Mission to Mars – Disappointingly Successful
On this day in (engineering) history… Stephen Phillips November 28, 2023 Mariner 4 blasts off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, bound for Mars It is a fine winter morning at Launch Complex 12 on Cape Canaveral, Florida. Perhaps it is too cold for NASA’s mission controllers to sweat, while they nervously wait for the two-stage rocket sitting on the pad to lift off. Today is November 28 th , 1964, the vehicle is carrying Mariner 4, and at 9:22AM local time, the engines will ignite and (hopefully) send the space craft on its 228 day voyage to Mars. Up to now, there have been six failed attempts to send a probe to Mars, five by the USSR and Nasa’s failed Mariner 3. Mariner 4 now carries the hopes of everyone in the space agency. Mariner 3 made it to earth orbit only for a metal fairing…