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The Amazing Explorations of U.S. Vikings on Mars
| Article
# : |
11666 |
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Section : |
NATURAL SCIENCE
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| Issue
Date : |
9 / 1986 |
6,656 Words |
| Author
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Bevan French
Bevan French holds a Ph.D in geology and is an advanced
programs scientist in NASA's Solar System Exploration
Division. In this position he participates in the planning of
future space science activities, including the upcoming Mars
Observer project explained in one of the side features
accompanying this article. |
One of the truly great achievements of science and technology of all time was the landing of two U.S. Viking spacecraft on Mars on July and September 1976 - just ten years ago - and the explorations they made there. The article below recounts these momentous events which will be inscribed forever in the annals of history. It summarizes some of the findings of the project, which have vastly increased scientific knowledge about this planetary neighbor and its similarities with and differences from Earth. After eleven months en route through space from Earth, the two Viking landlers set down on the surface of Mars and began behaving as if they were alive. Their camera eyes took stereo pictures of the changing Martian landscape through the seasons, of Martian sunsets, and of the traces of their own rocket exhaust in nearby Martian soil. A mechanical arm with a hand-like scoop reached out, dug a small trench, and picked up martian soil. The arm then poured the soil through an aperture into a sophisticated on-board laboratory for analysis. The whole craft examined Mar's atmosphere, recorded its weather, and tested whether any forms of life exist or ever existed there. The article below is adapted from a pamphlet published by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in October 1977 when scientists first were able to comprehensively evaluate the profuse Viking discoveries. The pamphlet text was prepared by NASA scientist Bevin M. French, who has here updated these earlier writings with two short pieces summarizing Viking activities after the pamphlet was published and tentative plans for future Mars explorations. The Viking experiences on Mars will undoubtedly become the foundation for other solar system explorations, including the possible dispatch of similar robots to other planets and eventual visits by men and women to Mars. The article below thus is not merely a reconstruction of memorable past accomplishments, but also a potential blueprint for space expeditions in times ahead.
The New Arrival
Exactly seven years after astronauts first landed on the moon, a new inhabitant arrived on Mars. On July 20, 1976 a top-shaped object dropped from its orbit hundreds of kilometers above Mars and streaked downward into the late afternoon martian sky. About forty kilometers above the surface of the planet, the thin air began to grip and slow the capsule. At an altitude of six kilometers, a huge parachute unfurled, a protective shell broke away, and the metallic object inside began to drop to the ground more slowly. At an altitude of 1.7 kilometers, three rocket engines fired downward, slowing the spacecraft even more. The parachute was cut loose, and the object settled gently to the ground. The rocket
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