Photocatalytic CO2 conversion: Beyond the earth

The issue of climate change attributed to CO2 emissions has led to increased attention towards the study and development of artificial photosynthesis through photocatalytic CO2 conversion to reconstruct the broken carbon cycle in nature. Photocatalytic CO2 conversion can simultaneously reduce the CO2 concentration in the atmosphere and produce valuable hydrocarbon fuels. With the recent discovery of abundant reserves of CO2 and water at extraterrestrial sites, it has been proposed that photocatalytic CO2 conversion can also be implemented at extraterrestrial sites to build up an artificial carbon cycle for providing propellants and life support for space missions. This comment presents our perspectives on the development of photocatalytic CO2 conversion beyond Earth, with a focus on its general principles and potential challenges that may arise at extraterrestrial sites. Finally, a brief overview of the future research directions in this field is presented.