spacetoday.net: NASA ends Ingenuity mission after hard landing

NASA ends Ingenuity mission after hard landing

Posted: Sun, Jan 28, 2024, 8:55 AM ET (1355 GMT)
NASA has ended the mission of the Ingenuity Mars helicopter after it was damaged on its latest flight. NASA announced Thursday that Ingenuity suffered damage to at least one of its rotor blades when hit the ground on the Jan. 18 flight. The helicopter is otherwise in good condition, but the damaged blade means it can no longer fly. Engineers are still studying what happened, but speculate that the relatively featureless terrain it was flying over may have confused its navigation system. Ingenuity racked up 72 flights spanning 17 kilometers as it accompanied the Perseverance rover. The helicopter, weighing less than two kilograms, was included as a technology demonstration with the original intent of making no more than five flights.