NASA’s Ingenuity Mars Helicopter Restores Communication after Blackout

Despite facing communication difficulties during its descent for landing, NASA’s Ingenuity Mars Helicopter successfully completed its 52nd flight on April 26. The challenging Martian terrain caused intermittent communication dropouts, leading to a temporary loss of contact. However, on June 28, the signal was re-established as the hill blocking communication between Ingenuity and the Perseverance rover was overcome. The upcoming Flight 53, scheduled for the following weeks, will further explore the westward terrain of Mars.

There are prospects of the resilient rotorcraft taking flight again in the next few weeks. The 52nd flight of the Ingenuity Mars Helicopter has now been officially recorded as a success in the mission logbook. While the flight occurred on April 26, mission controllers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Southern California lost contact with the helicopter during its landing due to the presence of a hill obstructing the line of communication between the landing location and the Perseverance rover’s position. Anticipating this communication blackout, the Ingenuity team had already developed plans to regain contact once the rover returned within range. On June 28, when Perseverance crested the hill, contact with Ingenuity was restored.

The Perseverance rover’s Mastcam-Z captured an image of NASA’s Ingenuity Mars Helicopter on April 16, shortly after the rotorcraft’s 50th flight. However, hilly terrain caused a 63-day interruption in communication between the rover and the aircraft, rendering Ingenuity silent during this period. Nonetheless, data received after the blackout indicates that the first aircraft on another world is functioning well. If the remaining health checks go smoothly, the helicopter may take flight again in the next few weeks.

Flight 52 aimed to reposition the helicopter and capture images of the Martian surface for the rover’s science team. The flight covered a distance of 1,191 feet (363 meters) and lasted 139 seconds. Josh Anderson, the Ingenuity team lead at JPL, explained that the current region of Jezero Crater being explored by the rover and helicopter is rugged, making communication dropouts more likely. The team’s objective is to keep Ingenuity ahead of Perseverance, which sometimes requires temporarily pushing beyond communication limits. The team is excited to regain communication with Ingenuity and confirm the success of Flight 52.

The next target for Flight 53 is an interim airfield located westward, from where the team plans to conduct another flight in the same direction, towards a new base of operations near a rocky outcrop of interest to the Perseverance team.

More about Ingenuity:
The Ingenuity Mars Helicopter is developed by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), which also manages the project on behalf of NASA Headquarters. Support for the project comes from NASA’s Science Mission Directorate. During Ingenuity’s development phase, significant contributions were made by NASA’s Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley and NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. These institutions provided crucial flight performance analysis and technical guidance. Industry partners, including AeroVironment Inc., Qualcomm, and SolAero, were also involved, contributing to the design process and supplying essential vehicle components. Lockheed Space was responsible for designing and manufacturing the Mars Helicopter Delivery System. The Ingenuity Mars Helicopter project at NASA Headquarters is led by Program Executive Dave Lavery.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about Ingenuity Mars Helicopter

More about Ingenuity Mars Helicopter

• NASA’s Ingenuity Mars Helicopter Mission Page
• NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)
• NASA’s Perseverance Rover Mission Page
• NASA’s Mars Exploration Program