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The Complete Book of Spaceflight: From Apollo 1 to Zero Gravity

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266 Martin Marietta<br />

United States. Furious at the failures, he insisted that a<br />

third probe be hurriedly ready <strong>to</strong> dispatch before the<br />

1960 launch window closed. On Oc<strong>to</strong>ber 23, 1960, the<br />

rocket failed <strong>to</strong> lift <strong>of</strong>f on time, and the Soviet commander,<br />

Marshall Nedelin, demanded that the vehicle be<br />

examined at once. Ignoring normal safety precautions,<br />

the technicians approached the fully fueled rocket, which<br />

Chronology <strong>of</strong> Mars Probes<br />

Spacecraft Country Launch Date Notes<br />

Marsnik 1 Soviet Union Oct. 10, 1960 Attempted flyby, launch failure<br />

Marsnik 2 Soviet Union Oct. 14, 1960 Attempted flyby, launch failure<br />

Sputnik 22 Soviet Union Oct. 24, 1962 Attempted flyby<br />

Mars 1 Soviet Union Nov. 1, 1962 Flyby, contact lost<br />

Sputnik 24 Soviet Union Nov. 4, 1962 Attempted lander<br />

Mariner 3 United States Nov. 5, 1964 Attempted flyby<br />

Mariner 4 United States Nov. 28, 1964 Flyby<br />

Zond 2 Soviet Union Nov. 30, 1964 Flyby, contact lost<br />

Mariner 6 United States Feb. 24, 1969 Flyby<br />

Mariner 7 United States Mar. 27, 1969 Flyby<br />

Mars 1969A Soviet Union Mar. 27, 1969 Attempted orbiter, launch failure<br />

Mars 1969B Soviet Union Apr. 2, 1969 Attempted orbiter, launch failure<br />

Mariner 8 United States May 8, 1971 Attempted flyby, launch failure<br />

Cosmos 419 Soviet Union May 10, 1971 Attempted orbiter/lander<br />

Mars 2 Soviet Union May 19, 1971 Orbiter/attempted lander<br />

Mars 3 Soviet Union May 28, 1971 Orbiter/lander<br />

Mariner 9 United States May 30, 1971 Orbiter<br />

Mars 4 Soviet Union Jul. 21, 1973 Flyby, attempted orbiter<br />

Mars 5 Soviet Union Jul. 25, 1973 Orbiter<br />

Mars 6 Soviet Union Aug. 5, 1973 Lander, contact lost<br />

Mars 7 Soviet Union Aug. 9, 1973 Flyby, attempted lander<br />

Viking 1 United States Aug. 20, 1975 Orbiter and lander<br />

Viking 2 United States Sep. 9, 1975 Orbiter and lander<br />

Phobos 1 Soviet Union Jul. 7, 1988 Attempted orbit/Phobos landers<br />

Phobos 2 Soviet Union Jul. 12, 1988 Orbiter/attempted Phobos landers<br />

Mars Observer United States Sep. 25, 1992 Attempted orbiter, contact lost<br />

Mars Global Surveyor United States Nov. 7, 1996 Orbiter<br />

Mars 96 Russia Nov. 16, 1996 Attempted orbiter/landers<br />

Mars Pathfinder United States Dec. 4, 1996 Lander and rover<br />

Nozomi Japan Jul. 3, 1998 Orbiter<br />

Mars Climate Observer United States Dec. 11, 1998 Attempted orbiter<br />

Mars Polar Lander United States Jan. 3, 1999 Attempted lander and penetra<strong>to</strong>rs<br />

Mars Odyssey, 2001 United States Apr. 7, 2001 Orbiter<br />

suddenly exploded, killing Nedelin and almost the entire<br />

launch team. Although denied for years, the s<strong>to</strong>ry eventually<br />

leaked <strong>to</strong> the West and became known as “<strong>The</strong><br />

Nedelin Catastrophe.”<br />

Martin Marietta<br />

See Lockheed Martin.

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