by alter-ego » Wed Apr 21, 2021 5:04 am
johnnydeep wrote: ↑Tue Apr 20, 2021 4:10 pm
alter-ego wrote: ↑Tue Apr 20, 2021 4:30 am
APOD Robot wrote: ↑Tue Apr 20, 2021 4:06 am
More tests of
Ingenuity's unprecedented ability are planned over the next few months.
Very, very exciting. I'd love to see an extended mission for testing the copter. However, per plan, operations will cease soon.
INGENUITY MARS HELISCOPTER: FIRST FLIGHT ON MARS wrote:The Ingenuity team has two weeks left in its 30-day window for operations, during which the helicopter may complete up to four more flights. Watch for the next one to occur not earlier than April 22nd. Flight 2 will see Ingenuity reaching an altitude of 5 meters, then flying laterally for 2 meters. On Flight 3, Ingenuity will fly to an altitude of 5 meters before attempting a 50-meter out and back horizontal flight.After that, Perseverance will move on with its packed primary science mission. After April, Ingenuity will come to rest one last time on the surface of Mars in Jezero Crater, a small testament to the first flight on the Red Planet.
What I would give to see the Wright brother's faces after their first powered flight when telling them that a swatch of the their Whopper material would ride along the first powered flight on Mars... then leave during the developing, excessive laughter.
So, does the 'copter have to cease operations solely because when Perseverance "moves on" it will no longer be able to communicate with Ingenuity? Otherwise, I would think that Ingenuity's hardware could still be operable long after the 30-day operations window, much like most other NASA hardware has greatly exceeded their nominal mission length.
I think it's as simple as mission priorities. First, science- the search for evidence of life, past and present. Second, demonstration. Ingenuity is not set up for scientific investigation The
objectives for Ingenuity are clear: 1.
To demonstrate powered flight in the thin atmosphere of Mars is possible, 2.
To actually fly the helicopter on Mars, 3.
Use of miniaturized flying technology in space, and 4.
Autonomous operations of an aerial system at another planet or moon. Getting down to business of scientific investigation for the long haul is primary. Even with a maximum radio range of 1km, it takes time and money, with added risk to manage Ingenuity
and Perseverance together. Ingenuity's $5M per month operating cost is 60% of Perseverance cost per month. The mission can't sustain the added cost. Interesting too is Ingenuity's $80M build/development cost. That's $20M per pound (20x higher than for Perseverance)! Clearly, Ingenuity is a high-valued demonstration, but short lived.
With that said, will there be added flight? Maybe if the reward is high enough.
[quote=johnnydeep post_id=312662 time=1618935001 user_id=132061]
[quote=alter-ego post_id=312649 time=1618893053 user_id=125299]
[quote="APOD Robot" post_id=312647 time=1618891572 user_id=128559]
More tests of [url=https://mars.nasa.gov/technology/helicopter/#Anatomy]Ingenuity[/url]'s unprecedented ability are planned over the next few months. [/quote]
Very, very exciting. I'd love to see an extended mission for testing the copter. However, per plan, operations will cease soon.
[quote="[url=https://skyandtelescope.org/astronomy-news/ingenuity-mars-heliscopter-first-flight-on-mars/]INGENUITY MARS HELISCOPTER: FIRST FLIGHT ON MARS[/url]"]The Ingenuity team has two weeks left in its 30-day window for operations, during which the helicopter may complete up to four more flights. Watch for the next one to occur not earlier than April 22nd. Flight 2 will see Ingenuity reaching an altitude of 5 meters, then flying laterally for 2 meters. On Flight 3, Ingenuity will fly to an altitude of 5 meters before attempting a 50-meter out and back horizontal flight.After that, Perseverance will move on with its packed primary science mission. After April, Ingenuity will come to rest one last time on the surface of Mars in Jezero Crater, a small testament to the first flight on the Red Planet.[/quote]
What I would give to see the Wright brother's faces after their first powered flight when telling them that a swatch of the their Whopper material would ride along the first powered flight on Mars... then leave during the developing, excessive laughter.
[/quote]
So, does the 'copter have to cease operations solely because when Perseverance "moves on" it will no longer be able to communicate with Ingenuity? Otherwise, I would think that Ingenuity's hardware could still be operable long after the 30-day operations window, much like most other NASA hardware has greatly exceeded their nominal mission length.
[/quote]
I think it's as simple as mission priorities. First, science- the search for evidence of life, past and present. Second, demonstration. Ingenuity is not set up for scientific investigation The [url=https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/press_kits/mars_2020/ingenuity/landing/mission/][color=#FF0000]objectives[/color][/url] for Ingenuity are clear: 1.[color=#FF0000]To demonstrate powered flight in the thin atmosphere of Mars is possible[/color], 2.[color=#FF0000]To actually fly the helicopter on Mars[/color], 3.[color=#FF0000]Use of miniaturized flying technology in space[/color], and 4. [color=#FF0000]Autonomous operations of an aerial system at another planet or moon[/color]. Getting down to business of scientific investigation for the long haul is primary. Even with a maximum radio range of 1km, it takes time and money, with added risk to manage Ingenuity [i]and[/i] Perseverance together. Ingenuity's $5M per month operating cost is 60% of Perseverance cost per month. The mission can't sustain the added cost. Interesting too is Ingenuity's $80M build/development cost. That's $20M per pound (20x higher than for Perseverance)! Clearly, Ingenuity is a high-valued demonstration, but short lived.
With that said, will there be added flight? Maybe if the reward is high enough.