NASA’s Mars helicopter Ingenuity ended its active life after 72 flights on the Martian terrain by being damaged during the landing it tried to make the other day. NASA shared the final image of the vehicle, the first example of powered and controlled flight on another planet.
Ingenuity’s wings were damaged
As you know, Ingenuity, which suffered significant damage to its 1.2-meter-long main rotor blades, was unable to continue its mission. The seriousness of the damage is better understood from the photos shared by NASA.
In the images taken by a navigation camera placed on Ingenuity’s 27-inch fuselage, we see a few broken tips on the rotor blades, or rather, we see its shadow.
In the thin Martian atmosphere, which has only one percent of the density of the Earth’s atmosphere, the functionality of the rotors is crucial for generating the lift necessary for flight. Unfortunately, with the damage, this force will not be provided by the rotors.
The photo was taken on December 22, 2023, less than a month before the end of Ingenuity's mission. Here are the details!
The other day, we shared with you the scenes photographed by NASA’s Mars helicopter Ingenuity in its ‘last breath’. Damage detection was also made from the photos captured by Ingenuity.
Seeing the shadow of the rotor blades, scientists determined that the blades were damaged and unfortunately, they concluded that Ingenuity could not continue.
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