The tiny Ingenuity helicopter, no taller than a two-year-old child, mysteriously lost contact with NASA for 63 days. On Mars, this time did not go too smoothly, as the Martian helicopter found itself in an extremely difficult place to work. But on June 28, he did get in touch, reporting on his adventures and future plans, Live Science reports.
Ingenuity does not have a direct connection to the Earth; it transmits information through its brother, the Perseverance rover. This robotic pair works together to explore the Martian surface as deeply as possible. Together they explore the area near the Jezero crater, full of rocky obstacles and unstable terrain.
During one of the flights, the 52nd in a row, Ingenuity found itself over a hill where communication with Perseverance became impossible. “Sometimes we have to go beyond the communication zone so that Ingenuity can be one step ahead of Perseverance. This is part of our mission,” explains Josh Anderson, the team leader of the Martian helicopter.
In this flight, which lasted only 139 seconds, Ingenuity managed to fly an impressive 363 meters. The main goal was to move the helicopter and take new images for the Perseverance science team.
Based on the data obtained, we can say that our miniature hero looks healthy and ready for new exploits. The team is currently waiting for confirmation of this information, and if everything goes smoothly, we can expect the next flight in a few weeks.
