea of a rover extracting oxygen from Mars, which prior to this I did not know was possible. I ultimately learned about the rover and its instrument called MOXIE which makes the process possible. This will change my understanding of space travel because this new discovery makes the colonization of Mars all the more a realistic and feasible opportunity.
Nate Kim
ReplyDelete4/29/21
AP Bio
Current Event 21
Foley, Erin . “NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover extracts first oxygen from Red Planet.’” Blogspot.com, 29 April. 2021, https://bronxvilleapbiology.blogspot.com/2021/04/nasas-perseverance-mars-rover-extracts.html
Grossman, Lisa. NASA. “NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover extracts first oxygen from Red
Planet.” April 21, 2021.
Erin’s analysis of “NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover extracts first oxygen from Red Planet'' is a perfect example of analysis that gives the reader a full understanding of the article being analyzed. She does a great job of integrating her own commentary with the facts from the article. The analysis has great flow where Erin basically seamlessly integrates facts and information with the summary of the article. I also liked that she gave a possible use for the information from the article. Her explanation of what MOXIE does makes a difficult concept extremely tangible and simple.
Although I think Erin’s review was top-notch, I believe there are some areas for improvement. Erin uses sophisticated vocabulary that could make her writing a little hard to understand for readers that are not well-versed in the field of biology or science in general. Without a ton of explanation, Erin uses terms such as “terraforming” and “electrical tree.” These terms might be too scientific for the average joe reader which may hurt the readability for some readers. This is easily remedied by just defining more terms or using simpler language.
In conclusion, Erin’s analysis is intriguing and thought provoking. I want to thank her for bringing this topic to my attention because it has opened my eyes to a new and interesting field to look into. From his writing, it is clear that Erin is an expert in this field and his passion for this field is also apparent in the writing. From this article analysis, I learned about MOXIE, an electrical tree, as well as the future of humans and space. I will definitely look into MOXIE in the future.
Hugh Duffy
ReplyDeleteMr. Ippolito
Current Event 21 Comment
May 3rd, 2021
Foley, Erin. NASA's Perseverance Mars Rover Extracts First Oxygen from Red Planet., 1 Jan. 1970, bronxvilleapbiology.blogspot.com/2021/04/nasas-perseverance-mars-rover-extracts.html.
Grossman, Lisa. NASA. “NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover extracts first oxygen from Red Planet.” April 21, 2021.
I thought Erin’s review of “NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover extracts first oxygen from Red Planet.” was a very capturing read. Erin does a good job at explaining the topic without simply restating exactly what the original article said. She picked out the important information, saving the reader’s time. Her use of quotes from the original article was exquisite, as it provided the reader with the text evidence that backs up what was previously stated. This study was very interesting to learn about, because if humans do eventually travel to Mars, we may be able to quickly produce breathable air. I thought Erin did a great job summarizing that concept.
I thought Erin’s review was well written and detailed, however there are some aspects she could improve on. To begin, she could’ve been more specific regarding the potential implications of changing the martian atmosphere. What would happen if we were to do this to a planet? How can we be sure that it is safe? These questions are unfortunately left unanswered, and the review would have been much more interesting if she had included such twists.
I chose to read Erin’s review because I am really interested in space exploration and the potential for planetary colonization. The title immediately grabbed my attention as something that would be worth reading. Overall, Erin’s review was well written and highly detailed.