NASA ends the mission of its small helicopter Ingenuity to Mars, which was irreparably damaged

pot Announced termination of flight operations for Simplicityhis little helicopter inside Mars planet, causing irreparable damage to the rotor blades. Despite remaining upright and in communication with flight controllers, the instrument’s $85 million mission ended, the US space agency has confirmed. The Associated Press.

This instrument, which reached the Red Planet aboard the rover Perseverance In 2021, it has far exceeded initial expectations in both duration and scope. Becoming an important part of Mars exploration, Over three years, Ingenuity made 72 flights, spending more than two hours in the air and covering a distance of about 18 kilometers, which is more than fourteen times the initially planned distance.

This success demonstrated that powered flight is possible in the thin Martian atmosphere, opening the way for new exploration methods on the planet. During its final flight it was discovered that one or more of its blades were damaged, preventing any future flights. Although the helicopter succeeded climb up to about 12 meters And after being in the air for a few seconds before landing, it lost contact PerseveranceIts communication relay, damage was confirmed after communication was restored. NASA The cause of this loss of communication is still being investigated.

,Even though we knew this day was inevitable, it still doesn’t make it any easier.Announce the end of the mission, he said lori glazeof pot, “It would almost be an understatement to say that it exceeded expectations.” excellent performance of Simplicity has inspired pot Planning to include two mini helicopters in future missions Mars planet,

Experimental helicopter on April 19, 2021 Simplicity of pot Achieved the first powered flight on another planet by rising above the dusty surface of Mars planet Float in the air for 39 seconds and reach a height of 3 meters, Thus accomplishing all the main objectives of its mission, As confirmed by the news agency The Associated Press,

The technical challenge presented by this $85 million project was considerable, given the marshy atmosphere whose density is barely 1% of Earth’s. To generate the required lift, the minicopter’s 1.8-kilogram carbon-composite, foam-filled propeller had to rotate at 2,500 revolutions per minute, which is five times faster than a land-based helicopter.

Despite challenging conditions on Mars, including winds ranging from 7 to 22 kilometers per hour, Simplicity It stood firm and achieved a soft landing, demonstrating its resilience against the cold Martian night with temperatures falling as low as -90 degrees Celsius.

Wanderer Perseverancewhich was transported Simplicity Until Mars planet, played an important role not only in providing the means of arrival but also in capturing color images of the helicopter landing on the surface of Mars after flight. The success of the flight was greeted with joy among the control team at Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) pot In CaliforniaWho had to wait for more than three hours to confirm the success of the mission due to the distance of 287 million kilometers from Earth. Mars planet,

Project Simplicity, which took more than six years to develop, considers five flights of increasing ambition that could pave the way for a fleet of Martian drones in the coming decades. These technologies promise to expand not only our exploration capacity Mars planet But also on Earth, facilitating navigation in difficult-to-access areas such as the Himalayas.