Mimi Aung was still a young girl when she learned a lesson that has defined her career at NASA.
Struggling with a math problem, she sought guidance from her mother, who had a doctorate in the subject. She soon tired of Mom’s long explanation and demanded a quick answer. Aung vividly recalls the stern rebuke from the usually softspoken woman: “Never, never ask me for a shortcut.” No shortcuts. That’s a good rule for the electrical engineer leading the team behind the first autonomous drone destined for another world. When the Mars Helicopter arrives on the Red Planet in 2021, it will make five increasingly difficult flights and perhaps take some pictures.
NASA hopes to prove the technology works well enough to develop larger choppers that could collect samples, perform aerial surveys, and even ferry cargo on future missions. Such a machine could explore volcanoes and lava tubes, fly through canyons, and investigate other areas rovers can’t reach and probes can’t see.
Denne historien er fra Fall 2019-utgaven av Popular Science.
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Denne historien er fra Fall 2019-utgaven av Popular Science.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
They Might Be Giants
A photographer-and-ecologist team are on a mission to document the forests’ mightiest members.
Droplet Stoppers
Covid-19 made face masks a crucial part of every outfit, and we’re likely to don them in the future when we feel ill. Fortunately, there’s a style for every need.
Landing a Lifeline
For those whose livelihood depends on the ocean, a covid-spurred interruption in the seafood market might speed progress toward a more sustainable future—for them and for fish.
Headtrip – Your brain on video chat
Dating, Catching up with family, and going to happy hour are best in person.
Behind The Cover
Butterflies may seem delicate, but they are surprisingly tough.
Tales From the Field – A cold one on mars
Kellie Gerardi, bioastronautics researcher at the International Institute for Austronautical Science
The Needs Of The Few
Designing with the marginalized in mind can improve all of out lives.
Life On The Line
On the Western edge of Borneo, a novel conservation-minded health-care model could provide the world with a blueprint to stop next pandemic before it starts.
waste watchers
YOU CAN TURN FOOD SCRAPS INTO FERTILIZER IN ALMOST ANY CONTAINER. THESE BINS USE THEIR OWN METHODS TO ENCOURAGE THE PROCESS, BUT BOTH KEEP BUGS AND STINK AT BAY.
why can't i forget how to ride a bike?
LEARNING TO PEDAL IS NO EASY FEAT.
