Nasa to Fly a Helicopter On Mars for the First Time

NASA to fly a helicopter on Mars for the first time ever.

In what is set to be a new first for NASA, they have plans to fly a helicopter for the first time on Mars in April. NASA is set to use the Ingenuity Mars Rover to make the helicopter flight attempt possible.

The aim is to fly the helicopter three vertical metres into the air which due to the Martian atmosphere is extremely thin. The helicopter weighs in at around 1.8 kilograms and the first flight is planned for April 8.

Farah Alibay, Mars Helicopter integration lead for the Perseverance Rover spoke to Sky News about the flight and explained how all the activities are interlinked, and that once started there will be “no going back”.

The helicopter integration lead explained that, “As with everything with the helicopter, this type of deployment has never been done before.

“Once we start the deployment there is no turning back. All activities are closely coordinated, irreversible, and dependent on each other.

“If there is even a hint that something isn’t going as expected, we may decide to hold off for a sol or more until we have a better idea of what is going on.”

If everything goes to plan and the flight is successful NASA hopes to carry out a further five flights in the space of a month. Each flight will see the helicopter fly for longer and gain more height in the Martian atmosphere.

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