Ingenuity Mars Helicopter set to fly lower for detailed surface imaging by Teddy Tzanetos, Ingenuity Team Lead Pasadena CA (JPL) Sep 05, 2021
Following Flight 12's scouting images of "South Seitah," which were the most valuable Ingenuity has taken to date, we are taking Winston's advice for Ingenuity's 13th flight. We will again be venturing across into Seitah to scout an area of outcrops glimpsed in Flight 12 imagery - but we're taking these new pictures while looking back, pointing in the opposite direction. Taking place no earlier than Saturday, Sept. 4 at 5:08 p.m. PDT, or 12:04 LMST (local Mars time), the 193rd sol (Martian day) of the Perseverance mission, the flight will again journey into the geologically intriguing South Seitah region. However, instead of probing further into Seitah and taking pictures of multiple ridgelines and outcrops (which we did on 12), we'll be concentrating on one particular ridgeline and its outcrops during Flight 13. We'll also be flying at a lower altitude - 26 feet (8 meters), as opposed to the 33 feet (10 meters) during 12. Another big difference is which way our camera will be pointing. For Flight 13, we'll be capturing images pointing southwest. And when they're combined with Flight 12's northeast perspectives, the overlapping images from a lower altitude should provide valuable insight for Perseverance scientists and rover drive planners. When you compare our estimated flight time and distance travelled for this trip, it again reinforces just how much we're concentrating our efforts in one small area. On Flight 12 we covered 1,476 feet (450 meters) of Martian ground in 169.5 seconds and took 10 pictures (again - all pointed northeast). On 13, we'll cover about 690 feet (210 meters) in around 161 seconds and take 10 pictures (pointing southwest)... And for those of you scoring at home, on 13 we'll also be traveling at 7.3 mph (3.3 meters per second). We did 10 mph (4.3 meters per second) during 12. While we're talking about numbers, in our last blog, Chief Pilot Havard talked about our logbook (the Nominal Pilot's Logbook for Planets and Moons). Below is an updated ledger of some of the most important numbers for Ingenuity's Mars flights so far. Along with those listed below, we've taken 72 13-megapixel color images and 1,390 black-and-white navigation camera images. We're looking forward to add to these numbers and learning more about that ridgeline when "lucky 13" is in the books.
Mars helicopter sees potential rover road ahead Pasadena CA (JPL) Aug 26, 2021 Ask any space explorer, and they'll have a favorite photograph or two from their mission. For Ken Farley, the project scientist for NASA's Perseverance rover, one of his current favorites is a color image of "South Seitah," an area the mission's science team had considered potentially worthy of a rover visit. The agency's Ingenuity Mars Helicopter took the image during its 12th and most recent flight, on Aug. 16. Prior to Ingenuity's latest flight, the majority of what the Perseverance science tea ... read more
|
|
The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us. |