NASA Designing A Drone For Mars

According to Bob Balaram, the Chief Engineer of Mobility and Robotics Systems at JPL, the Mars drone would only be capable of three-minute flights. The drone would climb to a maximum height of 330 feet and be able to fly a thousand feet or so, over land each day.

Balaram said in the video regarding the drone  “It has to be autonomous in terms of being able to fly and maintain stable flight…And then, this system has to repeatedly take off and land on natural rocky terrain like you see out here. And then, the other one is that it has to survive the harsh environment of Mars.”

Space.com reported that this new copter drone would include “counter-rotating propellers designed for use in the thin Martian air; batteries that are recharged by solar power; a high-resolution, downward-looking camera for navigation, landing and science surveying of the terrain; and a communications system to relay data to the rover.”

They also noted that an insect-like “entomopter” flying device has also been suggested for future Mars missions, whilst other engineers are suggesting developing balloons for aerial reconnaissance to explore Mars.

[Image via business2community]

SOURCE: http://me.pcmag.com/news/730/news/nasa-designing-a-copter-drone-for-mars