The first-ever space helicopter is en route to Mars, to shoot drone footage
NASA’s new Mars rover, which launched on 30 July, has a miniature helicopter tucked inside its belly.
Perseverance will be NASA’s fifth rover to Mars, but its helicopter stowaway, called Ingenuity, will be the first spacecraft of its kind. About two months after the rover lands, it’s programmed to lower the helicopter to the Martian surface, back away, and watch as the tiny drone carries out a series of test flights.
If successful, these will be the first controlled flights ever conducted on another planet.
Ingenuity is just a technological demonstration, but it could kick off a new approach to exploring other planets.
Source: businessinsider.co.za
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