Ingenuity completed its 51st flight to Mars and photographed the Perseverance rover

Less than two weeks after its 50th anniversary flight, the Mars unmanned helicopter Ingenuity once again

rose into the atmosphere of the Red Planet. He again photographed the landscape of Mars, but this time the Perseverance rover was included in the frame.

What is known

Ingenuity's 51st flight lasted a little overtwo minutes (136.89 seconds). During this time, an unmanned helicopter flew 188 meters (the record is 704 meters). The drone rose into the air to a height of 12 meters (the record is 18 meters).

Can you spot @NASAPersevere?

Ingenuity completed Flight 51 over the weekend,snapping a special cameo of the rover from 40 ft (12m) in the air. On this flight, the #MarsHelicopter traveled 617 ft (188 meters) for 136.89 seconds. https://t.co/1CXIWdYIAQ pic.twitter.com/Oyi6hkucPv

— NASA JPL (@NASAJPL) April 25, 2023

In total, Ingenuity has flown more than 90minutes and overcame almost 12 km. You should not expect that he will be able to set new records for altitude and flight duration. This is due to two reasons. Firstly, the battery degraded over the year. Secondly, a lot of dust has accumulated on the solar panels and blades.

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Ingenuity follows Perseverance roverwhich tends to the top of the Martian river delta. Due to a long delay, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) specialists cannot control the helicopter, so the helicopter moves along a predetermined route.