Higher By the Dozen – Ingenuity Takes on Flight 12

Ingenuity’s group is suiting up once more for its subsequent large difficult sortie, Flight 12. Happening no sooner than Monday, Aug. 16 at 5:57 a.m. PDT, or 13:23 LMST (native Mars time), the 174^th sol (Martian day) of the Perseverance mission, the flight will enterprise into the geologically intriguing “South Séítah” area (prime yellow circle in graphic above).  

This newest effort might be much like Flight 10, the place we carried out some location scouting for the Perseverance group of a floor function referred to as “Raised Ridges.” However, Flight 12 has the potential to have extra impactful outcomes. Because of its newly enabled AutoNav functionality, Perseverance is shortly transferring northwest throughout the southern ridge of Séítah (white path) and can meet Ingenuity within the coming days. In consequence, the timing of Ingenuity’s Flight 12 is vital. 

The plan is as follows: Ingenuity will climb to an altitude of 10 meters and fly roughly 235 meters east-northeast towards the world of curiosity in Séítah. As soon as there, the helicopter will make a 5-meter “sidestep” so as to get side-by-side photographs of the floor terrain appropriate to assemble a stereo, or 3D, picture. Then, whereas maintaining the digital camera in the identical path, Ingenuity will backtrack, returning to the identical space from the place it took off. Over the course of the flight, Ingenuity will seize 10 shade photographs that we hope will assist the Perseverance science group decide which of all of the boulders, rocky outcrops and different geologic options in South Séítah could also be worthy of additional scrutiny by the rover.

This flight might be formidable. Flying over Séítah South carries substantial danger due to the numerous terrain. Ingenuity’s navigation system – which was initially meant to help a brief expertise demonstration – works on the belief that it’s flying throughout flat (or practically flat) terrain. Deviations from this assumption can introduce errors that may lead each to short-term excursions in roll and pitch (tilting forwards and backwards in an oscillating sample), in addition to long-term errors within the helicopter’s information of its place.

Once we select to just accept the dangers related to such a flight, it’s due to the correspondingly excessive rewards. Figuring out that now we have the chance to assist the Perseverance group with science planning by offering distinctive aerial footage is all of the motivation wanted.

We’re filling out extra pages in our pilot’s logbook (the Nominal Pilot’s Logbook for Planets and Moons) than we ever thought doable. To this point, 11 pages have been accomplished with the statistics and observations of our flights. Earlier than our marketing campaign started, we have been hoping for at the least one, possibly as much as three or 4 profitable flights.

A few the issues we prefer to keep watch over in our logbook entries: Ingenuity has logged 19 minutes and roughly 1.2 nautical miles within the Martian skies (to date). We’re blissful to report all techniques are inexperienced and that the helicopter is prepared for continued flight operations. For Flight 12, we’re not solely aiming so as to add to these totals as we fill in one other web page of our logbook, but in addition hopeful that we’ll get to incorporate a point out within the e book’s Remarks part about how a lot this flight helped our colleagues engaged on Perseverance.