--- title: "Chinese Astronauts Create Rocket Fuel in Space Using “Artificial Photosynthesis”" description: "Chinese astronauts claim to have created rocket fuel on board the country's Tiangong space station using \"artificial photosynthesis.\"" date: "2025-02-01" modified: "2025-02-01" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/chinese-astronauts-rocket-fuel-space-artificial-photosynthesis" categories: - "Off-World" - "Space" tags: - "china space station" - "the digest" - "Tiangong" --- # Chinese Astronauts Create Rocket Fuel in Space Using “Artificial Photosynthesis” ![Chinese astronauts claim to have created rocket fuel on board the country's Tiangong space station using "artificial photosynthesis."]() *\Image: CMSA\* ## Breathing New Air Chinese astronauts claim to have created rocket fuel on board the country's [Tiangong space station]() using a new process dubbed "artificial photosynthesis." As the [*South China Morning Post* reports](), space travelers from the current Shenzhou-19 mission produced the necessary ingredients of rocket fuel, as well as oxygen, another useful resource in space. The team used semiconductor catalysts to turn carbon dioxide and water into oxygen and ethylene, a hydrocarbon commonly used to produce spacecraft propellants, according to the *SCMP*. "This technology mimics the natural photosynthesis process of green plants through engineered physical and chemical methods, utilizing carbon dioxide resources in confined spaces or extraterrestrial atmospheres to produce oxygen and carbon-based fuels," state-run news broadcaster *CCTV* explained earlier this month, as quoted by the newspaper. The experiment could lay important groundwork for our efforts to turn in-situ resources in faraway places into a source of breathable air and rocket fuel that future interplanetary space travel may require. "The work is expected to provide critical technical support for human survival and exploration in outer space," the *CCTV* report reads. ## Moon Fuel The idea of using semiconductor catalysts differs from other conventional oxygen-producing techniques, such as [electrolysis on board the International Space Station](), which is used to turn solar energy into a supply of breathable air. Experts have generally found that electrolysis is too energy intensive for long-distance space travel. By using semiconductor catalysts instead, Chinese researchers hope to convert carbon dioxide at both room temperature and standard atmospheric pressure, thereby requiring far less energy. However, details regarding the experiments remain slim, and it's still unclear just how feasible the concept actually is, especially in extremely remote and hostile landscapes like the surface of Mars. But if confirmed, the concept could give future Chinese space explorers a major leg up. The country is hoping to build a [base near the Moon's south pole]() by 2035, an endeavor that will require a steady and reliable source of breathable oxygen — not to mention rocket fuel for the trip back to Earth. **More on China's space station:** *[Watch Astronauts Give a Rare Tour of China's Luxurious Space Station]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()