【1986 Archives】

986 ArchivesIngenuity helicopter is too damaged to ever fly again. Yet before its final flight, NASA's historic Mars craft captured a sprawling view of the Martian desert.

In the aftermath of a "rough" landing during its 72nd flight, the small experimental chopper was left with at least one severely broken rotor, a tip potentially snapped off after crashing into the rocky ground. Yet on one of Ingenuity's final flights, flight 70, the NASA craft took in the scene you see below.

It's a vista of sprawling sand dunes. In the distance are rock-strewn ridges and mountains. And in the upper left corner you can spot the end of a helicopter leg.

SEE ALSO: NASA spacecraft keeps on going faster and faster and faster NASA's Ingenuity helicopter flying over smooth terrain in December 2023. Credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / ASU / MSSS

Ingenuity snapped this image from some 39 feet (12 meters) above the ground on Dec. 22, 2023. Its final flight would be less than a month later.

Mashable Light Speed Want more out-of-this world tech, space and science stories? Sign up for Mashable's weekly Light Speed newsletter. By clicking Sign Me Up, you confirm you are 16+ and agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Thanks for signing up!

It turns out those picturesque, flowing Martian dunes were likely the cause of Ingenuity's demise. The helicopter navigated by using software to track the movement of objects, like rocks, below. But the sandy terrain was largely "featureless," the space agency explained.

"The more featureless the terrain is, the harder it is for Ingenuity to successfully navigate across it," NASA said in a statement. "The team believes that the relatively featureless terrain in this region was likely the root cause of the anomalous landing."

"That remarkable helicopter flew higher and farther than we ever imagined"

Still, the Ingenuity mission vastly overachieved over nearly three years of extraterrestrial flight. It became the first craft to ever make a powered, controlled flight on another planet. NASA engineers initially hoped the demonstration craft, with four-foot-long rotors, might prove flight was possible on Mars, perhaps flying five times. But it flew 72 times.

---

Related Stories

---

• NASA video shows spectacular recreation of pivotal Mars event
• Japan’s moon landing picture might be the space photo of the decade
• The best telescopes for gazing at stars and solar eclipses in 2024
• An enormous Martian cloud returns every spring. Scientists found out why.
• If a scary asteroid will actually strike Earth, here's how you'll know

It was a scout. And a planetary explorer. The future exploration of Mars — and search for past Martian life — will almost certainly involve future aerial craft, and have Ingenuity to thank. After all, this persevering craft proved that flight on Mars, a world with a profoundly thin atmosphere, was possible.

"That remarkable helicopter flew higher and farther than we ever imagined and helped NASA do what we do best — make the impossible, possible," NASA administrator Bill Nelson said when announcing that Ingenuity had taken its final flight.

---

Featured Video For You

---

NASA spacecraft gets extremely close to volcanic world, snaps footage

---

• Life
• Digital Culture
• Deals
• Shopping
• Tech
• Science
• Social Good
• Entertainment

• No Country of Civil Men
• London company created a rage room to get your holiday anger out
• 'Pitch Perfect 3': Critical review roundup
• Alamo Drafthouse wants you to rent VHS tapes like it's the 1990s
• Trump’s Baby-Cager
• Virgin Hyperloop One hits record speed of 242 miles per hour
• Andrew Joyner honors the Women's March with new book 'The Pink Hat'
• Antarctica's ice walls are weaker than The Wall in 'Game of Thrones'
• A very special Trump supporter, a happy anniversary for workers
• Woman expertly trolls text scammer who claimed she won a free laptop

• Kid's impassioned message to bullies finds support all over the internet
• Why the heat wave hitting the Western U.S. is so intense
• Ellen DeGeneres, Uma Thurman speak out against Roy Moore
• Starbucks Christmas Tree Frappuccino tastes like sugar and regret (but I took many photos)
• Polestar (sort of) reveals new SUV, its first U.S.
• The best smartphones of 2021 (so far)
• Google Doodle commemorates Juneteenth with illustrations of Black joy
• Uplifting 'Skater Girl' introduces India's newest stars
• The Pope has way too much faith in the way we use social media
• How to reset your Fitbit

• Complicity, Not Tyranny
• This is how the 'Simpsons' house would fare on 'House Hunters'
• This student's story about her first college exam is so hilariously cringy
• Passengers stranded at Atlanta airport detail their experiences online
• The Lunatic Face of Fiction
• Everything in Star Wars has a backstory, even Poe Dameron's jewelry
• Edward Snowden and human rights groups slam NSA bill that's rushing through Congress
• MashReads Podcast: Chatting about "Cat Person" by Kristen Roupenian
• Fresh Hell
• Apple's AirPods could get their first update in 2018

• The Banality of Good
• Giant roadside Milo tin to be built at the popular drink's birthplace
• Apple's AirPods could get their first update in 2018
• Augmented reality and your phone: The camera is the new keyboard
• Best headphones deal: Save $120 on Sony WH
• This is how the 'Simpsons' house would fare on 'House Hunters'
• UK decides high
• This is how the 'Simpsons' house would fare on 'House Hunters'
• History Won’t Save You
• Giant roadside Milo tin to be built at the popular drink's birthplace