Six Months of Ingenuity

On April 19, 2021, after weeks of tentative dates, the Ingenuity Mars Helicopter finally took flight on the Red Planet for the first time. The moment marked one of the most impressive feats ever accomplished, not just on Mars, but here too on Earth, as we all witnessed an aircraft take off on the surface of another planet—only a bit over a century after we first achieved the same here. The parallels of the first flight by the Wright brothers here on our home turf are certainly striking. Six months down the road, Ginny, as we like to call the little helicopter that could, has shown us that flight on the Martian surface is not only possible, but it may even be considered in future planetary endeavors. Here are six things we learned from the tiny Mars flyer in the first six months:

Yes, Yes, and Yes

From the moment Ingenuity achieved the feat of lifting-off the surface of Mars, it answered the question many have pondered for decades; is it possible to send an uncrewed aircraft from Earth to another planet (safely), power it with solely solar energy, send signals and updates remotely, and watch it take to the sky? Yes! Not only has Ginny shown that it is possible once, twice, or thrice, but the helicopter accomplished the task over a dozen times.

13 and Counting

As of this writing, Ingenuity has successfully taken flight 13 times, each flight pushing the boundary line further and providing answers to questions that were left entirely unanswered hitherto. With its numerous takeoffs, Ginny has well surpassed the initial demonstration phase of test flights and has far exceeded the 30-day window it was designed for, with more planned missions on the way.

A Lot of Ground (and Air) Covered

Over more than a dozen flights, the Mars Helicopter has reached an altitude of 39 feet twice and has covered a total horizontal distance of 9,000 feet; the furthest it traveled during a single flight is logged at approximately 2,000 feet, while reaching a max groundspeed of 11 miles per hour. As for stamina, Ginny peaked at a flight duration of almost three full minutes.

Views

During flight number 13, Ingenuity gave us a look of the Red Planet in 3D. As a unique capture from the helicopter’s perspective, the visual allows us to view a rock-covered mound on the surface of Jezero Crater. Ginny has snapped some images too during its flights and even captured sequential images from its navigation camera that lets us experience video-like clips of Mars while above the surface. Not to mention, we were graced with a memorable aerial view of the Perseverance rover along with another of the rover’s tracks on Mars’ surface.

Great Work-Friend

It’s no secret that Ingenuity and Perseverance are probably best pals—after all they took the long journey to Mars together—but the helicopter is also a great work-friend. Flights number 9 and 10 were specifically planned so that Ginny could provide important imagery and information for the NASA team operating Perseverance. During these two flights, the team sought after valuable data for sites under consideration for Percy to explore in the future.

A Future in Flying

Ingenuity was sent to the Martian surface  as a “technology demonstration” and if it had failed at taking off, it would not have affected the Mars 2020 mission in any way. But the Mars Helicopter didn’t fail. Instead, it continues to fly and has well surpassed expectations to the point where Ginny is used to aide Perseverance on its mission and has demonstrated that having a pair of eyes in the sky can add to the main objectives. So, what does this mean for the future of Mars exploration? While there are no guarantees, based on Ingenuity’s success in its first six months, it would seem as if there is a future in flying on Mars (and elsewhere in our solar system). Sending technology capable of achieving flight to Mars may enable us to discover areas of the Red Planet that still remain largely uncharted territory.