Space exploration continues to make history. On July 30, 2020, the US space agency launched from its base in Cape Canaveral the probe that took Perseverance to the red planet, the fifth rover that NASA places on Martian soil.
Joining him was Ingenuity, the first helicopter ever to be sent to Mars. A few days ago, it completely detached itself from the rover and made a descent to land on the surface of Mars. Now , after enduring the cold Martian nights, it has turned its little blades for the first time and has turned at 50 rpm with the intention of warming up engines for the first flight that is scheduled not before April 11.
What should we know about Ingenuity
It is 0.49 meters tall and weighs 1.8 kilos. It has six lithium-ion batteries that are charged with solar energy.
Ingenuity will serve as a technology demonstration – looking to test a new capability for the first time, with a limited scope.
The drone features four carbon fiber blades made especially for this world, arranged on two rotors that spin in opposite directions at around 2,400 rpm , many times faster than a passenger helicopter on Earth.
It does not carry scientific instruments and is presented as a separate experiment from the Perseverance Mars 2020 rover.
Why is it difficult to fly on Mars?
On the one hand, the thin atmosphere of Mars makes it difficult to lift, as it is 99% less dense than that of Earth, hence they had to make it as light as possible.
The cold doesn’t help either. Nights on Mars drop to -90 degrees Celsius, and while the Ingenuity team on Earth has tested the helicopter at Martian temperatures and believes it should perform as intended on Mars, the freezing temperatures will push many of its parts to the limit. Also, JPL flight controllers will not be able to control the helicopter with a joystick. Communication delays are an inherent part of working with spacecraft across interplanetary distances, so commands are sent well in advance.
Meanwhile, Ingenuity will have a lot of autonomy to make its own decisions about how to fly and stay warm.
Ingenuity has already demonstrated several feats of engineering. In careful steps from 2014 to 2019, JPL engineers demonstrated that it was possible to build an aircraft that was very light, capable of generating sufficient lift in the thin atmosphere of Mars and surviving in a Martian-like environment. They tested progressively more advanced models in special space simulators at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California.
They will tell us about their success step by step. Ingenuity will make its first flight attempt. If the helicopter is successful on that first flight, the team will attempt up to four other test flights within a 30 Martian day window (31 Earth days). If all goes well, something we will know soon, as the data will reach Earth on April 12, future exploration of Mars could include an ambitious aerial dimension.
