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NASA’s Helicopter Flying On Mars Is Awesome

Okay, so admittedly this may be just for space geeks like me, but it is just too cool not to share.  I don’t know how many of you have been…

Mars Rover
NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS via Getty Images

Okay, so admittedly this may be just for space geeks like me, but it is just too cool not to share.  I don't know how many of you have been following the exploits of NASA's "Ingenuity," but if you haven't, check this out.  Ingenuity is, technically, a "powered, controlled flying machine."  Let me give you the real world description:  it's a remote controlled helicopter equipped with essentially, a "Go Pro."  So why is video of it so cool?  Hello...it's flying around on MARS!

This video was taken on September 4th from NASA's "Perseverence" rover (similar to the one pictured above).  The travel distance depicted is about 700 feet horizontally, at an altitude of 26 feet. The video was shot from a distance of about 1000 feet away.  And again, this is on MARS.

Charlie Nance is the Afternoon Drive co-host (along with his wife) of "The Charlie and Debbie Show" at WSOC, Country 1037 in Charlotte, North Carolina. The couple have been with the radio station since 2006. Charlie has won the prestigious CMA (Country Music Association) Award for Radio Personality of the Year and has been a finalist for the Country Radio Hall of Fame four times. Prior to his time in Charlotte, Charlie (along with Debbie) spent more than a decade hosting successful morning radio shows in Greenville, SC; Augusta, Ga; and Birmingham, Al. As a content creator for Country 1037, Charlie writes about dream lottery windfalls, sports, restaurants and bars, and travel experiences in North and South Carolina.