I confess that I’d forgotten about the little chopper. But this is nothing short of astounding.
Nearly half a year after the Perseverance rover landed on Mars, the Ingenuity helicopter is still going strong on the surface of Mars. The small flyer has done so well that it has been separated from Perseverance for some time as it scouts ahead on the red planet.
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Ingenuity completed its latest flight on Monday, ascending to 10 meters and flying 450 meters across Mars to investigate what scientists call the “South Séítah” region of Mars. The helicopter was aloft for a total of 169 seconds during Monday’s flight. In its dozen flights, Ingenuity has now covered 2.67 km, which is farther than Perseverance has rolled during nearly six months.
For context, the first rover, Sojourner traveled 100 meters total. This is an incredible technological achievement.
