NASAβs Proposed Mars βChopperβ Is Ingenuity on Steroids
The otherworldly helicopter, with its 36 blades, is the size of an SUVβa major upgrade from Ingenuity's four blades.
The official diamond award was unveiledΒ by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA)Β in 1999. In the years since, it has been bestowed sparingly β if a song has moved at least 10 million equivalent units by combining sales and streaming numbers, and if an artist or label requests certification.
Over 150 songs have been certified diamond and 33 artists have multiple songs on the list. They're all listed below.
Justin Bieber's "Baby" was only the second song in history to be certified diamond on May 9, 2013.
Bieber received a second diamond certification in 2018 as a featured artist on "Despacito" by Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee.
His third award was bestowed in 2021 for his smash hit "Sorry." He earned his fourth in 2023 for "Stay," a duet with The Kid LAROI.
Eminem's "Not Afraid" was the third song in history to be certified diamond on June 10, 2014.Β
"Lose Yourself" and "Love the Way You Lie" both received the award in 2018.
Lady Gaga received two diamond certifications in 2015 for "Bad Romance" and "Poker Face."
She added a third to her collection in 2023 with "Just Dance."
Imagine Dragons has four diamond-certified songs, the most of any band in history.
"Radioactive" earned the band's first diamond award on July 6, 2015. It was followed by "Demons" and "Believer" in 2021, and finally "Thunder" in 2022.
Bruno Mars has six diamond-certified songs, the third-most of any artist in history: "Uptown Funk," "Just the Way You Are," "Grenade," "That's What I Like," "When I Was Your Man," and "Locked Out of Heaven."
Katy Perry earned her first diamond certification for "Roar" on June 22, 2017.
She received two more in 2018 for "Firework" and "Dark Horse." Her fourth award was bestowed in 2023 for "California Gurls" featuring Snoop Dogg.
Perry added two more in 2024 for "E.T." and "Teenage Dream," bringing her grand total to six. She has the second-most diamond awards among women, trailing Rihanna (seven).
Perry's "Teenage Dream" is also the first and only album in history with four diamond songs on its tracklist.Β
Pharrell earned a diamond certification in 2018 as a featured artist on Robin Thicke's "Blurred Lines," which he also cowrote and produced.
His hit single "Happy" received the award in 2020.
Florida Georgia Line's "Cruise" was certified diamond on October 10, 2018.
The country duo received a second award in 2020 as a featured artist on Bebe Rexha's "Meant to Be."
Ed Sheeran received three diamond certifications in 2019 for "Shape of You," "Thinking Out Loud," and "Perfect."
With seven diamond-certified songs to his name, The Weeknd is tied with Rihanna for the second-most in history.
The Canadian singer earned his first diamond certification for "The Hills" on June 28, 2019. He received three more in 2022 for "Blinding Lights," "Starboy," and "Can't Feel My Face."
His fifth certification came in February 2023 for "Earned It," the lead single from the "Fifty Shades of Grey" film soundtrack.
Finally, "Save Your Tears" and "Die For You" were both certified diamond on June 20, 2024.
Drake's "God's Plan" was certified diamond in 2019.
The rapper received a second diamond certification in 2020 as a featured artist on Travis Scott's "Sicko Mode," and a third in 2021 as a featured artist on Future's "Life Is Good."
He added two more in 2022 for "Hotline Bling" and "One Dance," plus another in 2024 for "No Guidance," bringing his grand total to six.
He's tied with Bruno Mars and Katy Perry for the third-most in history.
Post Malone holds the record for the most diamond-certified songs with nine to his name. He earned his first in 2019 for "Congratulations."
He received two more awards in 2020 (for "Rockstar" and "Sunflower") and an additional two in 2022 (for "White Iverson" and "Psycho" featuring Ty Dolla $ign).
He added three more to his collection in 2023 with "Better Now," "I Fall Apart," and "Circles."
Finally, in 2024, Malone's hit single "Wow." became his milestone ninth diamond-certified song.
