All Missions

Viking 2 Orbiter

The Viking 2 Orbiter was inserted into Mars orbit on August 7, 1976. After deploying its lander, it operated independently conducting global, climatic, and atmospheric mapping. Its milestones include a close flyby of the moon Deimos and photographic confirmation of water ice at the north polar cap. The mission concluded on July 25, 1978, following a leak in its propulsion system.

Viking 2 Lander

The Viking 2 Lander touched down in Utopia Planitia on September 3, 1976. It operated for 1281 sols, far exceeding its planned 90-day lifespan, until battery failure on April 11, 1980. It was the first mission to photograph seasonal water frost on the Martian surface and to successfully operate a seismometer on the planet, in addition to conducting controversial biological experiments.

Viking 1 (Lander)

NASA's Viking 1 mission, launched in 1975, was a historic milestone. Comprising an orbiter and a lander, it achieved the first successful, long-duration US landing on Mars on July 20, 1976. While the orbiter mapped the planet, revealing river valleys, the lander conducted the first in-situ experiments to search for life, yielding ambiguous results that redefined Martian exploration.

Viking 1 (Orbiter)

NASA's Viking 1 mission, launched in 1975, was a historic milestone. Comprising an orbiter and a lander, it achieved the first successful, long-duration US landing on Mars on July 20, 1976. While the orbiter mapped the planet, revealing river valleys, the lander conducted the first in-situ experiments to search for life, yielding ambiguous results that redefined Martian exploration.

Mars 7

Launched on August 9, 1973, with the objective of performing a soft landing. Due to the degradation of onboard computer chips, the lander separated prematurely (or failed its correction maneuver) on March 9, 1974. The probe missed atmospheric entry and flew past the surface at a distance of 1,300 km, becoming trapped in a useless heliocentric orbit.

Mars 6

Launched on August 5, 1973, the Mars 6 mission consisted of a flyby bus and a lander. On March 12, 1974, the lander separated and entered the atmosphere, transmitting in-situ data for the first time for 224 seconds. However, contact was abruptly lost at the moment of retrorocket activation, resulting in a high-speed impact, likely due to the degradation of electronic components.