On This Day in American History |
|
|
On Aug. 20, 1975, NASA launches the unmanned Viking I Mars probe. Eleven months later, the spaceship enters Martian orbit and begins searching for a good landing spot. On July 20, its lander successfully touched down on the red planet’s Chryse Planitia region. The probe sent back the first photos of the barren, rust-colored Martian surface. While the Soviet Union successfully landed a probe on Mars in 1971, it stopped working after 14.5 seconds. Viking I continued to operate until Nov. 11, 1982. |
|
|