In the historic first flight to the surface of another world. “Mars helicopter” lands on the red planet!

NASA said the helicopter drone, which was to make humanity’s first flight to another planet, had landed on Mars.

The images show the four-legged spacecraft parked on the surface of the Red Planet – after boarding NASA’s Perseverance rover there – before taking off on April 1 for the first of five 90-second flights , reported “The Verge”.

NASA said in a statement last month that the lightweight drone – called Ingenuity – would spend the days leading up to its maiden flight collecting energy from the sun to keep operating during the extremely cold nights of Mars.

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When the helicopter is ready to move, it will take a team from NASA in California about six days on Mars – just four hours from Earth – to fly the drone to altitude at a speed of three feet per second.

The drone takes eight hours to communicate its movements, with engineers on the ground.

NASA said the spacecraft would be able to fly about 3 meters above the surface for 30 seconds.

NASA officials hope the technology will allow future space researchers and explorers to better see the geography of the planet.

Temperatures on the planet could drop to -130 degrees Fahrenheit, according to project chief engineer Bob Palram. The very thin atmosphere at the surface makes flight particularly difficult.

Source: New York Post

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