Thread by @washingtonpost

Earthlings have long stared up at the fiery Red Planet.

On Monday, a tiny helicopter, Ingenuity, flew on Mars.

It was an extraordinary feat: the first-ever powered flight on another planet. washingtonpost.com/science/intera…

In February, Ingenuity, known as “Ginny,” hitched a ride to space inside the Perseverance rover, “Percy.”

It’s part of a Martian-year-long mission dedicated to a centuries-old mystery: Did ancient microbial life flourish somewhere besides Earth?

A Martian day, called a sol, lasts 24 hours, 39 minutes, and 35 seconds. The mission will span a Martian year, or 687 Earth days.

For these missions, NASA follows Mars time and Percy’s workday on the planet (which really screws up the sleep schedule of the agency’s scientists).

Sol 0 on Mars began with Percy hurtling toward the surface at about 12,000 mph.

Over seven nail-biting minutes, the spacecraft began a carefully choreographed sequence of disassembling itself, slowing down and guiding itself to a landing site on the Jezero Crater.

(📽:@NASA)

Scientists believe the best hope for finding signs of ancient microbial life is on a particular delta, where a river once fed Jezero lake.

On Sol 15, NASA revealed two possible routes for Percy to make the 1.5-mile trip.

Ginny, the little chopper with a giant job, will continue to perform a series of flight tests while Percy will serve as a communication relay between the helicopter, Mars orbiters and mission control back on Earth. washingtonpost.com/technology/202…

Following the flight tests, Percy will then begin surface operations moving toward the delta to search for signs of ancient microbial life.

As Percy and Ginny traverse the planet, each step builds to the next. Each test builds knowledge.

(📽: @NASA)

In our interactive timeline, readers can follow the historic mission through video, photographs and audio that Percy has sent back.

Explore the daunting terrain through Post maps created with NASA data.
washingtonpost.com/science/intera…