Mariner 9

Mariner 9
Mission typeMars orbiter
OperatorNASA / JPL
COSPAR ID1971-051A Edit this at Wikidata
SATCAT no.5261
Mission duration1 year, 4 months and 27 days[1]
Spacecraft properties
ManufacturerJet Propulsion Laboratory
Launch mass997.9 kilograms (2,200 lb) [1]
Dry mass558.8 kilograms (1,232 lb)
Power500 watts
Start of mission
Launch dateMay 30, 1971, 22:23:04 (1971-05-30UTC22:23:04Z) UTC
RocketAtlas SLV-3C Centaur-D
Launch siteCape Canaveral
End of mission
DisposalDecommissioned
DeactivatedOctober 27, 1972 (1972-10-28)
Decay datec. October 2022
Orbital parameters
Reference systemAreocentric
Eccentricity0.6014
Periareion altitude1,650 km (1,030 mi)
Apoareion altitude16,860 km (10,480 mi)
Inclination64.4 degrees
Period11.9 hours / 719.47 minutes
Epoch29 December 1971, 19:00:00 UTC[2]
Mars orbiter
Orbital insertionNovember 14, 1971, 00:42:00 UTC
 

Mariner 9 (Mariner Mars '71 / Mariner-I) was a robotic spacecraft that contributed greatly to the exploration of Mars and was part of the NASA Mariner program. Mariner 9 was launched toward Mars on May 30, 1971,[2][3] from LC-36B at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, and reached the planet on November 14 of the same year,[2][3] becoming the first spacecraft to orbit another planet[2] – only narrowly beating the Soviet probes Mars 2 (launched May 19) and Mars 3 (launched May 28), which both arrived at Mars only weeks later.

After the occurrence of dust storms on the planet for several months following its arrival, the orbiter managed to send back clear pictures of the surface. Mariner 9 successfully returned 7,329 images over the course of its mission, which concluded in October 1972.[4]

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