Four robotic explorers whose discoveries keep revealing the secrets of Mars.
No human has visited Mars yet, but the planet is already full of explorers.
Meet four of NASA's robotic pioneers: the Sojourner rover, the Viking landers, the InSight lander and the Ingenuity helicopter. Each one completed its mission, and each one changed what we know about the Red Planet.
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Sojourner was the first successful mobile robotic rover deployed on Mars by NASA.
Its mission was to: - Explore the Martian surface. - Study rocks and soil. - Test robotic exploration technologies. - Collect scientific information about Mars.
Viking 1 and Viking 2 were two NASA missions designed to explore Mars using orbiters and stationary landers.
Their objectives were to: - Photograph the Martian surface. - Analyze Martian soil. - Study the atmosphere and weather. - Search for possible signs of life.
InSight was a stationary NASA lander designed to study the interior structure of Mars.
Its main objectives were to: - Investigate the planet's internal structure. - Detect marsquakes. - Study heat movement beneath the surface. - Understand how rocky planets are formed.
Ingenuity was a small robotic helicopter developed by NASA to demonstrate that powered flight was possible on another planet.
Its objectives were to: - Test flight technology in the thin Martian atmosphere. - Demonstrate autonomous aerial navigation. - Capture images of Mars from above. - Explore new possibilities for future aerial exploration.
