The 59th flight of NASA’s Ingenuity Mars Helicopter was captured from two different perspectives. The video on the left was recorded by the Mastcam-Z on NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover, while the black-and-white video on the right was taken by Ingenuity’s downward-pointing Navcam. The flight occurred on September 16, marking history as the first time two planets have been home to testing future aircraft designs.
NASA engineers are leaving no stone unturned in their quest for better performance for future Mars helicopters. A new rotor that could be used with the next generation of Mars helicopters was recently tested at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. On Earth, a new carbon fiber rotor design has undergone testing under conditions that aim to replicate off-world environments, all in the hope of achieving bigger, more capable Mars helicopters. With our next-generation Mars helicopter testing, we have, quite literally, had the best of both worlds,” said Teddy Tzanetos, Ingenuity’s project manager and manager for the Mars Sample Recovery Helicopters.
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory unveiled its 25-foot wide, 85-foot-tall space simulator – creating a space-like environment which saw the rotor blades being tested by the team of engineers. Pressing the boundaries even further, the carbon-fiber blades reached near-supersonic speeds during testing, proving their readiness to fly.
Meanwhile, about 100 million miles away on Mars, Ingenuity is setting new records, now having been operated 66 times, despite being originally slated to fly no more than five times. As Ingenuity continues to cover new ground with each flight, the team has been able to achieve higher maximum ground speeds by flying at higher altitudes, laying the foundation for invaluable data that can be used by mission designers for future Mars helicopters.
As Ingenuity continues to defy expectations, its latest feats have led to groundbreaking experiments with its landing speed. With upcoming high-speed flights expected in December, this groundbreaking project is taking air technology to the next level.
