WASHINGTON: In a historic first, NASA has tested next-generation Mars helicopter design on both Earth and the Red Planet.
On Earth, the US space agency tested a new rotor that could be used with future Mars helicopters at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, spinning at near-supersonic speeds (0.95 Mach).
On the other hand, Ingenuity Mars Helicopter achieved new altitude and airspeed records on Mars in the name of experimental flight testing. “Our next-generation Mars helicopter testing has literally had the best of both worlds,” said Teddy Tzanetos, Ingenuity’s project manager.