Scientists Develop Game-Changing Technology That Can Extract Oxygen, Fuel from #Mars' Salty Water

weather.com/en-IN/india/sp…

By @kun5k
Discovering #water on celestial bodies is a pretty big deal—not only because water is a prerequisite for life, but also because the presence of H2O can make these bodies ideal destinations for human #space exploration.

(📸: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ESA/DLR/FU Berlin/MSSS)
One such planet is #Mars,which houses abundant water content.But as the #RedPlanet is very cold,most of its water is frozen;and the water that isn’t frozen exists because its freezing temperature is lowered by the salt from the Martian soil.

(📸:NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univ.of Arizona)
The usual method of using electricity (electrolysis) to break the H2O down into oxygen (to breathe) and hydrogen (for fuel) requires removing the salt, which would be a cumbersome and costly endeavour, especially in #Mars’ harsh and dangerous environment.
But now, engineers at the #McKelvey School of Engineering at Washington University in the #US have figured out a way to directly coerce oxygen and hydrogen out of briny water, which would effectively make the brine electrolysis process less complicated and less expensive.
This could majorly help #astronauts live on #Mars—even temporarily—as it would better fulfil their needs to manufacture #water on the Red Planet. Moreover, the system developed in #Ramani's lab also produces hydrogen, which could be used to fuel the #astronauts' trip back home.
An interesting thing to note is that while the brine electrolysis system worked perfectly in a simulated #Martian atmosphere at -36°C, it can also be put to use effectively under typical terrestrial conditions here on #Earth.
If successful, its application could help provide oxygen during uncharted environmental #explorations in the deep seas here on #Earth, and also serve some purpose in the defence realm, like creating oxygen on-demand in submarines, for instance.

• • •

Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to force a refresh
 

Keep Current with The Weather Channel India

The Weather Channel India Profile picture

Stay in touch and get notified when new unrolls are available from this author!

Read all threads

This Thread may be Removed Anytime!

PDF

Twitter may remove this content at anytime! Save it as PDF for later use!

Try unrolling a thread yourself!

how to unroll video
  1. Follow @ThreadReaderApp to mention us!

  2. From a Twitter thread mention us with a keyword "unroll"
@threadreaderapp unroll

Practice here first or read more on our help page!

More from @weatherindia

2 Dec
Cyclone #Burevi to Cross Sri Lanka and Hit India’s Southern Tip on Thursday Night; Tamil Nadu, Kerala Under Alert

#cyclone

weather.com/en-IN/india/ne…

By- @deekshith_np

(📸: TWC Met Team) Image
On Wednesday night last week, #CycloneNivar drenched several parts of north Tamil Nadu and south Andhra Pradesh. Exactly a week later, #CycloneBurevi is set to cause torrential downpour over southern Tamil Nadu and Kerala
#Burevi is a name suggested by the Maldives, as per the #cyclone naming guidelines set by the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO). #Burevi is not as strong as its predecessor, #Nivar, as the Bay of Bengal lacks the energy to feed the system further.
Read 8 tweets
2 Dec
New #Milkyway Map Show #Earth 2,000 Light Years Closer to Massive #BlackHole Than Previously Thought

weather.com/en-IN/india/sp…

By- @MrigDixit

(📸: NASA/JPL-Caltech/R. Hurt (SSC/Caltech)) Image
A new cosmic map has suggested that the #Earth is spiralling 2,000 light-years closer to the #BlackHole located at the centre of our #MilkyWay galaxy.Dont worry,our planet is not plunging into the black hole soon as it is still thousands of light-years away from the black hole.
The new map constructed by the #astronomers from the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) is developed using data collected over the past 15 years. It places #Earth just 25,800 light-years away from the centre of the galaxy where the #BlackHole resides.
Read 8 tweets
30 Nov
#CycloneBurevi to Cross Sri Lanka on Wednesday; Kerala, Tamil Nadu Under Red Warning

weather.com/en-IN/india/ne…

By- @deekshith_np

(📸: L R Shankar/TOI, BCCL, Chennai ) Image
#CycloneBurevi | In less than a week after #CycloneNivar swept past Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, another cyclone started to brew over the Bay of Bengal.

The low-pressure area lingering over the Bay intensified into a depression during early hours of Monday.
As per the India Meteorological Department (IMD) forecast, the system is likely to intensify into a ‘deep depression’ by Monday night and further into a cyclonic storm by Tuesday morning.
Read 10 tweets
30 Nov
#WorldAIDSDay: Time to Reinforce our Commitment to End HIV Epidemic

weather.com/en-IN/india/he…

(📸: Dinesh Bhardwaj/TOI, Chandigarh, BCCL) Image
On December 1, the world will be joining hands to spread awareness on this disease with #WorldAIDSDay, even as the pandemic threatens to derail the progress we have made so far.
The annual event is marked to raise awareness on this challenging health issue with no proven cure to completely eradicate the disease till date. The disease gained global attention way back in the 1980s when its outbreak swept across the United States & other parts of the globe.
Read 11 tweets
10 Nov
#G20Nations Still Spending More on Fossil Fuels, Finds Study

weather.com/en-IN/india/en…

(📸: IANS)
Despite repeated pledges to end inefficient fossil fuel subsidies, #G20 governments' support to fossil fuels has dropped by only nine percent since 2014-2016, hitting $584 billion annually over the last three years, a report by international researchers said on Tuesday.
According to the latest data from the Energy Policy Tracker, G20 governments have given at least $233 billion in additional support through recovery measures to fossil fuel-intensive sectors since the pandemic began.
Read 12 tweets
9 Nov
#PollutionWatch: Total Ban on Sale, Use of All Kinds of #Firecrackers in NCR from November 9-30: NGT

weather.com/en-IN/india/po…

(📸: Anindya Chattopadhyay/BCCL Delhi)
#NGT has ordered imposition of a total ban on sale or use of all kinds of firecrackers in Delhi-NCR or any other city or town across the country where the average ambient air quality from November 9-10 to the midnight of Nov 30-Dec 1 falls under the 'poor' and above category.
A bench of #NGT Chairperson Adarsh Kumar Goel passed the order on a batch of petition seeking remedial action against the use and sale of firecrackers amid the double whammy of pollution crisis and rising #coronavirus infections.
Read 14 tweets

Did Thread Reader help you today?

Support us! We are indie developers!


This site is made by just two indie developers on a laptop doing marketing, support and development! Read more about the story.

Become a Premium Member ($3/month or $30/year) and get exclusive features!

Become Premium

Too expensive? Make a small donation by buying us coffee ($5) or help with server cost ($10)

Donate via Paypal Become our Patreon

Thank you for your support!

Follow Us on Twitter!