NASA’s Mars helicopter went silent for six agonizing days

NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter on Mars has exceeded everybody’s expectations, not too long ago finishing its 51st flight when it was alleged to fly just some instances as an illustration mission. However flights 50 and 51 nearly did not occur.

In a latest weblog submit, Travis Brown, Chief Engineer for Ingenuity shared how the staff misplaced contact with the tiny rotorcraft for six excruciating days.

At first, they weren’t overly involved when communications ceased from the helicopter on Sol 755. A couple of 12 months in the past, a quick two-day communication glitch occurred as a result of Ingenuity skilled inadequate battery cost as night time fell firstly of the Martian winter. This decreased voltage reset the mission clock, inflicting the helicopter’s system to be out of sync with Perseverance rover. Whereas the staff rapidly discovered the problem, due to Ingenuity’s off-the shelf batteries, they anticipated this concern might occur once more.

However now, this time was completely different.

“In additional than 700 sols working the helicopter on Mars, not as soon as had we ever skilled a total radio blackout,” Brown wrote. “Even within the worst communications environments, we had all the time seen some indication of exercise.”

However now, there was nothing. The staff started to fret that they may not hear from the helicopter once more.

Lastly, on Sol 761, practically every week after the primary missed check-in, the communications staff noticed a single, lonely radio ACK (radio acknowledgement). The subsequent day one other single ACK confirmed the helicopter was certainly alive, a welcome aid for the staff. After some forensics, Brown and his staff thinks they’ve decided what occurred.

“Finally, this first-of-its-kind communications blackout was a results of two components,” mentioned Brown. “First, the topology between the rover and the helicopter was very difficult for the radio utilized by Ingenuity. As well as, … a reasonable ridge positioned simply to the southeast of the Flight 49 landing site separated the helicopter from the rover’s operational space. The influence of this ridge would solely abate as soon as the rover had gotten uncomfortably near the helicopter.”

Second, the communications antenna on the rover that ‘talks’ to the helicopter is positioned on the best facet of the rover, and its place meant the indicators between the 2 robots was partially blocked.

Now that Ingenuity is again, the staff realizes future communication glitches are prone to occur. Whereas it has far exceeded its nominal mission and its surprisingly hardy off-the shelf gear retains on ticking, the ageing gear and dusty situations imply the helicopter will not final eternally.

“Once we first flew, we thought we’d be extremely fortunate to eke out 5 flights,” mentioned Teddy Tzanetos, Ingenuity staff lead at JPL. “We now have exceeded our anticipated cumulative flight time since our know-how demonstration wrapped by 1,250% and anticipated distance flown by 2,214%.”

By some means the helicopter retains on powering by all of the adversity. Even on its forty ninth flight on Mars, the Steerage Navigation and Management staff managed to push the flight envelope with a 16-meter vertical popup on the finish of the flight, Brown mentioned. On the peak of its flight, Ingenuity snapped the best suborbital image taken of the Martian floor its ever taken.

Along with its main mission as a know-how demonstrator, Ingenuity has proved extremely helpful for the rover, offering tactical and scientific scouting for Perseverance mission. Ingenuity’s aerial imaging has confirmed its value in serving to the rover keep away from potential rocky or sandy hazards.

However extra ‘brown outs’ will possible happen and communications will possible come and go. When the top does come, each Ingenuity’s and Perseverance’s groups will miss the plucky little helicopter.

“Regardless of the upcoming return of Martian summer time, it now seems that the dust protecting our solar panel will make sure that Ingenuity will possible stay on this transitional energy state for a while,” Brown mentioned. “Because of this, a lot to the chagrin of her staff, we’re not but accomplished enjoying this high-stakes recreation of cover and search with the playful little helicopter.”