NASA's historic Ingenuity helicopter ends its 3-year Mars mission, suffering rotor damage on 72nd flight

NASA's Mars Helicopter Ingenuity is seen by the Perseverance rover after unlocking its rotor blades on April 7, 2021.

After three years of soaring through the ultra-thin skies of Mars, NASA's autonomous Ingenuity helicopter has finally been grounded for good. 

While power still flows through the 4-pound (1.8 kilograms) helicopter, recent images revealed that at least one of its rotor blades sustained irreparable damage after its last flight — Ingenuity's 72nd flight over the Red Planet — rendering it unable to fly again, NASA announced in a statement on Thursday (Jan. 25).