Mission End
The craft eventually failed, one by one, as follows:
| Craft | Arrival date | Shut-off date | Operational lifetime | Cause of failure |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Viking 2 orbiter | August 7, 1976 | July 25, 1978 | 1-year, 11 months, 18 days | Shut down after fuel leak in propulsion system. |
| Viking 2 lander | September 3, 1976 | April 11, 1980 | 3 years, 7 months, 8 days | Battery failure. |
| Viking 1 orbiter | June 19, 1976 | August 17, 1980 | 4 years, 1-month, 19 days | Shut down after depletion of altitude control fuel. |
| Viking 1 lander | July 20, 1976 | November 13, 1982 | 6 years, 3 months, 22 days | Human error during software update caused the lander's antenna to go down, terminating communication. |
The whole Viking program was finally shut down on May 21, 1983. To prevent an imminent impact with Mars the orbit of Viking 1 orbiter was raised. Impact and potential contamination on the planet's surface is possible from 2019 onwards.
Read more about this topic: Viking Program
Famous quotes containing the word mission:
“Every Age has its own peculiar faith.... Any attempt to translate into facts the mission of one Age with the machinery of another, can only end in an indefinite series of abortive efforts. Defeated by the utter want of proportion between the means and the end, such attempts might produce martyrs, but never lead to victory.”
—Giuseppe Mazzini (1805–1872)
“I am succeeding quite well in my work and the future looks well. What special mission is God preparing me for? Cutting off all earthly ties and isolating me as it were.”
—Ellen Henrietta Swallow Richards (1842–1911)