In 2021, Cardi B became the first female rapper in history to have a diamond-certified single with "Bodak Yellow."
Later that year, she received a second award as a featured artist on Maroon 5's "Girls Like You" and a third for her single "I Like It."
Maroon 5 earned two diamond certifications in 2021 for "Moves Like Jagger" and "Girls Like You."
The band's third award was bestowed in 2022 for "Sugar."
The Chainsmokers' hit collaboration with Halsey, "Closer," was certified diamond on September 17, 2018.
The EDM duo received two more awards in 2022 for "Don't Let Me Down" featuring Daya and "Something Just Like This" featuring Coldplay.
Twenty One Pilots received their first diamond award in 2021 for "Stressed Out."
The following year, they received a second for "Heathens," the lead single from the soundtrack of the DC Comics film "Suicide Squad."
Swae Lee earned a diamond certification in 2020 for "Sunflower," a collaboration with Post Malone for "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse."
He received a second award in 2022 as a featured artist on French Montana's "Unforgettable."
Michael Jackson's "Billie Jean" and "Thriller" were both certified diamond on August 29, 2022, nearly 40 years after their release.
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis earned their first diamond certification in 2015 for "Thrift Shop" featuring Wanz.
Seven years later, the duo earned a second for "Can't Hold Us" featuring Ray Dalton.
Halsey received her first diamond certification in 2018 as a featured artist on "Closer" by The Chainsmokers.
Her solo smash hit "Without Me" was the milestone 100th song to receive the award on February 1, 2023.
Rihanna earned her first diamond certification in 2018 as a featured artist on Eminem's "Love the Way You Lie."
She received her second in 2023 for "We Found Love," her smash collaboration with Calvin Harris, and her third in 2024 for "Diamonds."
On May 31, 2024, Rihanna collected four more diamond plaques for "Needed Me," "Work," "Umbrella," and "Stay," setting a record for the most among female artists. She now has seven diamond singles, sitting in second place behind Post Malone.
Kanye West, who legally changed his name to Ye in 2021, received his first diamond certification that same year for "Stronger."
His second award was bestowed in 2023 for "Ni**as in Paris," a single from his joint album with Jay-Z, "Watch the Throne."
XXXTentacion, who was killed in 2018, earned a posthumous diamond certification in 2021 for his No. 1 single "Sad!"
He received a second award in 2023 for "Fuck Love" featuring Trippie Redd.
Khalid earned his first diamond certification for "Location" on March 3, 2022. The following year, he received another for "Young Dumb & Broke."
His third award was bestowed in 2024 for "Lovely," a duet with Billie Eilish.
Nicki Minaj's "Super Bass" was certified diamond on November 9, 2021, a decade after its groundbreaking release.
The rapper received two more awards in 2024 for "Bang Bang," the hit collaboration with Jessie J and Ariana Grande, and "Starships."
Pitbull received his first diamond certification in 2022 for his hit collaboration with Kesha, "Timber."
He earned a second award in 2024 for "Give Me Everything" featuring Ne-Yo, Afrojack, and Nayer.
Jay-Z's hit collaboration with Kanye West, "Ni**as in Paris," became his first diamond song in 2023.
The Brooklyn rapper received his second diamond award in 2024 for "Empire State of Mind," his famous duet with Alicia Keys.
Luke Combs has three diamond songs to his name, the most of any country singer: "Beautiful Crazy," "When It Rains It Pours," and "Hurricane."
Alicia Keys received two diamond certifications in 2024 for "Empire State of Mind" and "No One."
Travis Scott received his first diamond certification in 2020 for "Sicko Mode." His second award was bestowed in 2024 for "Goosebumps," a hit single from his sophomore album.
Billie Eilish's signature song, "Bad Guy," was certified diamond on July 31, 2023.
The following year, Eilish received her second award for "Lovely," a collaboration with Khalid released for the "13 Reasons Why" soundtrack.
