Google Search for Mars Helicopter ‘Ingenuity NASA’ to Launch a Surprise on Your Screen

Google is celebrating NASA’s historic first controlled flight on another planet with an Ingenuity animation.

By Edited by Gadgets 360 Newsdesk | Updated: 21 April 2021 17:57 IST

Google Search for Mars Helicopter ‘Ingenuity NASA’ to Launch a Surprise on Your Screen

NASA successfully flew the Ingenuity helicopter on Mars on Monday

Highlights

Google has created an exciting new animation on its homepage
People shared the excitement of virtual helicopter hover around screen
Ingenuity will analyse its position with respect to Martian surface

NASA Mars helicopter Ingenuity became the first aircraft in history to make a controlled flight on another planet on Monday, April 19. To celebrate the achievement, Google has created an exciting new animation on its homepage. If you run a Google search for ‘Ingenuity NASA', a small and animated version of ‘Ingenuity', orange in colour, appears on the screen. With its rotors whirling, clicking on the animation launches the Ingenuity for a flight around your screen over an animated red surface, similar to that of Mars or the Red Planet.

Sharing a video of the Google Search Ingenuity animation, NASA tweeted: “Do you like fun things? Type "Ingenuity NASA" in a @Google search for a #MarsHelicopter surprise”. A Twitter user (@Jasper_00) then demonstrated it on his phone, sharing a video of the screen recording.

#MarsHelicopter ???? pic.twitter.com/A9Xx4y5YBs
— Jasper Verdeflor (@Jasper_0_0_) April 20, 2021

Many others shared the excitement and joy of having the virtual helicopter hover around the screen.

Twitter user @damiaen wrote: "Click on the device and your page will come to Marsian life!!"

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click on the device and your page will come to Marsian life!! ???? ???? pic.twitter.com/42axEwbxzf
— JigglyPuff (@damiaen) April 19, 2021

Here are some more reactions:

Love this pic.twitter.com/0OFNcZanoH
— Koi ni (@aminwinger) April 20, 2021

I tried with my phone???????????? pic.twitter.com/3ffoMYXEkE
— Dual Citizen Kay ???????????????????????????????? (@kwame__citizen) April 19, 2021

I flew my Ingenuity.
Fly yours through this https://t.co/65rUIcjLeJ pic.twitter.com/mjkrAnEWTk
— Nidesh Kanna (@Nideshkanna01) April 19, 2021

Cool.. Historical moment saved pic.twitter.com/tiErCwdjCo
— Saleem AJ (@iamsaleem_aj) April 20, 2021

Awesome pic.twitter.com/qKF9i72sLP
— İlyas Gündemir (@ilyasgnnndmr) April 19, 2021

After NASA, Google also shared a gif of the feature, saying, "Ten vertical feet for a helicopter, one giant leap for space exploration. Congrats @NASA #MarsHelicopter on an amazing first flight!"

Ten vertical feet for a helicopter, one giant leap for space exploration. Congrats @NASA #MarsHelicopter on an amazing first flight! https://t.co/z4eNcema10 pic.twitter.com/z0oxvNNbKv
— Google (@Google) April 19, 2021

Following the safe hovering and landing of Ingenuity, NASA shared a video on Twitter where lead engineer MiMi Aung is heard telling her team, “We can now say that human beings have flown a rotorcraft on another planet!”

"We've been talking for so long about our Wright brothers moment. And here it is."

MiMi Aung, #MarsHelicopter Project Manager, takes a moment to thank the @NASAJPL team following the news of the successful Ingenuity test flight: pic.twitter.com/qeoQnOdXiK
— NASA (@NASA) April 19, 2021

The video showed the chopper on the ground at first, before hovering three meters above the surface of Mars, and then touching down again. NASA Associate Administrator for Science Thomas Zurbuchen said the Ingenuity helicopter has succeeded in performing this amazing feat on another world, 117 years after the Wright brothers succeeded in making the first flight on earth.

“While these two iconic moments in aviation history may be separated by time and 173 million miles of space, they now will forever be linked,” he said.

“As a homage to the two innovative bicycle makers from Dayton, this first of many airfields on other worlds will now be known as Wright Brothers Field, in recognition of the ingenuity and innovation that continue to propel exploration,” Zurbuchen added.

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