NASA found the Ingenuity helicopter crashed in a place that could contain life

The Perseverance spacecraft sent back to Earth images of its "dead" friend.

In the image just released by NASA, the Ingenuity spacecraft - a helicopter-like robot - is lying motionless on the barren Martian desert floor. It has just announced the end of its mission to hunt for alien life.

Little Ingenuity is lying among the sand dunes of the Jezero Crater "zone of life", never able to fly again - (Photo: NASA)

According to Space.com , the photo was taken by Ingenuiy's companion, Perseverance - a rover-like robot - at 13:05 on February 4 local time on Mars.

Previously, Ingenuity suddenly lost contact with NASA in mid-January 2024. The incident was later determined to be caused by it crashing during landing.

Despite reestablishing contact with Earth through its Perseverance companion, a photo sent from Mars revealed the shadow of a broken rotor, leading NASA to conclude that Ingenuity could never fly again. January 25.

The photo reveals a broken propeller - (Photo: NASA).

Since Ingenuity's accident until now, Perseverance has never stopped searching for its unfortunate friend.

Ingenuity project manager at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) Teddy Tzanetos said the team was very proud and happy with what their "baby" had accomplished.

Because, although the image just released is the final confirmation of Ingenuity's "death", it has completed its mission far beyond what was expected.

This small helicopter and companion Perseverance landed on Mars in February 2021. Both have a mission to hunt for alien life in the Jezero Crater area , where an ancient lake and river delta once dominated.

Ingenuity has the mission of flying exploration to help Perseverance - larger, slower but carrying many scientific equipment - navigate in the hunt for life.

Ingenuity has an assigned primary mission of 30 days, while Perseverance has a primary mission of nearly 2 years.

However, the robotic helicopter has been flying tirelessly for the past three years, while Perseverance is still in perfectly good condition and may have many more years of traveling to Mars in the near future.

NASA also has another "immortal" warrior , Curiosity, also a rover-like robotic lander like Perseverance but an older version, operating on Mars since 2011 and still "alive and well" today.