Facts About Mars

These pictures served as the corner stone of the Martian exploration. They are pieces of history that reminds us of our glorious success in reaching and studying another planet, and maybe conquering it in the future.

Top view from Viking lander 1

The Martian rocky and sandy surface

A sand Martian surface

The very first color image taken by the viking 1 lander

Viking lander 2 discovers ice deposits on its landing site

The very first trench created by the viking lander where the first soil sample was taken.

Surface of Mars – From the eyes of Viking lander 2

View from the orbiter

A closer look from the top

A picture that created a lot of stir during the late 70′s and 80′s. It’s called the face of Mars. it’s a rock that amazingly looks like a face. Its like intentionally carved to look like a face, but of course, we all know now that nobody could have carved it. It’s a natural formation that coincidentally looked like a face.

A top view from the viking lander

A spectacular view of Mars taken by the viking. Notice how obvious the craters are and the elevation of the Southern hemisphere. Mars is a riddled planet.

A picture of the Viking lander taken from a NASA simulation lab.

The Martian Atmosphere

Viking 1 and 2 is the first ever Mars mission to have a lander successfully reach the surface of Mars. Viking 1 (Orbiter and Lander) launched on August 20, 1975 while Viking 2 launched September 9, 1975. They successfully arrived in Mars on June 19, 1976 (Viking 1) and August 7, 1976 (Viking 2).

The Viking lander 1 positioned itself on Chryse Planitia (the plains of Gold) while viking 2 landed on utopia Planitia. The landers were successful in collecting samples and experimenting on the Martian soil in search for even the most minute sign of life. It was on these experiments that scientists discovered how harsh the Martian soil is. They concluded that the solar ultraviolet radiation, the dryness of the soil and its oxidizing nature makes it impossible for any living organism to form in the soil.

The mission was planned to last for 90 days but both the landers and orbiters stayed operational for long periods of time. Viking 1 orbiter continued its mission for 4 years and 1,489 orbits and Viking 2 orbiter didn’t stop communicating until July 25, 1978. The Landers, which were powered by radioisotope thermoelectric generators continued their mission until November 11, 1982 (Viking Lander 1) and April 11, 1980 (Viking Lander 2).

THE MISSION

• Search for traces of life.

• Understand the composition of the Martian surface.

• Get as much image of Mars to further look for traces of life.

The Viking missions provided a great amount of information about Mars. Pictures of Valleys, Gullies, Craters, Dunes and the 2 Moons were all gathered by the Viking. The Viking was also able to map out the Martian surface enabling scientists to differentiate the southern and northern hemispheres of Mars.

EQUIPMENTS

• Infrared Thermal Mapper (IRTM) – Used to measure the temperature of the atmosphere and the Martian surface.

• Orbiter Imager – Used to collect images.

• Mars Atmospheric Water Detector (MAWD) – Used to measure solar infrared radiation reflected from the surface through the atmosphere and to the orbiter.

• Orbiter Radio Science – Used to study the Martian gravitational field, the structure of the solar corona and the plasma in interplanetary space.

MISSION HIGHLIGHTS

• When the Vikings 1 and 2 launched nobody had an idea what the Martian surface looked like, we had pictures but they are far from the surface so nobody really knew what to expect and if the landers can land safely. The whole nation jumped in joy when it was officially announced that we landed on Mars safely.

• The Vikings provided measurements of the Martian atmosphere and the surface.

• The Viking completed the very first Entry, Descent and Landing on Mars.

• The findings of Viking were used to guide future orbiter and lander missions.

The Viking was the pride of all human race. It began a new age of discovery, we were well on our way to discovering and understanding another planet. To date, Martian missions are still in full swing. Different landers and orbiters have been sent and a large amount of data has been collected. Water, which is a precursor of life, has been found and is evident all around the planet. Anytime now, we will be able to finish what the Viking started and fulfill its mission – Find life in Mars.

For decades we have been searching for traces of life on Mars. Why? Probably out of curiosity, scientists know that the universe is so large that it is quite impossible that we are the only ones living in it. Considering our choices and the vastness of the universe or even our solar system, Mars is the only planet that we can easily reach and observe.

Before we were able to take a single picture of Mars, many of us already believe that little green men lived in Mars. Many movies showed Martians as such, they were highly advanced in terms of technology and quite friendly in nature. But all these beliefs were wiped out when Mariner 4 took a picture of Mars and it showed dry sandy surfaces with lots of craters just like the moon.

Hopes were down but the government decided to give it one more shot by sending the Vikings to further study the planet. The Viking took 16,000 images of Mars and atmospheric studies that suggests water in Ancient Mars.

From then on, the quest for life on Mars became the quest for liquid water on Mars. Since there seemed to be life wherever there is water, scientists believe that if we can only find minute traces of water in Mars in will not be surprising if we find life. Now, life doesn’t have to be multi-cellular organisms, a single celled organism is enough to prove that life exists or existed on Mars and it would also be enough to prove that we are not alone in the universe.

Since then different missions have been successfully feeding us data about Mars. Currently, the Phoenix Mars Lander discovered water ice on Martian soil, these bits and pieces of information is getting us closer to our goal of finding liquid water on Mars and eventually life.

Here is great 5 part video that discusses our quest for life or water on Mars

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5