The Mars Helicopter, a small, autonomous rotorcraft, will travel with NASA's Mars Perseverance rover, currently scheduled to launch in July 2020.
Shown in the artist’s rendering is the Mars Helicopter, a small, autonomous rotorcraft, will travel with NASA’s Mars Perseverance rover, currently scheduled to launch in July 2020, to demonstrate the viability and potential of heavier-than-air vehicles on the Red Planet.
Destined to become the first aircraft to attempt powered flight on another planet, NASA’s Mars Helicopter officially has received a new name: Ingenuity.
Vaneeza Rupani, a junior at Tuscaloosa County High School in Northport, Alabama, came up with the name and the motivation behind it during NASA’s “Name the Rover” essay contest.
Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech