NASA’s Mars helicopter Ingenuity made its maiden flight after a two-month hiatus due to dust, freezing temperatures and low power while Jezero Crater was wintering. Although it’s a short tour, this is Ingenuity’s 31st flyby to Mars, and new color images taken by the Mars helicopter can make you feel like you’re flying with it.
This flight was intended to show that it still worked well after the Martian winter as it made its way to join Perseverance in the ancient river delta Ingenuity was exploring.
https://twitter.com/martiandennis/status/1569381179316666368
The new footage was processed and shared by a member of the Perseverance team on Earth, who goes by the pseudonym Dennis the Martian. The colorized images allow us to see what it would be like to be 10 meters above the surface of the planet looking towards the horizon.
As reported in the flight plan, Ingenuity moved about 97 meters in 55.6 seconds and reached a maximum speed of 4.75 meters per second.