NASA’s Mars helicopter is already hitting milestones

• NASA powered up the batteries on its Mars helicopter for the first time during its trip to the Red Planet.
• The aircraft will prove that powered flight on Mars is possible, assuming everything goes according to plan.
• Future missions to Mars could include drones capable of traveling huge distances in short periods of time.

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NASA's Mars 2020 mission only just kicked off with the launch of the Perseverance rover and Mars Ingenuity helicopter, but the long trip to the Red Planet means the mission staff can perform all the required checks before the hardware lands. As NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory explains in a new blog post, the Ingenuity helicopter just got its batteries charged in space for the first time, which is a pretty big deal.

According to JPL, the helicopter's batteries need to be kept in the best possible health, and a small charge is apparently best for long-haul trips in space.

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NASA’s Mars helicopter is already hitting milestones originally appeared on BGR.com on Mon, 17 Aug 2020 at 19:05:28 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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