NASA successfully flew its tiny helicopter Ingenuity on Mars early on April 19. It was the first powered flight on another planet & a feat a top engineer called "our Wright brothers' moment”. At 3:34 am Eastern Time (0734 GMT), the four pound (1.8 kilogram) rotorcraft lifted off, hovered 10 feet (three meters) above the Martian surface, then came back to rest after 39.1 seconds. Data and images from the autonomous flight were transmitted 173 million miles (278 million kilometres) back to Earth where they were received by NASA's array of ground antennas & processed more than three hours later. Engineers were tensely watching their screens at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California, where the mission had been designed & planned for the past six years. They broke into applause as one of them read off a checklist of tasks Ingenuity had achieved and concluded, "Ingenuity has performed its first flight -- the first flight of a powered aircraft on another planet”. Ingenuity quickly sent back a black-and-white image from its downward pointing navigation camera, showing its bug-like shadow cast on the surface. Then came a choppy colour video from the Perseverance rover showing Ingenuity on the ground, in flight, and then once again at rest.
SRO Achieves Major Milestone, Successfully Carries Out Landing Of ‘Pushpak’, India’s First Reusable Launch Vehicle
1:31
WhatsApp New Feature: Meta-Owned Messaging App’s New Feature Will Let Users Search By Their Username
1:14
iPhone 15 Series Launch: Apple Unveils iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max & Series 9 & Ultra 2 Watch
3:34
Comments
Pakistan Cricketer Azam Khan Reacts to Fake News About His Death
How Does the Supreme Court Plan To Recover Unpaid Traffic Challans Through Electricity Bills?
Danam Nagender Disqualified as MLA, Khairatabad Assembly Seat Declared Vacant
Will H-1B Visas Get Harder for Indians? JD Vance Says Companies Laying Off Americans Shouldn’t Hire Foreign Workers
Nagaland State Lottery Sambad Result Today 8 PM Live: Dear Clover Monday Lottery Result of September 28, 2026 Declared Online, Watch Lucky Draw Winners List
Tata Trusts Propose Tata Sons Reorganisation to Move Away From NBFC Status, Avoid Listing
Read More
Mahanagar Gas Hikes CNG by INR 2 and PNG by INR 1 Amid Middle East Tensions
Mumbai Chemical Leak: 28-Tonne Tanker Leaks Near Chembur Monorail Station, No Casualties
Tim Cook Sends Love to Apple Community As He Shares Final Message on His Last Day as CEO
‘Failed Nation’: Donald Trump Targets Iran, Demands International War Crimes Trials for Its Leaders
TCS iON Apologises for Power Outages at Jaipur NEET PG 2026 and AIIMS CRE Exam Centre
Mumbai Local Train Update: Western Railway Revises Suburban Timetable Effective September 1