NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter made its 26th flight on April 19, far exceeding initial estimates for its lifespan, being a pleasant surprise and a marvel of engineering on the inhospitable surface of Mars. In this particular flight, he managed to locate the wreckage of the protective shell and the parachute that helped the Perseverance rover to land on the Red Planet on February 18, 2021. The helicopter even managed to record 10 aerial photos from the site.
“NASA has expanded the Ingenuity mission to offer innovative flights like this. “Every time it takes off, Ingenuity covers new lands and offers a vision that no previous planetary mission has achieved,” said Teddy Tzanetos, head of Ingenuity at Jet Propulsion Laboratory. NASA.
Entering the atmosphere, landing and landing on Mars is demanding, not only for engineers back on Earth, but also for spacecraft that have to withstand gravitational forces, high temperatures and other extreme conditions as they enter the Martian atmosphere with 20,000 kilometers per hour.
The images captured by Ingenuity will provide valuable knowledge to its engineers NASA to ensure safer landings on future missions, such as that of the Mars Sample Return Lander that will bring the specimens collected by the Perseverance rover back to Earth.
Perseverance had one of the best recorded landings in history, with cameras showing everything from the development of the parachute to the landing. But Ingenuity photos offer a different perspective. Either they prove our systems worked well, or they offer another set of mechanical information data that we can use to design the Mars Sample Return mission, the plans are shocking.
The Perseverance’s protective shell fell to the surface at a speed of 126km / h and its protective coating appears to have remained intact from entering the atmosphere. Several of the suspensions that connected the shell to the parachute also appear to have remained intact. 1/3 of the 21.5-meter parachute is covered in dust, but the rest does not appear to have signs of damage from the ultrasonic entry into the atmosphere. Of course it will take several weeks of analysis for a final verdict.
The 26th Ingenuity Flight lasted 159 seconds and covered 192 meters to the southeast at an altitude of 8 meters. As soon as he finished collecting the photos, he headed 75 meters west and landed. It covered a total of 360 meters.
From the beginning of his mission he has completed 49 minutes in the air and has covered 6.2 kilometers.
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