NASA’s Ingenuity Helicopter Soars: Celebrating 30 Minutes of Martian Flight!

With its latest 17th flight, the Martian rotorcraft attained an airborne achievement that the team never deemed feasible. The 18th flight is planned to take place no sooner than today.

The 17th flight of NASA’s Ingenuity Mars Helicopter on December 5 extended the total flight duration beyond the 30-minute threshold. The 117-second mission brought the inaugural aircraft to function from the surface of another planet closer to its original airstrip, “Wright Brothers Field,” where it will remain until the arrival of NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover, which is presently investigating the “South Séítah” area of Mars’ Jezero Crater.

Along with amassing a total of 30 minutes and 48 seconds of flight duration, the pioneering helicopter has traversed a distance of 2.2 miles (3,592 meters) over the terrain, achieving heights of up to 40 feet (12 meters) and speeds reaching 10 mph (5 meters per second).

The rotorcraft’s condition following the December 5 flight was previously unverified because of an unforeseen interruption to the in-flight data feed as the helicopter descended to the ground at the end of its flight. Perseverance acts as the communication hub for the helicopter with controllers on Earth. A limited number of data radio packets received by the rover later suggested a healthy helicopter on the Martian surface but lacked sufficient details for the team to confirm a successful flight.

However, data relayed to mission engineers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California on Friday, December 10, suggests that Flight 17 was successful and that Ingenuity remains in excellent condition.

The 30-minute mark greatly exceeds the initial plans for the 4-pound (1.8-kilogram) rotorcraft. Intended as a technology demonstration to conduct up to five test flights, Ingenuity first took flight on April 19, 2021, with a brief vertical ascent and descent to demonstrate that powered, controlled flight on Mars was viable. The subsequent four experimental flights broadened the rotorcraft’s flight capabilities, executing increasingly lengthy voyages with more complex maneuvers, thereby enhancing engineers at JPL’s understanding of its performance.

With the sixth flight, the helicopter began a new operations demonstration phase, exploring how aerial reconnaissance and various functions could assist future Martian exploration and beyond. In this new phase, the helicopter has operated from airstrips significantly south of Wright Brothers Field, examining rocky formations and other geological features of interest to the science team of Perseverance rover.

“Few believed we would reach flight one, even fewer anticipated five. And nobody predicted we would progress this far,” stated Ingenuity Team Lead Teddy Tzanetos from JPL. “On our journey to exceeding half an hour in the sky, Ingenuity has endured eight months of extreme cold and operated from nine distinct Martian airfields. The ongoing operations of the aircraft highlight the resilience of the design and the dedication and enthusiasm of our compact operations crew.”

Flight 18 is slated to occur no sooner than today, December 15, with Ingenuity set to cover an additional 754 feet (230 meters) at a speed of 5.6 mph (2.5 meters per second) over a timeframe of 125 seconds. The upcoming airstrip, located near the northern edge of Séítah, will mark the rotorcraft’s 10th on Mars. Data from this flight is anticipated to arrive at JPL no earlier than late afternoon today.

Similar to previous efforts, Flight 18 will test the limits of Ingenuity’s radio range and capabilities. To maximize the chances of maintaining a connection throughout its landing, the Mars Helicopter team has adjusted the flight protocol to engage in a low-data-rate mode, providing an additional signal-strength boost to the communication link.

“Should we lose the radio link during landing, it may take days or even weeks for the line-of-sight between Ingenuity and Perseverance to improve enough for us to establish a communication session,” Tzanetos noted. “Although a delay in our post-flight data analysis may be inconvenient, it is not unforeseen and is becoming the new norm as we continue to navigate through challenging terrains in the weeks to come.”

The Ingenuity Mars Helicopter was constructed by JPL, which also oversees this technology demonstration project on behalf of NASA Headquarters. It receives support from NASA’s Science, Aeronautics, and Space Technology mission directorates. Significant flight performance analysis and technical support during Ingenuity’s development was provided by NASA’s Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley, along with NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. AeroVironment Inc., Qualcomm, and SolAero also rendered design assistance and principal vehicle components. Lockheed Space designed and manufactured the Mars Helicopter Delivery System.

At NASA Headquarters, Dave Lavery serves as the program executive for the Ingenuity Mars Helicopter.

A major aim for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, which includes searching for evidence of ancient microbial existence. The rover will analyze the planet’s geology and historical climate, facilitating preparations for human exploration of the Red Planet, and will be the first mission to gather and store Martian rock and regolith (fragmented rock and dust).

Future NASA missions, in collaboration with ESA (European Space Agency), will send spacecraft to Mars to retrieve these sealed samples from the surface and return them to Earth for comprehensive analysis.

The Mars 2020 Perseverance initiative is part of NASA’s Moon to Mars exploration strategy, which encompasses Artemis missions to the Moon aimed at preparing for human exploration of the Red Planet.

JPL, operated for NASA by Caltech in Pasadena, California, developed and manages the operations of the Perseverance rover.

For further details regarding Ingenuity:

To learn more about Perseverance:

mars.nasa.gov/mars2020/

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DC Agle 
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
818-393-9011 / 818-393-2433
agle@jpl.nasa.gov

Karen Fox / Alana Johnson
NASA Headquarters, Washington
301-286-6284 / 202-358-1501
karen.c.fox@nasa.gov / alana.r.johnson@nasa.gov

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