Taiwan-born engineer Yen Jeng (嚴正), a member of NASA’s Perseverance rover team, on Saturday shared behind-the-scene stories of the Ingenuity helicopter, which has completed two flights on Mars.
Yen, a 20-year veteran at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, is head of the Robot Interfaces and Visualization team, which prepares the computer code that guides Perseverance’s movements on Mars.
In a virtual speech, Yen said that the Ingenuity helicopter has been the attention-grabber on the mission.
“There are no repair shops on Mars,” Yen said, adding that every step of the mission had to be repeatedly rehearsed.
Just the decoupling of the helicopter from the rover
Taiwanese NASA engineer shares stories of Mars helicopter
04/25/2021 08:32 PM
Yen Jeng delivering his virtual speech. CNA photo April 24, 2021
Los Angeles, April 24 (CNA) Taiwan-born engineer Yen Jeng (嚴正), a member of NASA s Perseverance rover team, shared on Saturday some behind the scenes stories of the Ingenuity helicopter, which recently completed two flights on Mars.
Yen, a 20-year veteran at NASA s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, is currently head of the agency s Robot Interfaces and Visualization team. The team is in charge of preparing the computer code that guides Perseverance s movements on Mars.
During a virtual speech on Saturday, Yen said that the center of attention for the Perseverance rover mission has been the Ingenuity helicopter, which hitchhiked its way to Mars on the rover s belly.
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Taiwanese behind wheels of new NASA Mars rover
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Staff Writer, with CNA
When NASA’s Perseverance rover touched down on the surface of Mars on Thursday after a seven-month journey, a Taiwan-born engineer was preparing to guide its first movements on the Red Planet.
Yen Cheng (嚴正), a 61-year-old graduate of National Tsing Hua University and a 20-year veteran at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, is taking part in his fourth Mars exploration mission with the agency’s Robot Interfaces and Visualization team, this time as its leader.
Image courtesy of Yen Jeng
Los Angeles, Feb. 19 (CNA) When NASA s Perseverance rover successfully touched down on the surface of Mars on Thursday after a seven-month, 480 million-kilometer journey, a Taiwan-born engineer and remote pilot was preparing to guide it through its first movements on the red planet.
Yen Jeng (嚴正), a 61-year-old graduate of National Tsing Hua University in Hsinchu and a 20-year veteran in NASA s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, is now taking part in his fourth Mars exploration mission with the agency s Robot Interfaces and Visualization team, this time as its leader.
In an interview with CNA, Yen described his expectations for the next few months, which he characterized as living on Earth in Mars time.