HOUSTON (CNN) – The Ingenuity helicopter, companion and travel companion of NASA’s Perseverance rover, has a good report and “works as expected,” according to the agency.
If successful, Ingenuity will be the first helicopter to fly to another planet, leading to an “extraterrestrial moment of the Wright Brothers,” said Thomas Zurbuchen, associate director of NASA’s Scientific Mission Directorate.
The rover landed safely on the surface of Mars on Thursday after launching from Earth on July 30th. Perseverance has already sent an impressive set of images to show that she is safe and ready to go through an “exit” phase before beginning her journey across the surface. .
Now, the mission team has heard the helicopter live for the first time, and that’s good news.
Currently, the wit is hidden under the rover and joins Perseverance’s belly. The rover is the size of an SUV, while the helicopter weighs only about 4 pounds.
The helicopter was able to call home via the rover sending data through NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, which acts as a communications relay between Mars and Earth and has been orbiting the red planet since 2006.
The wit is comfortable where it is and doesn’t let the rover go at any point to make a test flight. The helicopter will stay tuned to the rover for 30 to 60 days.
“The craft, the Mars helicopter I carry, works as expected. Currently the carriage, but once it is up and running, will depend solely on its solar panels. If it survives the brutal cold Martian nights, the team will make it flight attempt, “reads one tweet from Perseverance’s Twitter account.
The craft, the Mars helicopter I carry, works as expected. I’m currently charging it, but once I’ve set it up, it will only depend on your solar panels. If he survives the cold Martian nights, the team will try to escape. https://t.co/8pksN06ZwP#CountdownToMarspic.twitter.com/80kEoww0QU
– NASA’s Perseverance Mars Rover (@NASAPersevere) February 20, 2021
“There are two powerful items we look for in the data: the state of charge of the Ingenuity batteries, as well as the confirmation that the base station works as designed, ordering the heaters to turn off and light up to keep helicopter electronics within the limit, “Tim Canham said in a statement, NASA’s Ingenious Mars Helicopter operations aimed at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
“Both seem to be working very well. With this positive report, we will move forward with the (Saturday) charge of the helicopter batteries.”
The device must ignite and store energy so that it can stay warm and maintain other vital functions during the cold Martian nights once the rover deposits the helicopter on the surface of the red planet. Then the ingenuity will be left alone.
And you will have to endure nights when temperatures can drop to negative to 130 degrees Fahrenheit. As Elton John famously sings in “Rocket Man,” Mars is, in fact, as cold as hell.
Maintaining function and good battery health will be critical if the helicopter can survive the cold Martian weather before attempting test flights later. A total of five test flights are planned over a 31-day period once the rover finds the right “heliport” or good place to deposit the craft.
As long as ingenuity is coupled with perseverance, the helicopter can give a boost to its batteries. The helicopter has six lithium-ion batteries. Once removed from the rover, these batteries will be charged by the helicopter’s solar panel.
The first flight of wit will be short, only about 20 seconds of flight. But it will be a historic moment. Like the first Martian rover, Sojourner, the ingenuity is a technological demonstration: an experiment. Demonstrating that this concept can work could lead to the development of rotorcraft that could act as explorers for both rovers and human missions to Mars in the future.
If this first flight is successful, “more than 90% of the project’s goals will have been achieved,” according to NASA.
Subsequent flights could last longer and test more of the helicopter’s capabilities. It carries two cameras that can provide aerial images. Perseverance will also train your cameras on wit to capture the sights and sounds, including video, of these historic flights.
“We’re in unfamiliar territory, but this team is used to it,” MiMi Aung, project manager for JPL’s Ingenious Mars Helicopter, said in a statement. “Almost every milestone between now and the end of our flight demonstration program will be the first and everyone must be successful so we can continue with the next. We will enjoy this good news for now, but then we have to get back to work. . “
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