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NASA releases 3D video of Ingenuity Mars Helicopter flight

The space agency wanted to give the viewers a 'first-hand experience' of this flight on the red planet
Last Updated 15 May 2021, 11:59 IST

On May 12, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) released a 3D video of the Ingenuity Mars Helicopter's historic third flight. The flight was one of the five successful endeavours with one failed attempt.

“Our Ingenuity #MarsHelicopter, but make it 3D! When the helicopter took to the Martian skies on its third flight, @NASAPersevere was there to capture it all. Check out the rendered flight in 3D as it ascends, hovers, then zooms laterally: http://go.nasa.gov/33ADsxd,” the agency tweeted.

The agency wanted to give the viewers a first-hand experience of this flight on the red planet. For those who don’t have 3D glasses to experience this wonderful video, NASA has shared a quick DIY 3D glasses to make at home in few minutes.

"When NASA’s Ingenuity Mars Helicopter took to the Martian skies on its third flight on April 25, the agency’s Perseverance rover was there to capture the historic moment. Now NASA engineers have rendered the flight in 3D, lending dramatic depth to the flight as the helicopter ascends, hovers, then zooms laterally off-screen before returning for a pinpoint landing," the agency told in their press release.

Justin Maki is the imaging scientist who led the team which put this video together. He has been creating 3D imaging of Mars with NASA since he was a graduate student.

In a press release of NASA, he said, "The Mastcam-Z video capability was inherited from the Mars Science Laboratory MARDI (Mars Descent Imager) camera. To be reusing this capability on a new mission by acquiring 3D video of a helicopter flying above the surface of Mars is just spectacular."

The video of Ingenuity Mars Helicopter was taken by Perseverance Mars rover's zoomable dual-camera Mastcam-Z instrument. According to NASA, the photos and videos provide "key data" for navigation and aid scientists in their research and locate potentially ancient microbial life.

Recently, the agency had announced that the rover's robotic arm had successfully started conducting science operations like examining Mar’s terrain and environment.

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(Published 15 May 2021, 11:55 IST)

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