Mars aircraft

NASA Mini-Sniffer flown in the 1970s was designed for Earth air-sensing missions and used hydrazine fuel.[1]
Ingenuity helicopter viewed with Perseverance rover in the background (artwork)

A Mars aircraft is a vehicle capable of sustaining powered flight in the atmosphere of Mars. So far, the Mars helicopter Ingenuity is the only aircraft[2][3] ever to fly on Mars, completing 72 successful flights covering 17.242 km (10.714 mi) in 2 hours, 8 minutes and 48 seconds of flight time.[4] Ingenuity operated on Mars for 1042 sols (1071 total days; 1 year, 341 days), until it was retired following rotor blade damage.[5][6]

It made the first powered flight on 19 April 2021, taking off from the surface.[7] Previously, the experimental aircraft, NASA Mini-Sniffer, was considered for possible missions to fly in and study Mars' atmosphere, but that idea was abandoned. Aircraft may provide on site measurements of the atmosphere of Mars, as well as additional observations over extended areas. A long-term goal is to develop piloted Mars aircraft.[8]

Compared to Earth, the air on Mars is much thinner at the surface, with pressure less than 1% of Earth's at sea level, requiring a more efficient method to achieve lift. Offsetting that disadvantage, Mars air, mostly consisting of carbon dioxide (CO
2), is denser per unit of volume than Earth air, and gravity on Mars is less than 40% of Earth's.[9][8]

  1. ^ "Mini-Sniffer". 2015-09-28.
  2. ^ mars.nasa.gov. "Entry, Descent and Landing (EDL) - NASA". mars.nasa.gov. Retrieved 2023-10-04.
  3. ^ "Curiosity's Sky Crane Maneuver, Artist's Concept - NASA". Retrieved 2023-10-04.
  4. ^ "Flight Log". Mars Helicopter Tech Demo. NASA. Retrieved 7 October 2023.
  5. ^ NASA Science Live: Ingenuity Mars Helicopter Tribute & Legacy, 31 January 2024, retrieved 2024-02-01
  6. ^ "After Three Years on Mars, NASA's Ingenuity Helicopter Mission Ends". Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
  7. ^ "NASA's Ingenuity Mars Helicopter Succeeds in Historic First Flight". NASA. April 19, 2021. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
  8. ^ a b "Oliver Morton – MarsAir : How to build the first extraterrestrial airplane". Retrieved March 4, 2021.
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference uk1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).