Mars Helicopter to launch as part of Nasa’s 2020 mission

In development at Nasa’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) since 2013, the helicopter will be attached to the belly pan of the Mars 2020 rover and deployed in a suitable location once the rover touches down. Twin counter-rotating blades will spin at almost 3,000 rpm, designed to counteract Mars’ thin atmosphere. In contrast, helicopters on Earth typically operate at around 300 rpm.

“The altitude record for a helicopter flying here on Earth is about 40,000 feet,” said Mimi Aung, Mars Helicopter project manager at JPL. “The atmosphere of Mars is only one percent that of Earth, so when our helicopter is on the Martian surface, it’s already at the Earth equivalent of 100,000 feet up.

“To make it fly at that low atmospheric density, we had to scrutinise everything, make it as light as possible while being as strong and as powerful as it can possibly be.”