Latest news with #Ingenuity
Yahoo
29-07-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
NASA Wants To Drop Helicopter Drones On Mars To Scout For Manned Landing Sites
In 2021, NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab successfully launched the first powered flight on another planet with the Ingenuity drone helicopter, co-developed with AeroVironment, Inc. Now, the two are proposing to do it again, with one big change: They want to launch not one, but six new helicopters, and what's more, they want to launch them as they're descending from Mars orbit. Why bother with this pesky "ground" you speak of? Much cheaper to lift off when you're already in the air. The mission is called Skyfall, which I guess no one told them was also the name of a James Bond movie. The idea is for a capsule to drop down towards the Martian surface, open up before it impacts, and out will fly the six helicopters. Each drone will then fly a different route, using cameras and radar to scan what's underneath the surface. This will hopefully detect water, ice, or other resources that would make for a good landing site for an eventual manned mission to the red planet. It's even possible that this process could "advance the nation's quest to discover whether Mars was ever habitable." Could a robot helicopter dropped from space find aliens on another planet? Probably not, but also, please yes. Read more: Here's Every Car Company Volkswagen Owns Right Now The Importance Of Ingenuity When it first lifted off from Martian soil, Ingenuity only hoped to traverse 980 feet over the span of a few weeks. Instead, the plucky American aviator covered 10.5 miles over three years. It did finally crash in January 2024, during which it suffered rotor damage too severe to ever get it to fly again. While the cause of the crash remains unknown (kind of hard to do an investigation on Mars), Ingenuity soldiers on, dutifully serving as a static weather station now. I'd say that was a pretty successful mission, all things considered. Clearly NASA agrees, since the Skyfall mission is effectively a major expansion of Ingenuity; the new helicopter drones will be upgraded versions of that design, made by the same public-private partners, JPL and AeroVision respectively. Exactly how public vs how private may be shifting, however. AeroVision says that it will be taking on some of the work that JPL originally did "commercializing" Mars drones this time around. That sounds in line with the Trump administration's push to move traditionally government-run operations, like retrieving astronauts, to corporations instead. NASA is also under threat of crippling proposed budget cuts, so it might not even be able to do the work it used to do. I, for one, think the Martian aliens will welcome their new American corporate overlords. Either way, Skyfall won't be lifting off of Earth's soil until at least 2028. If all goes well, air traffic will be getting pretty thick underneath red skies by the end of the decade. Want more like this? Join the Jalopnik newsletter to get the latest auto news sent straight to your inbox... Read the original article on Jalopnik.
Yahoo
28-07-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Bonkers NASA Mission Aims to Drop Six Helicopters Onto Mars From Space
Defense tech company AeroVironment and NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory have shown off a wild concept for deploying six helicopters above the surface of Mars to scout for water and possible human landing sites. The concept, dubbed "Skyfall," builds on NASA's extremely successful and revolutionary Ingenuity Mars helicopter, which became the first manmade object to achieve powered flight on another planet in 2021. It flew a whopping 72 times over three years, vastly exceeding expectations. AeroVironment's plan is to "deploy six scout helicopters on Mars, where they would explore many of the sites selected by NASA and industry as top candidate landing sites for America's first Martian astronauts," according to a press release. As seen in a flashy animation, the "Skyfall Maneuver" will attempt to deploy the six rotorcraft from a much larger spacecraft during its descent through the Martian atmosphere, making it a highly ambitious endeavor. However, the plan would also "eliminate the necessity for a landing platform — traditionally one of the most expensive, complex and risky elements of any Mars mission," per the company. Whether such a venture will receive enough funding to be realized remains unclear at best. While AeroVironment has kicked off internal investments ahead of a planned 2028 launch, budgetary restraints at NASA could pose a major challenge. The Trump administration is planning to massively slash the space agency's budget in what critics are calling an "existential threat" to science, making anything at NASA currently an uncertain bet. Just