Why is it in the News?

In its pursuit of extensively exploring Mars to find signs of water, Nasa is considering a proposed idea to send a giant fixed-wing plane to the Red Planet.

What is Ingenuity Mars Helicopter?

• The Ingenuity Mars Helicopter is a small, autonomous aircraft that is part of NASA's Mars 2020 mission.
• It was deployed to the surface of Mars on April 3, 2021, and made its first powered, controlled flight on another planet on April 19, 2021.
• Ingenuity is a technology demonstration mission, and its main goal is to show that powered flight is possible on Mars.
  • The helicopter has four carbon-fiber blades creating enough lift to overcome the thin Martian atmosphere.
  • It is powered by solar cells and can fly for up to 90 seconds at a time.
• Since its first flight, Ingenuity has completed 72 flights, far exceeding its original planned five flights.
  • It has flown a total of 17 km and reached an altitude of 24 m.
  • The helicopter has also helped to scout ahead for the Perseverance rover, taking images and collecting data from areas that the rover cannot reach.
• Ingenuity's success has paved the way for future aerial exploration of Mars.
  • Future helicopters could be used to scout for landing sites, study the Martian surface in more detail, and even carry small payloads of scientific instruments.

About Perseverance Rover:

• Perseverance is a robotic rover exploring Jezero Crater on Mars as part of NASA's Mars 2020 mission.
• Launched on July 30, 2020, it successfully landed on February 18, 2021, making it the most sophisticated and heaviest rover ever sent to Mars.

Mission Highlights:

• Seeking signs of ancient microbial life: Perseverance is equipped with several instruments to analyze Martian rocks and soil for potential signs of past life.
• Collecting rock samples: The rover drills and collects rock samples that will be cached on Mars for potential return to Earth by future missions.
• Testing technology for future missions: Perseverance is demonstrating new technologies that will be crucial for future human exploration of Mars, such as the MOXIE instrument that produces oxygen from the Martian atmosphere and the Ingenuity helicopter, the first powered aircraft to fly on another planet.
• Perseverance Achievements:
  • Finding evidence of an ancient lake in Jezero Crater that may have been habitable for microbial life.
  • Collecting the first rock samples from Mars that will be returned to Earth.
  • Demonstrating the feasibility of using a helicopter on Mars (the Ingenuity helicopter hitched a ride with Perseverance).