Mars helicopter shares first aerial color photo and preps for Sunday flight

Ingenuity autonomously flew for almost 52 seconds during its second flight, climbing 16 feet (4.9 meters) up through the Martian atmosphere. After a brief hover, it tilted at a 5-degree angle and moved sideways for 7 feet (2.1 meters).

The helicopter hovered in place again to make three turns. This allowed Ingenuity’s color camera to capture images taken looking in different directions, before the chopper touched back down in the center of the airfield. Ingenuity only collected black-and-white images with its navigation camera during the first flight on April 19.

The color image, shared on Friday by NASA, is the first taken by an aerial vehicle while aloft on Mars. On either side of the image, landings pads from two of the helicopter’s four legs can be seen.

The helicopter’s shadow on the surface of Mars can be seen at the bottom of the image.

The view from the helicopter’s perspective reveals tracks made by the Perseverance rover when it…