NASA’s Ingenuity in Contact With Perseverance Rover After Communications Dropout

NASA ^ | May 06, 2022 | David Agle

[Ezekiel]

NASA's Mars Perseverance rover acquired this image using its Left Mastcam-Z camera. Mastcam-Z is a pair of cameras
located high on the rover's mast. Credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU. Download image ›

On Thursday, May 5, mission controllers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory received confirmation that the agency’s Ingenuity Mars Helicopter had re-established communications with the Perseverance rover. Earlier in the week, the rotorcraft had missed a planned communications session with the rover – for the first time in over a year of operations on the Mars surface. Ingenuity relies on Perseverance as the base station that enables it to send data to and receive commands from Earth. While more data downlinks and analysis are needed, the Ingenuity and Perseverance teams believe they have determined a cause of the anomaly as well as a plan to return to normal operations.

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Data downlinked indicates that the communications dropout on May 3, Sol 427 of the Perseverance rover’s mission at Mars, was a result of the solar-powered helicopter entering a low-power state, potentially due to the seasonal increase in the amount of dust in the Martian atmosphere and lower temperatures as winter approaches. The dust diminishes the amount of sunlight hitting the solar array, reducing Ingenuity’s ability to recharge its six lithium-ion batteries. When the battery pack’s state of charge dropped below a lower limit, the helicopter’s field-programmable gate array (FPGA) was powered down.

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When the Sun rose the next morning and the solar array began to charge the batteries, the helicopter’s clock was no longer in sync with the clock aboard the rover. Essentially, when Ingenuity thought it was time to contact Perseverance, the rover’s base station wasn’t listening.

[Ezekiel]

"After missing a planned comms session earlier this week, the #MarsHelicopter has re-established contact with @NASAPersevere
& mission controllers on the ground."

https://twitter.com/NASAJPL/status/1522751608844521472

Also in the mix was Flight 28:

Sol 423 April 29, 2022

[Paladin2]

Looks a bit like my backyard.

Where’s the closest beer store?

[Flick Lives]

…the first time in over a year of operations on the Mars surface.

—

Pretty good for a proof of concept vehicle.

[Ezekiel]

Perhaps the inconsistent and delayed updates are because they suspect that Ginny has just about finished running the good race?

[Ezekiel]

After Flight 26 the updates were coming around after much delay, and without fanfare. Just kind of buried in the notes.

Maybe it's just me, but it seems like they suspect that the end is nigh.

Pretty good for a proof of concept vehicle.

Indeed. And no good thing ever dies.

[TChad]

It's too early to say that. NASA's proposed fixes sound reasonable.

Long live Ginny!

[Ezekiel]

I was just wondering what was the deal with the flaky flight updates. The last two were sneaked onto the flight log, when it has been the other way around... they'd get the news out quickly and then eventually update the logs.

Now this comes out. "Oh by the way..."

Otherwise I wouldn't be suspicious.

No matter, because you can't keep a good girl down. Ginny is forever!

On that note,

Good time to mention that there's an intriguing word play on the Hebrew wikipedia page. Like on the English page, it starts by noting that Ingenuity's nickname (shem chiba, lit. name of affection) is Ginny [ שם חיבה ג'יני], but what happens when "space" is added:

"Shem chiba" becomes shem chai bah [שם חי בה], the living name (the alive name) is in her, or the living name, B"H.

B”H (ב״ה) is an acronym for the Hebrew words baruch Hashem (“blessed is G‑d”) or b’ezrat Hashem (“with the help of G‑d”).

Why Write B”H or BS”D at Head of a Letter, and What Does It Mean?

Ingenuity is the engine of light that begets action, or as explained here, that the alive name is a permutation of "Messiah":

When we divide the word Mashiach into two words we have the following: שם חי, Shem Chai, Meaning the “Name” is alive. Which means that there is always a sense of new life which is coming and popping into every moment in which we can feel, or sense the spirit fresh and young. What does it mean? No depression, no heaviness, no despair, but the opposite: Hope and beliefe in a new clear horizon.

What Does The Word Mashiach משיח Mean In Hebrew?

I wonder what I'd discover if I actually knew Hebrew instead of merely playing like a kid with a set of refrigerator magnets? :)

[EEGator]

Top of Olympus Mons…

[Revel]

Design Flaw. The internal clock should have its own battery which will stay charged much longer than the main power source.

[Ezekiel]

One of those things for the next generation.

Perhaps no one thought of it at the time (or didn’t think it would be a concern) because it was a concept model. Optimistically, Ingenuity would last 5 flights over one month.

Passing the one year mark and 28 flights, the team really gets to exercise some ingenuity in keeping it going, so the issues provide a beneficial learning experience no matter what.

Besides, at this point Ginny might have quite a fan club.