NASA's Mars Helicopter Is on the Red Planet's Surface and Preparing to Fly

NASA's Mars Helicopter Is on the Red Planet's Surface and Preparing to Fly

3 years ago
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https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/y3ga4b/nasas-mars-helicopter-is-on-the-red-planets-surface-and-preparing-to-fly

Since it arrived on Mars in February, NASA’s Perseverance rover has been spending its time taking short drives, zapping rocks with lasers, and recording the first ever audio of the red planet. 

But on Saturday, the rover completed a particularly exciting task: dropping off its tiny helicopter buddy, Ingenuity, onto the Martian surface at Jezero Crater. A four-pound autonomous aircraft that rode to Mars on the belly of Perseverance, Ingenuity is due to take to the air as early as this Sunday. If it is successful, it will become the first vehicle to conduct a powered flight on an extraterrestrial world.