last week, NASA's JPL reportedly held a "going out of business sale" for existing satellites, signaling tough times ahead. It's not the only concept vying to follow up on the tremendous success of Ingenuity. In December, NASA showed off a SUV-sized "Mars Chopper" with six rotor blades that could allow it to carry science payloads up to 11 pounds across distances of up to 1.9 miles per Mars day. AeroVironment's leadership claims its Skyfall concept could explore far more of the Red Planet for a fraction of the price, compared to conventional landers and rovers. "Skyfall offers a revolutionary new approach to Mars exploration that is faster and more affordable than anything that's come before it," said AeroVironment's head of space ventures, William Pomerantz, in the statement. "With six helicopters, Skyfall offers a low-cost solution that multiplies the range we would cover, the data we would collect, and the scientific research we would conduct — making humanity's first footprints on Mars meaningfully closer." Skyfall is planning to borrow heavily from its predecessor Ingenuity, including "its lightweight aircraft structure suitable for the thin atmosphere of Mars." "Ingenuity established the United States as the first and only country to achieve powered flight on another planet," said AeroVironment's president of autonomous systems, Trace Stevenson. "Skyfall builds on that promise, providing detailed, actionable data from an aerial perspective that will not only be of use planning for future crewed missions, but can also benefit the planetary science community in their search for evidence that life once existed on Mars." AeroVironment has worked on space-based laser communication terminals, as well as ground-based phased array antennas, to improve satellite command and control capabilities. How that expertise will translate to launching and landing six rotorcraft on Mars remains to be seen — but we'll be rooting for the project. More on Mars helicopters: NASA Shows Off SUV-Sized "Mars Chopper" With Six Rotor Blades
Digital Trends
28-07-2025
- Science
- Digital Trends
Remember Ingenuity? NASA's proposed Skyfall mission takes it further in stunning video
NASA's incredible Ingenuity helicopter spent nearly three flying across the surface of Mars, becoming the first aircraft to achieve powered, controlled flight on a planet other than Earth. After suffering damage to one of its blades in early 2024, Ingenuity was grounded for good, and now rests on the martian surface as a testament to technological innovation and the triumph of autonomous flight on another planet. In an exciting development, the plucky helicopter has now inspired Skyfall, a mission concept recently unveiled by Virginia-based AeroVironment (AV) and NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), who worked together to develop the Ingenuity aircraft. As you can see in the video at the top of this page, the Skyfall mission is designed to deploy not one but six helicopters on Mars, each of which would fly off to explore various locations selected by NASA as potential landing spots for the first crewed mission to the red planet, which could take place in the 2030s. The gathered data could also help scientists learn more about Mars, contributing to the expanding database of information collected by other Mars vehicles such as the Perseverance and Curiosity rovers. The video shows the dramatic Skyfall Maneuver, described by AV as 'an innovative entry, descent, and landing technique whereby the six rotorcraft deploy from their entry capsule during its descent through the martian atmosphere.' With the helicopters flying down to the Mars surface under their own power, the Skyfall system would do away with the need for a landing platform, which is one of the most expensive parts of any Mars mission and also carries huge risk. Just like Ingenuity, each helicopter would be capable of operating autonomously, and beam high-resolution imagery back to Earth for analysis, allowing mission planners to select the best possible landing location for the first human mission. 'Skyfall offers a revolutionary new approach to Mars exploration that is faster and more affordable than anything that's come before it,' said William Pomerantz, head of space ventures at AV. 'Thanks to a true partnership between industry and government, we're expanding the unprecedented success of Ingenuity.' Pomerantz added that with six helicopters, 'Skyfall offers a low-cost solution that multiplies the range we would cover, the data we would collect, and the scientific research we would conduct, making humanity's first footprints on Mars meaningfully closer.' With NASA's first human missions in mind and the need to identify an ideal landing area, AV is already working with NASA's JPL in the hope of getting the green light for the mission before working toward a potential 2028 launch.
