NASA’s Ingenuity Mars helicopter makes the longest and fastest flight to date
NASA’s Mars helicopter is setting new records. On one of its most recent flights, Ingenuity flew farther and faster than it had ever flown.
Just over a year after the Ingenuity helicopter first took off into the Martian sky in April 2021, the small drone has now completed 28 flights, covering a total of about 7 kilometers. Since not so long ago motorized flight was considered impossible in the extremely fine atmosphere of Mars, these facts, in and of themselves, are very impressive!
However, during the 25th flight of Ingeniuity, the mission team pushed their limits to the farthest point so far. On April 8, 2022, the helicopter flew a total of 704 meters, at a top speed of 5.5 meters per second (about 20 km / h). This surpasses its previous distance and speed records, set during its ninth flight on July 5, 2021, of 625 m and 5.0 m / s.
Watch below: Ingenuity captures a video of its farthest and fastest flight so far
Click here to watch the video
According to NASA: “The first frame of the video clip begins approximately one second after the flight. After reaching an altitude of 33 feet (10 meters), the helicopter heads southwest, accelerating to its maximum speed in less than three seconds, first hovering over a group of sand waves and then, about halfway through the video, several rock fields, and finally a relatively flat, uneven terrain appears below, providing a good point. The 161.3-second flight video accelerated approximately five times, reducing it to less than 35 seconds. “
Most Ingenuity flights, so far, have been short jumps in comparison, covering distances ranging from 100 to 450 m. It has also picked up a much slower pace during these flights, between 5 and 15 km / h. Reaching new distance and speed limits is putting the helicopter to the test. This is also showing NASA what they can achieve in future missions. It could be that every rover or landing that lands on the Red Planet from now on could include its own autonomous drone to aid exploration.
The story goes on
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The mid-afternoon shadow of NASA’s Ingenuity Mars helicopter lies on the ground in Jezero crater in this image, acquired by the helicopter’s high-resolution color camera on May 26, 2022 (Sun 449 of the Perseverance rover mission). Credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech
A MOMENT OF FEAR
Time is running out for the little drone.
In early May, the Perseverance rover lost contact with Ingenuity. A moment of fear for the team, no doubt.
Since its last update, they believe that as winter approaches Jezero Crater, temperatures drop to -80 ° C, along with an increase in the amount of dust in the air. which are causing the helicopter to suffer power outages during the night.
Ingenuity charges its batteries with a solar panel mounted above its rotors. The resulting electricity drives your flight, as well as your cameras, computer, and communications. It also operates the heaters used to keep your electronics at a reasonably stable temperature throughout the night.
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This ingenuity diagram highlights the different components of the helicopter. Credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech
Right now, the added dust prevents Ingenuity from fully charging its battery. At the same time, the heating requirements to keep the electronics warm at night demand more of their available power.
When the battery runs out, the electronics are subjected to these cold temperatures of -80 ° C. This is known as cold soaking. And while cold soaking is usually used as a test method, to determine the strength of the components of a mission, it’s not something you want to subject your spacecraft’s electronics to on a regular basis.
According to the May 27 update from Ingenenuity: “Cold electronics are believed to have brought about the end of the Opportunity and Spirit Mars rover missions.”
The team seems cautiously optimistic that Ingenuity electronics can survive the winter. Once they have determined that he has recovered from the loss of communication, they hope to send him soon on his 29th flight.
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This map shows the relative locations of perseverance and ingenuity in Jezero Crater on Mars. Click or tap to explore the full map. Credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech
This will take the helicopter on a short trip southwest of its current location, bringing it closer to Perseverance as the rover shows off the river delta.
(Thumbnail courtesy of NASA / JPL-Caltech)