In 2014, Amelia Quon and her team at NASA set out to build a helicopter
In 2014, Amelia Quon and her team at NASA set out to build a helicopter capable of flying on Mars. Because Mars’s atmosphere is only one percent as dense as Earth’s, the air of Mars would not provide enough resistance to the rotating blades of a standard helicopter for the aircraft to stay aloft. For five years, Quon’s team tested designs in a lab that mimicked Mars’s atmospheric conditions. The craft the team ultimately designed can fly on Mars because its blades are longer and rotate faster than those of a helicopter of the same size built for Earth. According to the text, why would a helicopter built for Earth be unable to fly on Mars?
- A) Because Mars and Earth have different atmospheric conditions
- B) Because the blades of helicopters built for Earth are too large to work on Mars
- C) Because the gravity of Mars is much weaker than the gravity of Earth
- D) Because helicopters built for Earth are too small to handle the conditions on Mars
Correct Answer: A) Because Mars and Earth have different atmospheric conditions
Explanation
According to the text, the reason a helicopter built for Earth would be unable to fly on Mars is A) Because Mars and Earth have different atmospheric conditions. The text explains that Mars's atmosphere is only one percent as dense as Earth's atmosphere. Due to this significant difference in atmospheric density, the air of Mars would not provide enough resistance to the rotating blades of a standard helicopter for it to stay aloft. Therefore, the difference in atmospheric conditions between Mars and Earth is the primary reason why a helicopter built for Earth would be unable to fly on Mars.