NASA's Mars Helicopter Just Hit a Huge Milestone, Far Exceeding The Original Mission
ARIA BENDIX, BUSINESS INSIDER
The "little helicopter that could" has done it again.
NASA's Ingenuity helicopter on Mars, a tissue-box-sized rotorcraft that landed with the Perseverance rover in February, completed its 10th flight over the red planet on Saturday.
Each Ingenuity flight has been more daring than the last. So Saturday's flight was likely the helicopter's riskiest yet: If everything went according to plan, Ingenuity climbed 40 feet (12 meters) in the air, then headed south-by-southwest toward a collection of rock features called "Raised Ridges," before looping back around to a landing zone about 310 feet (94 m) west of its initial takeoff spot.