See NASA’s Mars rover first look at the helicopter nestled in its belly

NASA’s Perseverance rover is doing its part to help achieve the first powered, controlled flight to another planet. The rover’s companion, the Ingenuity helicopter, will soon encounter the ground on Mars.

NASA shared a first look at the small helicopter under the rover’s belly after dropping a protective shield.

“The debris shield is gone, and here’s our first look at the helicopter. It’s tucked to the side, folded, and locked in place, so there’s some reverse origami to do before I can put it down,” NASA tweeted on Sunday.

Perseverance is heading towards what NASA calls “the helipad,” the designated place to put ingenuity on the ground. The view under the belly is from a camera mounted on the end of the rover’s robotic arm.

NASA to Share More Details on Ingenuity Deployment Procedures and Plans during a briefing Tuesday. The helicopter is considered a high-risk, high-return technology demonstration. It will be spectacular if it works, but not surprising if it doesn’t.

The space agency also shared a video of a test on Earth showing how the helicopter will be put down. It’s a multi-step operation that requires repositioning ingenuity, unlocking the landing legs, and dropping them to the surface.

The rover has thrown away parts of itself lately. Ingenuity’s Debris Shield follows after Perseverance left behind an ejectable belly earlier this month. These parts have done their duty and are no longer needed.

The Perseverance rover landed in February, but has already returned many stunning visuals and red planet audio. The deployment of Ingenuity will mark the start of a whole new aerial adventure on Mars.

Follow CNET’s 2021 Space Calendar to stay up to date with all the latest space news this year. You can even add it to your own Google Calendar.