by BP’s technology could one day be used to drill on Mars or the Moon after the company signed a contract with the US space agency NASA.
As part of the agreement, the two have agreed to share their technology and expertise gained from working “in hostile environments.”
BP believes the deal will advance its plans to develop oil and gas on Earth while also encouraging human exploration of the Moon, Mars and other planets in the solar system.
“Both BP and NASA have extensive technical expertise and work in extreme environments – whether on the seabed or on the moon,” said Giovanni Cristofoli, a senior executive at BP.
“By sharing our knowledge, we can solve complex technical problems faster, allowing us to focus on keeping energy flowing safely and achieving higher margins with lower emissions,” added Cristofoli.
This could include sharing digital models and simulations that enable engineers and scientists to test new devices, whether 4,300 meters deep or 225 million kilometers away on another planet.
Over time, it could also lay the foundation for future cooperation in the use of hydrogen, renewable fuel cells, high-performance batteries, solar power systems and small nuclear power plants.
The latest link between major companies and space researchers comes less than a year after the British space agency Rolls-Royce supported research into how Rolls-Royce’s small-scale nuclear power generation technology could be used to provide the electricity people need to live and work on the moon.
At the time, MP and former Science Minister George Freeman said: “Space exploration is the ultimate laboratory for so many of the breakthrough technologies we need on Earth: from materials to robotics, food, cleantech and much more.”
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BP’s experience with deep-sea drilling could prove useful in the exploration of Mars, where scientists recently discovered potentially vast amounts of water deep in the Martian crust, raising new questions about the possibility of life on the red planet.
According to new calculations by scientists, “primeval Martian oceans” trapped in rock could be found about eleven to twelve kilometers below the planet’s surface, which could represent a “key component” for the possibility of life on Mars.
