NASA's Mars helicopter Ingenuity has now left its Red Planet expectations by a factor of four.
The Ingenuity landed on the floor of Jezero Crater with the Perseverance rover. The five-flight technology-demonstrating mission is designed to show that powered flight is possible in the Red Planet.
During the extension, Ingenuity has been working as a scout for Perseverance and pushing the limits of Red Planet flight. On Friday, Ingenuity achieved another milestone, its 20th Martian sortie.
Flight 20 was a success. In its 130.3 seconds of flight, the #MarsHelicopter covered 391 meters at a speed of 4.2 meters per second, which brought it closer to NASA's landing location.
The Ingenuity helicopter is still on Mars a year later.
Ingenuity and Perseverance spent their first year on Mars exploring the south and west of their touchdown zone, which mission team members named after famed sci-fi author Octavia E. butler. The duo are heading back to the landing site to find more exciting real estate beyond.
The Jezero area was home to a lake and a river delta billions of years ago. River deltas are good at preserving organic chemicals and signs of life. The Perseverance team wants to reach and sample remnants of the ancient delta, and they plan to do so in the near future.
The landing site for the Perseverance science team is the Jezero Crater, and they hope to get there later this spring, according to a video released by the school.
Once we are there, we will be able to look at the bottom of the ancient lake that once filled Jezero to look for signs of ancient life.
Mission team members have said that Ingenuity is helping Perseverance get there, capturing airborne imagery that allows the rover's handler to choose the safest and most efficient route.
Mike Wall is the author of Out There, a book about the search for alien life. You can follow him on social media. Follow us on social media.
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