Yahoo
26-07-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Bonkers NASA Mission Aims to Drop Six Helicopters Onto Mars From Space
Defense tech company AeroVironment and NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory have shown off a wild concept for deploying six helicopters above the surface of Mars to scout for water and possible human landing sites. The concept, dubbed "Skyfall," builds on NASA's extremely successful and revolutionary Ingenuity Mars helicopter, which became the first manmade object to achieve powered flight on another planet in 2021. It flew a whopping 72 times over three years, vastly exceeding expectations. AeroVironment's plan is to "deploy six scout helicopters on Mars, where they would explore many of the sites selected by NASA and industry as top candidate landing sites for America's first Martian astronauts," according to a press release. As seen in a flashy animation, the "Skyfall Maneuver" will attempt to deploy the six rotorcraft from a much larger spacecraft during its descent through the Martian atmosphere, making it a highly ambitious endeavor. However, the plan would also "eliminate the necessity for a landing platform — traditionally one of the most expensive, complex and risky elements of any Mars mission," per the company. Whether such a venture will receive enough funding to be realized remains unclear at best. While AeroVironment has kicked off internal investments ahead of a planned 2028 launch, budgetary restraints at NASA could pose a major challenge. The Trump administration is planning to massively slash the space agency's budget in what critics are calling an "existential threat" to science, making anything at NASA currently an uncertain bet. Just last week, NASA's JPL reportedly held a "going out of business sale" for existing satellites, signaling tough times ahead. It's not the only concept vying to follow up on the tremendous success of Ingenuity. In December, NASA showed off a SUV-sized "Mars Chopper" with six rotor blades that could allow it to carry science payloads up to 11 pounds across distances of up to 1.9 miles per Mars day. AeroVironment's leadership claims its Skyfall concept could explore far more of the Red Planet for a fraction of the price, compared to conventional landers and rovers. "Skyfall offers a revolutionary new approach to Mars exploration that is faster and more affordable than anything that's come before it," said AeroVironment's head of space ventures, William Pomerantz, in the statement. "With six helicopters, Skyfall offers a low-cost solution that multiplies the range we would cover, the data we would collect, and the scientific research we would conduct — making humanity's first footprints on Mars meaningfully closer." Skyfall is planning to borrow heavily from its predecessor Ingenuity, including "its lightweight aircraft structure suitable for the thin atmosphere of Mars." "Ingenuity established the United States as the first and only country to achieve powered flight on another planet," said AeroVironment's president of autonomous systems, Trace Stevenson. "Skyfall builds on that promise, providing detailed, actionable data from an aerial perspective that will not only be of use planning for future crewed missions, but can also benefit the planetary science community in their search for evidence that life once existed on Mars." AeroVironment has worked on space-based laser communication terminals, as well as ground-based phased array antennas, to improve satellite command and control capabilities. How that expertise will translate to launching and landing six rotorcraft on Mars remains to be seen — but we'll be rooting for the project. More on Mars helicopters: NASA Shows Off SUV-Sized "Mars Chopper" With Six Rotor Blades
Gizmodo
25-07-2025
- Science
- Gizmodo
Jaw-Dropping Video Shows NASA's Plan to Deliver a Helicopter Swarm to Mars Without Landing
It's been more than a year since the Ingenuity helicopter broke one of its blades, ending its experimental stint on Mars. On the heels of this wildly successful NASA mission, a defense contractor has introduced a new design concept to succeed the iconic Mars chopper—one that would release multiple vehicles to spread across the Martian landscape at the same time, like a coordinated swim team diving into the water. Virginia-based AeroVironment (AV), in partnership with NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), recently revealed its Skyfall mission concept, a next-generation Mars helicopter designed to pave the way for a future human landing on the neighboring world. Skyfall would deploy six small choppers, similar to NASA's Ingenuity, to the Red Planet using a single entry capsule, with each helicopter landing independently on the Martian surface. The mission is aiming for a launch date in 2028, according to AV. The landing carrier would drop the six helicopters midway through its descent through the planet's atmosphere, eliminating the need for a landing platform. Following their release from the carrier, each helicopter would land on the Martian surface under its own power. Each helicopter would quickly get to work, exploring different parts of the planet and investigating potential landing sites for a future human mission. Operating independently, each chopper will collect high-resolution images of the surface and radar data from beneath the surface to search for potential resources on Mars. 'With six helicopters, Skyfall offers a low-cost solution that multiplies the range we would cover, the data we would collect, and the scientific research we would conduct–making humanity's first footprints on Mars meaningfully closer,' William Pomerantz, head of Space Ventures at AV, said in a statement. Ingenuity was the first helicopter to fly on another planet, paving the way for a fleet of successors that can explore the Martian surface from above. The o.g. Mars helicopter arrived on the planet in February 2021, tucked inside the belly of NASA's Perseverance rover. Shortly afterwards, the 19-inch-tall (48-centimeter), 4-pound (1.8-kilogram) helicopter became the first powered aircraft to lift off from the surface of another planet. Although it was originally intended to perform just five test flights, Ingenuity kept on going, performing 72 flights and flying 14 times farther than planned for a total flight time of two hours. Things came crashing down for Ingenuity last year after the helicopter broke its blades while landing for the 72nd time, officially ending its mission in January 2024. Its mission more than exceeded expectations, delivering precious data on a new method of exploring the surface of another planet and opening up a new gateway for missions to Mars and elsewhere. Whatever chopper comes next will have some pretty big shoes to fill, so maybe sending six helicopters to Mars is the appropriate follow-up.
