Ingenuity: Team says 'goodbye for now' to Mars helicopter

Ingenuity has had a very successful mission on Mars

A history-making helicopter that's made it all the way to Mars has been bid a fond farewell by the team working on the project, as it prepares for its next mission.

Nasa's Ingenuity helicopter crashed in January 2024 and broke down, but has still been making contact with Earth.

Engineers have gathered at a control room in California to mark the last time they will work together on the project 'for now'.

Ingenuity still has work to do as it will collect data that could help future missions to the Red Planet.

What was the Mars Ingenuity helicopter mission?

Ingenuity reached the Red Planet in February 2021, by piggy-backing along with the Perseverance rover.

It made history by becoming the first aircraft to fly on another planet.

The helicopter was meant to be on a short tech demonstration to prove flight was possible in the Martian atmosphere.

Instead it ended up operating from the surface for almost three years.

Ingenuity performed 72 flights and flew more than 14 times further than originally planned.

The vehicle went on to explore Mars's Jezero Crater, examining areas and helping the wheeled robot Perseverance and its drivers on Earth pick the right path.

The mission ended after the helicopter experienced a hard landing on its last flight, significantly damaging its rotor blades.

The aircraft has remained in communication with the Perseverance Mars rover, which serves as its base station.

Ingenuity will help the Perseverance rover

What will Ingenuity do now?

Unable to fly, the rotorcraft will remain in the Valinor Hills area of Mars while the Perseverance rover continues to explore the western part of the Jezero Crater.

The helicopter will now collect data that could benefit future explorers.

It will take pictures of the surface with its colour camera and collect temperature data.

Scientists believe the data could benefit future designers of aircraft and other vehicles and provide information on the planet's weather patterns and dust movements.

Even if an important part of the helicopter fails, the team has calculated Ingenuity's memory could potentially hold about 20 years' worth of daily data.

Engineers have celebrated the work of the helicopter

How did the team say goodbye to the Ingenuity helicopter?

The team met for 'final communications and cake' at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL).

They reviewed the latest date from 189 million miles (304 million kilometres) away and received a farewell message from Ingenuity which had the names of people who worked on the mission.

Josh Anderson, Ingenuity team lead at JPL. said: "It is almost unbelievable that after over 1,000 Martian days on the surface, 72 flights, and one rough landing, she still has something to give."

He said Ingenuity overachieved beyond the team's "wildest dreams".