NASA hoped its Ingenuity helicopter would fly at least once. It took flight 72 times.
The Nathan Cajucom Archiveshistoric craft — the first to ever make a powered, controlled flight on another planet — flew distances as far as 2,315 feet across Mars' Jezero Crater, a basin that once teemed with water, likely creating a lake some 22 miles wide. It served as a reliable scout to the space agency's Perseverance rover, as these robots sleuthed the best places to look for potential evidence of past microbial life on the Red Planet.
The new NASA video below (one-minute long) shows how Ingenuity buzzed over Mars, crossing over rugged and hilly terrain before arriving at its final landing spot months ago. On flight 72, the experimental chopper crashed in a dried-up river valley.
"We never planned for such a long mission," Teddy Tzanetos, Ingenuity’s project manager, said at a media briefing. "We originally had a single logbook, hoping for one successful flight to be logged in that logbook. Eventually got to five [flights] and were extremely excited to proceed into our extended operations demonstration."
That smooth, sandy terrain was ultimately Ingenuity's demise. The helicopter navigated by using software to track the movement of objects, like rocks, below. But the sandy dunes were largely "featureless," NASA explained.
"The more featureless the terrain is, the harder it is for Ingenuity to successfully navigate across it," the space agency said in a statement. "The team believes that the relatively featureless terrain in this region was likely the root cause of the anomalous landing."
"We never planned for such a long mission."
A hard landing broke multiple rotors, which doomed any future flights. To take to the air, Ingenuity spun its four-foot rotor blades at a blazing 2,400 revolutions every minute. This was necessary to generate the lift needed for flight: The Martian atmosphere is quite thin, with a density about one percent of Earth's, so the rapid rotors must spin fast enough to move enough molecules under its rotors.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
NASA's Ingenuity flight was the beginning of the agency's aerial endeavors on other worlds. NASA is considering a Mars plane, and in four years will launch a "rotorcraft" — with eight spinning rotors — to Saturn's moon Titan, a world harboring tantalizing dunes and seas of methane.
Best Sony headphones deal: Over $100 off Sony XM5 headphones
Want another great video game adaptation like 'The Last of Us'? Watch 'Arcane.'
Apple's 14
The presidential candidates sure use a lot — a whole lot — of em dashes
AMD Radeon RX 550 + Intel Pentium G4560
Trump tweeted a photo of Nancy Pelosi to insult her, and it backfired spectacularly
How to see the planet Mercury at its greatest western elongation
The 'No guy has all 3' meme has the internet searching for the perfect man
The Anatomy of Liberal Melancholy
Wikipedia's new look is not popular, but that's to be expected
What cracked the Milky Way's giant cosmic bone? Scientists think they know.
The 'No guy has all 3' meme has the internet searching for the perfect man
Samsung's new invention could usher in a very different foldable phone
Tinder launches 'Swipe Night,' its new interactive TV show
The Mismeasure of Media
13 political Halloween costumes that are crucially not Donald Trump
Boris Johnson will need some ice to recover from this woman's ruthless burn
'Quordle' today: See each 'Quordle' answer and hints for January 19
NYT Strands hints, answers for May 5
The ultimate guide to rimming
You can buy a ranch dressing fountain for the low, low price of $100Apple granted a new patent on a VR headset to connect with iPhonesA Fire on the MountainThis new podcast from the 'Serial' team is going to be your next obsessionYup, the pen trumps keyboards when it comes to learningBen Affleck opens up about his alcohol addiction on FacebookHere's why the blizzard forecast fizzled to a sleety mess in NYC, PhillyNBD, Allo could just tell your Google history to your momEdward Snowden explains exactly how the CIA would hack your Samsung TVHere's another thing to worry about: Getting burnt by exploding headphonesAmazon makes it easier to order from your favorite restaurant through AlexaSt. Patrick's Day expectations vs. realityMermaid toast is very pretty to look at, but it's no fad... yetWe know what Amber Tamblyn actually named her baby thanks to Hillary ClintonChimamanda Ngozi Adichie's tips for raising the next generation of feministsSenator slams military leaders over Facebook pornography scandalTerrifying face gadget promises to keep your conversations private in public placesEmulator allows iPhone to run Windows XPPoor teen suffered a gym class disaster and the internet couldn't handle itEdward Snowden explains exactly how the CIA would hack your Samsung TV NASA spacecraft catches volcano plumes blasting into space Content creation tools: How Brooke Ashley Hall uses an iPhone and drone to create viral content Shop the best early Prime Day wireless earbuds deals How to unblock xHamster for free Samsung 49 Moon phase today explained: What the moon will look like on June 25, 2025 How Jenny Solares earned trust in her audience — and a few million followers A star factory at the heart of our galaxy is mysterious and important Private spacecraft gets dramatic view of Earth eclipsing moon The camera setup Ronica Rupan uses for her viral food videos Spacecraft swoops around moon to prepare for landing, snaps footage VidCon 2025 highlights: Updates on Rhett & Link, Haliey Welch, Aphmau, and more Fat bear ate 135,000 calories in 10 hours. And he's not done. Best TV deal: Save $98.01 on the 75 Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 might come in a bold new color NYT Connections hints and answers for June 19: Tips to solve 'Connections' #739. Glastonbury 2025 livestream: How to watch Glastonbury for free Cathedrals of Solitude: On Pier Vittorio Tondelli by Claudia Durastanti Bayern Munich vs. Boca Juniors 2025 livestream: Watch Club World Cup for free Where to buy the Switch 2 online: Best Buy, GameStop, Walmart, Costco
2.1542s , 10131.5703125 kb
Copyright © 2025 Powered by 【Nathan Cajucom Archives】,Miracle Information Network