NASA Mars Helicopter Back in Touch With Rover Buddy After Going Silent
Posted: Sun May 15, 2022 5:03 am
https://www.cnet.com/science/space/nasa ... ng-silent/
Ingenuity temporarily lost contact with the Perseverance rover as dust and cold intensify.
Mars isn't nice to solar panels. The infamously dusty planet took out NASA's Opportunity rover a few years ago, has challenged the InSight lander and is now giving the Ingenuity helicopter a hard time. The rotorcraft briefly lost communication with its companion Perseverance rover, and the chopper team thinks dust in the atmosphere may have played into the problem.
The remarkable flying machine has exceeded expectations and flown 28 times since arriving with the rover in early 2021. It communicates with Earth by using Perseverance as a relay.
Ingenuity experienced a communications dropout with the rover on May 3, but reestablished contact on May 5. In a statement on Friday, NASA JPL said the helicopter entered a low-power state, likely triggered by a seasonal increase in dust combined with lower temperatures from the oncoming Martian winter. Essentially, it's not an optimal time for sunbathing.
Ingenuity temporarily lost contact with the Perseverance rover as dust and cold intensify.
Mars isn't nice to solar panels. The infamously dusty planet took out NASA's Opportunity rover a few years ago, has challenged the InSight lander and is now giving the Ingenuity helicopter a hard time. The rotorcraft briefly lost communication with its companion Perseverance rover, and the chopper team thinks dust in the atmosphere may have played into the problem.
The remarkable flying machine has exceeded expectations and flown 28 times since arriving with the rover in early 2021. It communicates with Earth by using Perseverance as a relay.
Ingenuity experienced a communications dropout with the rover on May 3, but reestablished contact on May 5. In a statement on Friday, NASA JPL said the helicopter entered a low-power state, likely triggered by a seasonal increase in dust combined with lower temperatures from the oncoming Martian winter. Essentially, it's not an optimal time for sunbathing.