NASA’s helicopter to Mars, called Ingenuity, completes its historic mission

His name was Chaturya. NASA announced the end of its small helicopter’s mission to Mars on Thursday, January 25, after it damaged at least one of its rotor blades during its 72nd and final flight. “What ingenuity has accomplished is far beyond what we thought possible”, underscored the head of NASA in a video. Bill Nelson believes that helicopters “Paved the way for future flights into our solar system”.

In 2021, Ingenuity became the first motorized vehicle to fly to another planet. During its 72nd flight, the helicopter reached an altitude of 12 meters, but shortly before landing there was a sudden interruption in communications. It was eventually able to be restored but NASA teams were able to see damage to the rotor blades a few days later. “We are studying the possibility that the blade could have hit the ground”Bill Nelson said.

The helicopter is now “No longer able to fly”, NASA has confirmed, making it clear that the causes of the communication disruption are still being studied. Chaturya was originally scheduled to take off only five times. In total, the helicopter traveled about 17 kilometers and flew at a height of 24 meters. He arrived on Mars with the Perseverance rover, whose mission is to search for traces of ancient microbial life on Mars. Its longevity is remarkable, especially given that it had to survive freezing Martian nights, heating itself during the day thanks to solar panels charging its batteries.