NASA's Ingenuity helicopter

Context:

NASA's Ingenuity mini-helicopter has descended on the surface of Mars in preparation for its first flight.

About Ingenuity Mars Helicopter:

• The helicopter had been attached to the Perseverance rover, which touched down on the Red Planet earlier in February 2021.
• The Ingenuity Mars Helicopter is part of NASA's MARS 2020 Mission.
• The small coaxial, drone rotorcraft will function as a technology demonstrator for the potential use of flying probes on other worlds, with the potential to scout locations of interest and support the longer-term planning of driving routes for Mars rovers.

More about Perseverance:

• It was launched in July 2020.
• A primary goal for Perseverance’s mission on the Red Planet is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life.
• The rover will distinguish the planet’s geology and past climate, paving the way for human exploration of Mars, and it'll be the primary mission to gather and cache Martian rock and regolith (broken rock and dust).
• MOXIE or Mars Oxygen ISRU Experiment, a distinctive unique instrument, is carried by Perseverance.
  • The instrument for the first time will manufacture molecular oxygen on Mars using carbon dioxide from the carbon-dioxide-rich atmosphere (ISRU means In Situ Resource Utilization: or the use of local resources to satisfy human needs or requirements of the spacecraft).