NASAMars 2020 - Perseverance Rover & Ingenuity Helicopter - 2020-052A
Perseverance & Ingenuity
Searching for ancient life on Mars - and the first powered flight on another world
PHASE 01
Launch
Jul 30, 2020 ✓
PHASE 02
Landing in Jezero
Feb 18, 2021 ✓
PHASE 03
Ingenuity first flight
Apr 19, 2021 ✓
PHASE 04 - ACTIVE
Sample caching
2021-present
- Telemetry
Perseverance & Ingenuity at a glance.
Sols on Mars
1,800+
Samples cached
24+
Ingenuity flights
72
Status
Active
- Status
Caching samples for future return.
Perseverance landed in Jezero Crater on February 18, 2021, an ancient river delta where life may once have existed. The rover is collecting and caching rock samples for eventual return to Earth via the Mars Sample Return mission.
The Ingenuity helicopter, originally a 30-day technology demonstration, ultimately flew 72 times before its rotor blades were damaged in January 2024 - proving powered flight is possible in Mars' thin atmosphere.