This was announced by NASA engineers. They were going to try to fly Ingenuity on Mars, this Monday, April 19, 2021. Just before the fate time, five scenarios were still considered: postponement, failure, insufficient response, partial success, and total success. This was ultimately the box of the previous one that was checked. Helicopter flew on Mars!
« Spin Up, take off, climb, fly, descend, descend, touch and spin down. » Shame first of all that we can guess the back of the mask. Then thumb. Finally the applause rang out. And an explosion of joy when the data finally appears on the control center screen Jet propulsion laboratory (JPL) of NASA. It is there at the moment. Simplat took his first flight. This Monday, April 19, 2021 will be remembered as the date on which, for the first time, a motorized and controlled machine flew on a planet other than our Earth. Mars.
First video of Ingenuity flight firmly captured on April 19, 2021 © NASA, JPL-Caltech
As reported by the NASA engineer in charge of reporting, the Martian helicopterSimplicity Successfully completed all phases of its flight: starting blade, takeoff, climb, flight, descent, landing and finally, stopping the blade. “We had a dream of sorts” Wright Brothers” – Two pioneers of American aviation who made their first powered flight in 1903 – And here we are “Commented, Mimi Aang, head of Ingenuity Project on Nasi TV.
A historical flight
The first image of this feat was the shadow of Ingenuity hovering on Mars. An image taken by the helicopter even flew across the surface of Mars. And just after, these images are immortalized by Rover firmness Which returned to NASA engineers. A helicopter flying from the ground of the red planet designed and built on Earth.
Remember that the helicopter of Mars is not strictly speaking, “pilot”. It actually executes a sequence of commands that it sent earlier. It relies on its flight software to manage the sequence. Today’s flight was to last approximately 40 seconds, including a takeoff, a U-turn towards the Perseverance Rover, and then a landing.
Further information is expected in the coming hours. Although enthusiasts have no doubt eagerly waiting for the next flight in advance and it will show us red Planet.
Ingenuity probably made its first flight into the skies of Mars. First return from NASA this afternoon
NASA engineers announced it later this week. Fortitude is ready to land the helicopter carried by the rover to Mars. At 12:15 pm Paris time, in the company of the team in charge of search, operations, has Ingenuity made history by becoming the first machine to achieve a motorized and controlled flight on another planet.
Article by Nathalie mayor Published on 04/19/2021
After a technical disappointment that occurred during the last test of its rotor, SimplicityNASA’s helicopter strongly drove the rover to Mars, ultimately awaiting the time of its first flight. A historical moment. Which should happen today. This Monday, April 19, 2021. It must be already in progress to speak the truth. But we will have to wait a little bit to find out how this happened.
This weekend, tests of software updates initiated by NASA were decisive. And the engineers of the US Space Agency responsible for the ingenuity operation now invite you to wait with them for the return of its first data. Historical flight. They offer on you It’s on tv, Direct from the operations center of Jet propulsion laboratory (JPL) KST from 12:15 pm.
Ingenuity Flight “Live”
this is due to Firmness This data will be sent back to Earth. Between the roles of the rover, in fact: provide operational support during the flight, take photos, collect environmental data and host a base station that allows Ingenuity to communicate with mission controllers.
During live streaming, You can ask your question Social Networks Via the hashtag #MarsHelicopter.
But for the full debriefing of the flight – if it happened – we would have to wait until 8 pm today, still Paris time.
March: Will not be born for several days
During the final test of Ingenuity’s rotor, which had to rotate the blade at 2,400 rpm, a discrepancy forced NASA to postpone the flight.
Article by Javier Demersman Published on 04/13/2021
On April 9, 49, after an investigation to diagnose the frustration experienced during rotation-testing of congenital blades (see details in article below)I On Mars Day of Perseverance (in view of a takeoff beginning for April 11), NASA has established that an update of flight control software is required. The space agency says “minor” changes are likely.
“When making changes to new software, the process of straightening, uploading and completing ingenuity will take some time.” Please inform JPL. This is only a story of days, even weeks. patience.
Meanwhile, all the vital signs of a drone-helicopter responsible for the first controlled flight in history on another planet are “stable” at this point. The investigation is on.
“It is not surprising that such a technology poses performance challenges that must work in real time” NASA explains.
March: Why was Ingenuity’s flight postponed?
Article by Remy décourt Published on 12 April 2021
Originally scheduled for this weekend,Natal performance flight April 14 has been postponed. NASA delayed this flight, which can be described as historic, due to an anomaly that occurred during the previous test that was to see the helicopter’s blades rotating at 2,400 revolutions per minute. As reported by NASA in its press release, during this high-speed rotation test, it ended earlier than expected due to an anomaly during the transition from pre-flight mode to in-flight mode. Computer riding. Simplicity has gone into safety mode. A security procedure, ” Safe mode It is common for most space systems to be associated with a domino effect to avoid other breakdowns or poor effects.
Via perseverance, the helicopter transmit all its Telemetry, Which should allow ground controllers to properly understand what happened.
Frequent and long flights
During this first flight, Simplicity You should rise three short meters above your take-off zone and stay at that height for about 40 seconds before touching the bottom. If this first flight goes well, the drone-chopper can make four more flights by early May. In flights two and three, he should be more ambitious and climb up to five meters and move about 50 meters downstream from his position, that is, stay away strongly to avoid any risk.
As with the previous two attempts, NASA has planned more ambitious, even adventurous flights, but without explicitly specifying the objectives in terms of travel time and flight ceiling. Note that due to a communication time of several minutes between the two planets, Ingenuity cannot be controlled remotely. The helicopter’s on-board computer has the program set up for various flights, but NASA can update them if necessary and at any time.
These additional flights are subject to proper functioningSolar panel And Ingenuity’s internal heat guarantees the cold resistance of on-board electronics, whose temperatures can drop to -90 ° C at night. By far, the lowest temperature strongly measured was −83 ° C.
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