Important Innovations Collection

Perseverance Rover Monitoring the Martian Weather                     Source: NASA Perseverance & Ingenuity on Mars WX Critical For Ingenuity Helicopter Flights  History continues to be made by NASA, its Perseverance Rover and Ingenuity drone helicopter on Mars.  Perseverance has provided NASA with its first full weather report from Mars.  Weather conditions are critical for NASA to make informed decisions on Ingenuity's schedule of flight testing.  Ingenuity is the world's first helicopter to land on Mars and, for that matter, on any planet outside of the Earth. The weather data is also mission critical for making decisions on the Perseverance rover's series of missions.  And the weather data tremendously expands understanding of the Martian atmosphere for NASA scientists. Average Temperatures Far Colder Than Earth Weather conditions are a deciding factor on when Ingenuity takes flight, which could...

Ingenuity Lands on Mars                            Source:  NASA Ingenuity Landing on Mars First Helicopter on Another Planet NASA's Mars helicopter Ingenuity is an aviation wonder.  It is the world's first helicopter to land on Mars after being dropped out of its mother ship Perseverance Rover.  The final drop was 4 inches and Ingenuity's legs fully deployed.  The helicopter's first flight is scheduled for April 11 with data on how its systems performed and what it observed on Mars coming back to NASA on April 12.  These history making milestones are occurring 293 million miles away from Earth.  Technological Marvel Ingenuity is a technological marvel.  It weighs just 4 pounds and unfolds like a butterfly.  The vehicle is solar powered and relies on a rechargeable battery to power an internal heater to stay warm during the harshly cold Martian nights that can go down ...

Launch of  Perseverance Rover on July 30, 2020 Source:  NASA Artist Rendering Nuclear Powered Robotic Rover NASA is going back to Mars on Thursday, July 30, 2020.  The Mars 2020 Perseverance Mission includes the rover Perseverance, a $2.7 billion piece of highly advanced robotic technology.  The rover, along with a small helicopter and instruments that it's carrying, will launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral, FL. 7 Months Long Journey to Mars The trip to the Red Planet will take 7 months.  And then the rover will make a dramatic sky-crane landing onto Mars' Jezero Crater on February 18, 2021. For two years, the nuclear powered Perseverance will explore Jezero.  The crater is 28 miles wide and in the ancient past it contained a lake and river delta.  The rover will search for signs of ancient life, scoop up surface samples and study the crater's geology.  In a joint NASA-European Space Agency (ESA...