First powered flight on another planet NASA engineers plan to fly a miniature helicopter on Mars in an aviation experiment that, if successful, will mark the first ever powered, controlled flight by an aircraft on another celestial body Perseverance rover landed Feb 18 Mastcam-Z cameras DEPLOYMENT: Ingenuity helicopter lowered from belly of Perseverance rover 1 Protective debris shield dropped – Perseverance drives to centre of airfield 2 Spring-loaded arm rotates Ingenuity upright 3 Landing legs released 4 Ingenuity lowered to surface – rover leaves so helicopter’s solar panel can recharge batteries 1 Protective debris shield 2 3 4 ---------------------------------------------------------- MARS INGENUITY HELICOPTER Solar panel Communications antenna History marked: Tiny swatch of fabric from wing of Wright Brothers’ 1903 Flyer fixed to solar panel Twin rotors: Four carbon-fibre blades spin in opposite directions at 2,400 revolutions per minute – three times faster than regular helicopter – to overcome thin Martian atmosphere, 1% density of Earth Electronic box: Computers; Lithium-ion batteries; Laser altimeter; Colour imaging camera; Navigation camera Heater and thermostat: Keep craft warm – temperatures can drop to -100 degrees Celsius during Martian night Upper and lower rotors Landing legs: Aluminium hinges dampen force of impact ---------------------------------------------------------- Flight zone: Flat and relatively hazard-free square of terrain on Jezero Crater Rover landing location Airfield: 10x10m Van Zyl Overlook: Perseverance will observe Ingenuity from distance of 60m and relay data to and from helicopter Insulated fuselage frame 90 metres 20m 12 miles ---------------------------------------------------------- 3 metres 0.49m 1.2m Weight: 1.8kg Cost: $80m First flight: Ingenuity aims to rise 3 metres and hover for 30 seconds before returning to helipad If successful, four more increasingly complex flights are planned ---------------------------------------------------------- Pictures: NASA/JPL-Caltech NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS, NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona © GRAPHIC NEWS Source: NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory