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Jan. 25, 2024 RELEASE: 24-017 After Three Years on Mars, NASA’s Ingenuity Helicopter
Mission Ends
NASA’s history-making Ingenuity Mars Helicopter has ended its mission at the Red Planet after surpassing expectations and making dozens
more flights than planned. While the helicopter remains upright and in communication with ground controllers, imagery of its Jan. 18 flight sent to Earth this week indicates one or more of its rotor blades sustained damage during landing, and it is no longer
capable of flight. Originally designed as a technology demonstration to perform up to five experimental test flights over 30 days, the first aircraft on another
world operated from the Martian surface for almost three years, performed 72 flights, and flew more than 14 times farther than planned while logging more
than two hours of total flight time. “The historic journey of Ingenuity, the first aircraft on another planet, has come to end,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson. “That remarkable helicopter flew higher and farther
than we ever imagined and helped NASA do what we do best – make the impossible, possible. Through missions like Ingenuity, NASA is paving the way for future flight in our solar system and smarter, safer human exploration to Mars and beyond.” NASA to Discuss Ingenuity Mission in Media Call Today In addition to video comments shared from Nelson about the mission’s conclusion, NASA will host a media teleconference at 5 p.m. EST today, Thursday, Jan. 25, to provide an update
on Ingenuity Mars Helicopter. Audio of the call will stream live on the agency’s
website. Participants in the call are expected to include:
Media who wish to participate by phone can request dial-in information by emailing
hq-media@mail.nasa.gov. Ingenuity landed on Mars Feb. 18, 2021, attached to the belly of NASA’s Perseverance rover and
first
lifted off the Martian surface on April 19, proving that powered, controlled flight on Mars was possible. After notching another four flights, it embarked on a new
mission as an operations
demonstration, serving as an
aerial
scout for Perseverance scientists and rover drivers. In 2023,
the helicopter executed two successful flight tests that further expanded the team’s knowledge of its aerodynamic limits. “At NASA JPL, innovation is at the heart of what we do,” said Leshin. “Ingenuity is an exemplar of the way we push the boundaries of what’s possible every day. I’m
incredibly proud of our team behind this historic technological achievement and eager to see what they’ll invent next.” Ingenuity’s team planned for the helicopter to make a short vertical flight on Jan. 18 to determine its location after executing an emergency
landing on its previous flight. Data shows that, as planned, the helicopter achieved a maximum altitude of 40 feet (12 meters) and hovered for 4.5 seconds before starting its descent at a velocity of 3.3 feet per second (1 meter per second).
However, about 3 feet (1 meter) above the surface, Ingenuity lost contact with the rover, which serves as a communications relay for the
rotorcraft. The following day, communications were reestablished and more information about the flight was relayed to ground controllers at NASA JPL. Imagery
revealing damage to the rotor blade arrived several days later. The cause of the communications dropout and the helicopter’s orientation at time of touchdown are still being investigated. Triumphs, Challenges Over an extended mission that lasted for almost 1,000 Martian days, more than 33 times longer than originally planned, Ingenuity was upgraded
with the ability to autonomously
choose landing sites in treacherous terrain, dealt with a
dead
sensor, cleaned itself after
dust
storms, operated from 48 different airfields, performed three emergency landings, and survived a frigid Martian winter.
Designed to operate in spring,
Ingenuity was unable to power its heaters throughout the night during the coldest parts of winter, resulting in the flight computer periodically
freezing and resetting. These power “brownouts” required the team to
redesign
Ingenuity’s winter operations in order to keep flying. With flight operations now concluded, the Ingenuity team will perform final tests on helicopter systems and download the remaining imagery
and data in Ingenuity's onboard memory. The Perseverance rover is currently too far away to attempt to image the helicopter at its final airfield. “It’s humbling Ingenuity not only carries onboard a
swatch
from the original Wright Flyer, but also this helicopter followed in its footsteps and proved flight is possible on another world,” said Ingenuity’s project manager, Teddy Tzanetos of NASA JPL. “The Mars helicopter would have never flown once, much less 72
times, if it were not for the passion and dedication of the Ingenuity and Perseverance teams. History’s first Mars helicopter will leave behind an indelible mark on the future of space exploration and will inspire fleets of aircraft on Mars – and other worlds
– for decades to come.” More About Ingenuity The Ingenuity Mars Helicopter was built by NASA JPL, which also manages the project for NASA Headquarters. It is supported by NASA’s Science
Mission Directorate. NASA’s Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley and NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, provided significant flight performance analysis and technical assistance during Ingenuity’s development. AeroVironment
Inc., Qualcomm, and SolAero also provided design assistance and major vehicle components. Lockheed Space designed and manufactured the Mars
Helicopter Delivery System. At NASA Headquarters, Dave Lavery is the program executive for the Ingenuity Mars helicopter. For more information about Ingenuity: https://mars.nasa.gov/technology/helicopter -end- TO RECEIVE NASA NEWS RELEASES NASA news releases and other information are available automatically by sending an e-mail to hqnews-join@newsletters.nasa.gov (no
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