NASA's Ingenuity helicopter takes off for first flight on Mars

Photo: NASA/JPL-Caltech

WASHINGTON, April 19 (Xinhua) -- The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) launched its Mars helicopter Ingenuity from the surface of the Red Planet earlier on Monday, marking the first powered, controlled flight of an aircraft on another planet.

The solar-powered helicopter first became airborne at 3:34 a.m. Eastern Day Time (EDT) (0734 GMT), a time the Ingenuity team determined would have optimal energy and flight conditions.

The Ingenuity team confirmed the flight succeeded after receiving data from the helicopter via NASA's Perseverance Mars rover at 6:46 a.m. EDT.

Altimeter data indicates that Ingenuity climbed to its prescribed maximum altitude of three meters and maintained a stable hover for 30 seconds, according to NASA.

It then descended, touching back down on the surface of Mars after logging a total of 39.1 seconds of flight.

NASA revealed a first black-and-white image taken by Ingenuity from the air while hovering over the Martian surface, using its navigation camera which autonomously tracks the ground during flight.

Ingenuity arrived at Mars' Jezero Crater on Feb. 18, attached to the belly of NASA's Perseverance rover. The helicopter is a technology demonstration with a planned test flight duration of up to 30 Martian days.