Viking Mission on Mars
... Keeping this question at the forefront of their research, within the last century, NASA, along with other space organizations, have directed their attention towards Mars. NASA made history with the success of their Viking Mission to Mars (McDowell, 2000). It was the first mission to ever successfully land a spacecraft safety on the surface of another planet. It was also able to gain valuable information about the environment on Mars. This information subsequently sparked an intense debate about the existence of life on Mars that is still present today. The Viking mission involved two identical spacecraft, each having an orbiter and a lander (McDowell, 2000). Each pair entered Mars orbit and then the landers detached themselves and descended to opposing sides of Mars’ surface.