Overview

• NASA's Ingenuity Mars helicopter lost contact with Earth during its 72nd flight, with the last communication occurring during its descent.
• The helicopter had successfully reached its planned altitude of 40 feet (12 meters) before the communication was lost.
• The cause of the communication failure is unknown, and the Ingenuity team is analyzing the available data and looking for ways to reestablish contact.
• Ingenuity, which arrived on Mars in 2021 with the rover Perseverance, has far exceeded its original goal of undertaking five flights over 30 days on the red planet.
• NASA has lost contact with the helicopter before, including for two months last year, so it may be possible to re-establish communications again.