J. Cole received two diamond certifications in 2024 for "Middle Child" and "No Role Modelz."
BeyoncΓ© received two diamond certifications in 2024 for "Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It)" and "Halo," both singles from her 2008 album "I Am... Sasha Fierce."
According to a press release from the RIAA, BeyoncΓ© now has the most certified titles for a female artist with 103 total across her discography.
Eleven months after the Ingenuity helicopter made its final flight on Mars, engineers and scientists at NASA and a private company that helped build the flying vehicle said they have identified what probably caused it to crash on the surface of Mars.
In short, the helicopter's on-board navigation sensors were unable to discern enough features in the relatively smooth surface of Mars to determine its position, so when it touched down, it did so moving horizontally. This caused the vehicle to tumble, snapping off all four of the helicopter's blades.
It is not easy to conduct a forensic analysis like this on Mars, which is typically about 100 million miles from Earth. Ingenuity carried no black box on board, so investigators have had to piece together their findings from limited data and imagery.
SpaceX launched its Starship mega-rocket for the sixth time on Tuesday, but the main event was canceled.
The space company successfully launched the 36-story-tall rocket system but ended up abandoning its plan to catch the Super Heavy booster upon its return to Earth with a giant pair of metal arms, nicknamed "chopsticks."
SpaceX achieved the major feat for the first time in October, during Starship's fifth test launch.
Elon Musk, SpaceX founder and CEO, has said his plans of building a Mars city rests on Starship.
The Starship rocket system is the largest ever built, consisting of two stages: a Super Heavy booster at the bottom and a Starship on top.
On Tuesday, Super Heavy's 33 Raptor engines roared to life, heaving Starship through the skies.
After about three minutes, Super Heavy released itself and fell back to Earth.
When the catch attempt was called off, the booster splashed down in the Gulf of Mexico nearly seven minutes after launch while Starship continued on toward space.
SpaceX officials said on the company's livestream that the catch wasn't attempted this time because "strict criteria were not met" and this was a known possibility before launch.
During Starship's fifth test flight in October, SpaceX successfully caught the Super Heavy booster with aΒ giant pair of metal arms, nicknamed "chopsticks," that caught it before it reached the ground.
Ultimately, Starship is designed to be the first ever fully, rapidly reusable rocket.
SpaceX has been reusing its fleet of Falcon 9 rockets for years, but only the first stage returns for reuse, the second stage is discarded after each launch.
Moreover, the Falcon 9 first stage lands on a barge in the ocean and must be retrieved for reuse, which takes extra time.
Starship is different. Both its first-stage Super Heavy booster and second-stage Starship are designed to be rapidly reusable by returning to the launch site after lift-off.
This is SpaceX's North Star. If the company succeeds, it could make spaceflight 10 times cheaper, and, ultimately, help humanity achieve multi-planetary status.
SpaceX's next major goal is to prove it can consistently retrieve Super Heavy and also retrieve Starship β but that milestone remains for another day.
For this test launch, Starship splashed down in the Indian Ocean as expected about an hour and five minutes after launch.
During its flight in space, Starship fired one of its Raptor engines for the first time, proving a capability it will need during future launches to return and touch down on land.
SpaceX also chose to launch Starship in the afternoon this time instead of the early morning, so that it can better observe Starship's landing, The New York Times reported.
Despite SpaceX not catching Super Heavy on its return to Earth, the test launch is still another successful step toward making Starship viable for orbital flights, moon landings, and eventually long journeys to and from Mars.
Tuesday's flight came just one month after the Starship's fifth test flight. That's a rapid turnaround for such a major test.
Maintaining this fast pace will be critical to achieving Musk's latest goal of sending the first Starships to Mars in just two years.
Another notable development was that President-elect Donald Trump attended the Starship launch.
Ahead of the event, Trump announced on Truth Social that he'd be in attendance, writing, "Good luck to Elon Musk and the Great Patriots involved in this incredible project!"
Trump's presence indicates just how influential Musk may become in the next administration, which could be a boon for space exploration.