The first aircraft to fly on another planet has achieved another milestone. NASA’s Ingenuity Mars Helicopter recently marked its 50th flight, setting a new altitude record in the process.
The historic flight took place on April 13th, when the small helicopter traveled 322.2 m (1,057.1 ft) in 2 minutes and 25 seconds. On that same trip, Ingenuity reached a height of 18 m (59 ft) from the surface of Mars, setting a new altitude record. In this her 50 flights, the helicopter recorded a total flight time of about 90 minutes and traveled over 11.6 km (7.2 miles).
These achievements are made all the more impressive by the fact that Ingenuity was never expected to achieve them. The aircraft is designed to demonstrate that powered, controlled flight is possible over another planet with a much thinner atmosphere and weaker gravity than Earth, and it can do so in just five flights. was expected to do
Ingenuity team lead Teddy Tzanetos said: “Since the tech demonstration wrapped, he exceeded the expected cumulative flight time by 1,250% and the expected flight distance he exceeded by 2,214%.”
This extra distance takes the aircraft into uncharted territory. Jezero Crater’s floor was relatively flat, but now Ingenuity and his companions, his Perseverance rover, are moving into the area known as Fall River Pass, which will prove to be a little more dangerous. There is a possibility.
“We are no longer on Kansas Mars,” said Josh Anderson, Ingenuity’s operations lead. “We are flying over the dried-up remains of an ancient river filled with dunes, rocks and rocks, surrounded by hills where we can have lunch. Since then, we’ve upgraded the in-flight navigation software, but every flight is still a blast.”
The technology demonstration was arguably a success, showing how the aircraft can be used to scout the path ahead of the rover. However, it is unknown exactly how long Ingenuity can stay in the air.
“We’ve come this far, and we want to go further,” said Zanetos. “But our time on Mars was limited from the start, and we knew every operational day was a blessing. No one can predict at this time if it will, and what I can predict is that when it does we will have a big party.”
A video celebrating Ingenuity’s 50th flight can be seen below.
Ingenuity Mars Helicopter Celebrates 50th Flight
Source: NASA
