First Flight On Mars

On April 19, NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter became the first aircraft to fly on another planet.

Our most recent package details the historic first flight of the 4-lb. robotic rotorcraft, which lasted 39.1 seconds, and its follow-up venture on April 22, and looks ahead to its future test program. The technology lays the groundwork for aerial exploration of Mars, an aeronautical feat given the air density of Mars is less than 1% of the density on Earth. See below for more.

“How do we use aerial mobility in the future on Mars, to help not just robotic exploration, but to help human exploration?”
Ellen Stofan
Smithsonian
Sep 30, 2025
A UAE-led medical study recently headed into space aboard Axiom Mission 4. The private mission, which launched on June 25, was led by veteran astronaut Peggy Whitson, adding to her standing record for the longest cumulative time in space by an American astronaut.
Sep 30, 2025
Famous automotive manufacturers bet on space, electric air taxis and hydrogen power.
Sep 25, 2025
Lasers, maneuvering satellites and spaceplanes are getting more attention as Western militaries look to counter threats to their space systems.
Sep 24, 2025
Launch service providers are promising higher flight cadences—again.
Sep 24, 2025
Space service providers are battling it out in the direct-to-device market.
Sep 23, 2025
The cover of the issue dated August 17, 1970, shows female aquanauts performing biomedical experiments for NASA 50 ft. beneath the Caribbean Sea.
Sep 19, 2025
Determining whether the sample contains evidence of past life cannot be answered until it is brought to Earth for analysis.
Sep 12, 2025
One of the three proposals for the Earth Resources Technology Satellite being evaluated by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration is based on this mockup designed by North American Rockwell Corp./Ball Brothers Research Corp. as featured on the cover of the September 15, 1969, issue of Aviation Week & Space Technology.