Story at a glance
- NASA’s Ingenuity made history with its longest flight on Mars.
- The helicopter reached speeds and distances even further than it had during tests on Earth.
- Ingenuity’s team is already planning for its fourth flight.
NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter continues to make history on Mars.
On April 25, the helicopter took its third and longest flight on the Red Planet.
Taking off at 4:31 a.m. EDT, or 12:33 p.m. Mars time, Ingenuity rose to a height of 16 feet, the same altitude as during its second flight, flying a distance of 164 feet, slightly more than half the length of a football field. Its top speed was 6.6 feet per second.
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“Today’s flight was what we planned for, and yet it was nothing short of amazing,” said Dave Lavery, program executive for Ingenuity Mars Helicopter at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “With this flight, we are demonstrating critical capabilities that will enable the addition of an aerial dimension to future Mars missions.”
The flight reached speeds and distances greater than Ingenuity made on Earth. As flights progress, Ingenuity’s team at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California continues to relay more complex instructions to the helicopter, including to capture its own pictures.
“This is the first time we’ve seen the algorithm for the camera running over a long distance,” said MiMi Aung, the helicopter’s project manager. “You can’t do this inside a test chamber.”
Ingenuity flies autonomously based on instructions sent to it hours prior to its flight. If it flies too fast, its algorithm can’t keep track of the surface.
The Ingenuity team is already looking ahead to the helicopter’s fourth flight, which is planned to take place within the next few days.
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