NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter (technically a rotorcraft) has made dozens of small aerial excursions since it first arrived on Mars in February 2021, but its latest flight was this one. It set a new record for small aircraft. December 21st, NASA reported According to Ingenuity’s 69th flight, it was also its farthest flight. The flight recordWeighing 4 pounds and standing 19 inches tall, the helicopter flew about 2,315 feet at a speed of about 32.5 miles per hour in 135 seconds, surpassing its previous flight distance of about 2,310 feet in April 2022.
Ingenuity’s latest flight was already impressive, but this trip went even better than originally expected. According to NASA Flight 69 preview logauthorities estimated that the helicopter traveled approximately 2,304 feet in 131 seconds.
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In total, Ingenuity has spent 125.5 minutes flying about 16.5 miles above the Earth’s surface at an altitude of about 80 feet. As the helicopter continues on its way, it will take images of the ground below and send them back to her NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) team overseeing the program in California.as digital trends According to , this visual aid has so far helped NASA engineers plan an efficient and safe path for the project’s Perseverance rover. In some cases, the photos revealed new geological formations nearby, and the rover detoured to explore them.
Even without considering its latest accomplishments, Ingenuity has far exceeded its original estimated lifespan. When it first launches in 2021, NASA expects the aircraft to last only five flights to test avionics capabilities in the thin Martian air (just 1 percent of Earth’s atmosphere). It was never intended to be used as a major component of Mars. Overall patience mission.
However, not everything was smooth sailing for Ingenuity. Back in May 2022, a seasonal increase in atmospheric dust prevented the solar array from fully charging, causing the helicopter to temporarily go dark. Thankfully, engineers sorted out the situation and re-established communications with the rotorcraft. Now, after traveling nearly 14 times more than he originally planned, it doesn’t look like Ingenuity’s momentum is slowing down anytime soon.
[Related: Why NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter briefly went dark on Mars.]
Because this helicopter exceeded NASA’s expectations, the agency believes similar, more advanced iterations could be deployed on future Mars missions, and even elsewhere throughout the solar system. But for now, Ingenuity is taking it one day at a time, with her 70th flight also tentatively scheduled for this week.