Rotorcraft can certainly add a helpful component to a planetary exploration mission. Its solar panel, mounted above the rotors, charges its Lithium-ion batteries, which use about 350 Watts of power and provides enough energy in one Martian day for one 90-second flight.

Weighing just 4 lb (1.8 kg) on Earth and 1.5 lb (680 grams) on the Red Planet, Ingenuity has a rotor diameter of about 4 ft (1.2 m). This mission is markedly different, with a fragile co-axial rotorcraft sharing equal billing with the robust 2,260-lb (1,025-kg) Perseverance. Four operated successfully and sent back valuable data for future endeavors. Since NASA began exploring Mars, it has sent five rovers that landed on the surface, including Perseverance. At touchdown, the rover cut the cables and the descent stage flew off. (All images NASA except where noted) Vertical landing of the NASA Perseverance Rover was via the descent stage performing a “skycrane” maneuver. The mission and the first flight have also reawakened the public’s interest in space exploration and the potential role for vertical flight elsewhere in the cosmos. The successful first controlled flight of an aircraft on another planet more than justifies the $80M budget for Ingenuity’s portion of the Mars mission. History shows they got back to work - to learn as much as they could about their new aircraft - and so will we.” “We will take a moment to celebrate our success and then take a cue from Orville and Wilbur regarding what to do next. “We have been thinking for so long about having our Wright Brothers moment on Mars, and here it is,” said MiMi Aung, project manager of the Ingenuity Mars Helicopter at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. Lifting off from the surface of Mars to a modest 10 ft (3 m), NASA’s diminutive Ingenuity helicopter made a humble start that holds huge significance for future flights. The miniature Mars helicopter Ingenuity begins its month-long mission following its successful first flight on the Red Planet.Īpa day for the record books: the successful first flight of an aircraft on another planet.

Mars drone ingenuity