NASA Conducts Helicopter Flight Trials on Mars

The helicopter will rise for about six seconds, hover and rotate for about 30 seconds, then descend again.

The flight will be autonomous, pre-programmed into the plane because of the 15 minutes it takes for the signal to travel from Earth to Mars.

Ingenuity itself will analyze its position with respect to the surface of Mars.

After the flight, Ingenuity will send Persistence technical data about what it has done, and the information will be sent back to Earth.

This will include a black and white photo of the surface of Mars that Ingenuity is programmed to take while flying.

Later, when the battery is recharged, Ingenuity will send you another photo – in color, from the Martian horizon, taken by a different camera.

But the most spectacular images are supposed to be from the Perseverance rover, which will record the flight from several meters away.

Shortly after the filming of this film, six videos of 2.5 seconds each will be sent to Earth.

NASA hopes at least one of them will show the helicopter in flight.

All videos will be sent in the next few days.

“There will be surprises, and you will learn about them right at the same time we will. So let’s all buy popcorn,” said Elsa Jensen, who is keeping an eye on the rover cameras.

Four possible outcomes, says Aung: Full success, partial success, insufficient or no data back, or failure.

If the flight is successful, NASA plans another flight no later than four days later. He planned as many as five at a time, each successively more difficult, for a month.

NASA hopes to make the helicopter rise 5 meters and then move sideways.

“The lifespan of the ingenuity will be determined by how well it lands” each time, says Aung – meaning whether he falls or not.

“Once we get to the fourth and fifth flights, we’ll have fun,” he said. “We’re going to take a very daring flight and take a high risk.”

Reporter: Veronica Gita

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