NASA's mini helicopter Ingenuity on Sunday successfully completed its third flight on Mars, travelling even farther and hitting a peak speed of 4.5mph - four times faster than before. The Perseverance rover, which carried the four-pound rotorcraft to Mars, filmed the 80-second third flight on Mastcam-Z. This black-and-white image was taken by the navigation camera aboard NASA's Ingenuity helicopter during its third flight SundayNASA's Ingenuity Mars Helicopter can be seen hovering during its third flight on Sunday, as seen by the left Navigation Camera aboard NASA's Perseverance Mars roverINGENUITY: THE SMALL ROTORCRAFT THAT TOOK TO THE MARTIAN SKY Ingenuity was designed as a technology demonstrator rather than carrying any of its own science experiments or equipment. After the spacecraft landed, it dropped the drone on to the ground so Ingenuity could prepare for its maiden flight. It has a zoom lens so it can magnify distant targets, making it perfect to track the first Ingenuity flight.

Source: The Nation April 25, 2021 19:52 UTC