Mariner program

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Mariner program Series of US space probes to the planets. Mariner 2 flew past Venus in 1962. Mariner 4 flew past Mars in July 1965, photographing craters on its surface. Mariner 5 passed Venus in October 1967, making measurements of the planet's atmosphere. Mariners 6 and 7 obtained further photographs of Mars in 1969. Mariner 9 went into orbit around Mars in November 1971. It made a year-long photographic reconnaissance of the planet's surface and obtained close views of the two moons, Phobos and Deimos. Mariner 10, the last of the series, was the first two-planet mission. It passed Venus in February 1974 and then encountered Mercury three times: in March 1974, September 1974, and March 1975.

http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/mariner.html; http://jpl.nasa.gov

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