NASA'S INGENUITY HELICOPTER'S HISTORIC FIRST FLIGHT ON MARS.

Mars first ever helicopter flight. It happened on April 19, 2021. A technology demonstration to test the first powered flight on Mars. The helicopter rode to Mars attached to the belly of the Perseverance rover. It was launched on July 30, 2020, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida. and it Landed on Feb. 18, 2021, Jezero Crater, Mars.

NASA on taking flight on another world (source NASA'S WEBSITE and TWITTER)

 #MARSHELICOPTER

"Once the rover reached a suitable "helipad" location, it released Ingenuity to the surface so it could perform a series of test flights over a 30-Martian-day experimental window. The first flight was successfully performed on April 19, 2021.

For the first flight, the helicopter took off, climbed to about 10 feet (3 meters) above the ground, hovered in the air briefly, completed a turn, and then landed. It was a major milestone: the very first powered flight in the extremely thin atmosphere of Mars, and, in fact, the first such flight in any world beyond Earth. After that, the team planned additional experimental flights of incrementally farther distance and greater altitude. After the helicopter completes its technology demonstration, Perseverance will continue its scientific mission."

It is the first powered and control flight we have ever completed on another planet and NASA had to overcome some pretty impossible odds to do it. There was a chance that this flight might not happened at all, during a final high speed test the helicopter system aborted and then NASA had to beam up a software update from EARTH and then ingenuity finally took to the Martian skies 

Final high speed test where the helicopter system aborted 

Thanks to camera's on board the helicopter and on the perseverance rover we got some amazing views.

The helicopter was dropped on the ground from underneath the ground

A VIEW OF THE HORIZON

A BLACK AND WHITE CAMERA ON THE BOTTOM OF THE HELICOPTER GAVE US SHOT LOOKING DOWN ON THE MARTIAN SURFACE.

BUT it wasn't just the cameras on ingenuity, perseverance rover was watching the whole thing there are two mastcam on perseverance. These cameras recorded both a closeup and wide-angle view of the flight.

The real potential of ingenuity is much more so further it's going to bring more data and more images for the world to see. This is just the first flight but its the start of much more and exciting.