Mars Explorer Robot Perseverance NASA reportedly managed to record the sound of flying helicopters flying for the first time on Mars. Perseverance uses one of two microphones to listen to Ingenuity while flying for the fourth time on April 30, 2021.
A new video uploaded NASA combines a solar-powered helicopter record taken by Imager Mastcam-Z Perseverance with audio from the microphone belonging to the supercam laser instrument.
Launching the official website, NASA did not think the Perseverance parked 262 feet (80 meters) from the place of takeoff and the Ingenuity landing would capture the voice of the flight.
However, Perseverance can capture sound when the helicopter propeller rotates at 2,537 rpm, even though it is very small due to the thin influence of the atmosphere of Mars. In addition, the low quality of sound due to mars wind gusts.
“This is a very good surprise,” said David Mimoun, Professor of Planet Science at the Supérieur de l’Aeronautique Institute of Et De L’Espace (Isae-Supaero) and Science chairman for the Mat Mars Super Cam Microphone.
“We have done tests and simulations that tell us that the microphone can hardly capture the sound of the helicopter, because the MARS atmosphere is very dampening sound propagation. This recording will be a gold mine for our understanding of the atmosphere of Mars,” he said.
Scientists make audio, recorded in the mono, it is easier to be heard by isolating the sound of the 84 Hertz helicopter propeller, reducing the frequency below 80 Hertz and above 90 Hertz, and increasing the remaining signal volume.
Some frequencies are cut to release the buzz of a helicopter, the hardest when the helicopter passes through the camera view.
Launching NDTV, the atmosphere of Mars is approximately one percent of our planet’s density, makes everything far more quiet than on earth. Thus, mission scientists are not sure of capturing the voice of the flight at all, given that the Perseverance is parked 262 feet (80 meters) from the place taking off and landing.
In addition to having a lower volume, the sounds emitted on Mars move more slowly than on earth, because of the cold temperature, which averages -81 degrees Fahrenheit (-63 degrees Celsius) on the surface.
Therefore, the speed of sound on the planet is around 540 mph (approximately 240 meters per second), compared to around 760 mph (approximately 340 meters per second) here. The atmosphere of Mars, which consists of 96 percent of carbon dioxide, tends to absorb high-pitched sounds, so only a low-pitched sound can travel long distances.
Supercam is an instrument on an Ingenuity ship to study the composition of stone chemistry with a tool called a spectrometer. The technology is also equipped with a microphone for recording sound, which results in additional insights about the physical properties of the target, such as how hard they are.