List of missions to Mars explained

This is a list of spacecraft missions (including unsuccessful ones) to the planet Mars, such as orbiters, landers, and rovers.

Missions

Mission Type Legend:

Landing locations

In 1999, Mars Climate Orbiter accidentally entered Mars' atmosphere and either burnt up or left Mars' orbit on an unknown trajectory.

There are a number of derelict spacecraft orbiting Mars whose location is not known precisely. There is a proposal to use the Optical Navigation Camera on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter to search for small moons, dust rings and old orbiters.[45] As of 2016, there were believed to be eight derelict spacecraft in orbit around Mars (barring unforeseen event).[46] The Viking 1 orbiter was not expected to decay until at least 2019.[47] Mariner 9, which entered Mars orbit in 1971, was expected to remain in orbit until approximately 2022, when it was projected to enter the Martian atmosphere and either burn up, or crash into the planet's surface.[48]

See also: List of Mars orbiters.

Timeline

Missions to the moons of Mars

There have also have been proposed missions dedicated to explore the two moons of Mars, Phobos and Deimos. Many missions to Mars have also included dedicated observations of the moons, while this section is about missions focused solely on them. There have been three unsuccessful dedicated missions and many proposals. Because of the proximity of the Mars moons to Mars, any mission to them may also be considered a mission to Mars from some perspectives.

Past missionsThree missions to land on Phobos have been launched; the Soviet Phobos program in the late 1980s saw the launch of Phobos 1 and Phobos 2, while the Russian Fobos-Grunt sample return mission was launched in 2011. None of these missions were successful: Phobos 1 failed en route to Mars, Phobos 2 failed shortly before landing, and Fobos-Grunt never left low Earth orbit.
Launched mission Target Reference
Phobos
Phobos
Phobos
Planned missionsIn Japan, the Institute of Space and Astronautical Science (ISAS) is developing a sample return mission to Phobos.[49] [50] This mission is called Martian Moons eXploration (MMX)[51] and is a flagship Strategic Large Mission.[52] MMX will build on the expertise the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) would gain through the Hayabusa2 and SLIM missions.[53] As of December 2023, MMX is scheduled to launch in 2026.[54]
Planned mission Target Reference
Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) Phobos and Deimos
Past proposalsThere have been at least three proposals in the United States Discovery Program, including PADME, PANDORA, and MERLIN. The ESA has also considered a sample return mission, one of the latest known as Martian Moon Sample Return or MMSR, and it may use heritage from an asteroid sample return mission.[55]

Osiris-Rex 2 was a proposal to make OR a double mission, with the other one collecting samples from the two Mars moons.[56] In 2012, it was stated that this mission would be both the quickest and least expensive way to get samples from the Moons.

The 'Red Rocks Project,' a part of Lockheed Martin's "Stepping Stones to Mars" program, proposed to explore Mars robotically from Deimos.[57] [58]

Proposal Target Reference
Aladdin Phobos and Deimos [59]
Phobos and Deimos [60]
DSR Deimos [61]
Gulliver Deimos [62]
Hall Phobos and Deimos [63]
M-PADS Phobos and Deimos [64]
Merlin Phobos and Deimos [65]
MMSR (2011 ver.) Phobos or Deimos
OSIRIS-REx 2 Phobos or Deimos [66]
Pandora Phobos and Deimos [67]
PCROSS Phobos [68]
Phobos [69]
PRIME Phobos [70]
Phobos [71]
Phobos [72] [73]
Phobos and Deimos [74] [75]

Statistics

Mission milestone by country

Legend

† First to achieve
Mars missions!Country/Agency!Flyby!Orbit!Impact!Lander!Rover!Powered flight!Sample return!Crewed Landing
United StatesMariner 4, 1965Mariner 9, 1971Mars Polar Lander, 1999Viking 1, 1976Sojourner, 1997Ingenuity, 2021
ChinaTianwen-1, 2021Tianwen-1, 2021Tianwen-1, 2021Zhurong, 2021
Soviet UnionMars 2, 1971Mars 2, 1971Mars 2 Lander, 1971 †Mars 3, 1971PrOP-M, 1971
ESAMars Express, 2003Mars Express, 2003Schiaparelli EDM, 2016Schiaparelli EDM, 2016
RussiaTGO, 2016TGO, 2016Mars 96, 1996Mars 96, 1996
IndiaMOM, 2014MOM, 2014
UAEHope, 2021Hope, 2021
United KingdomBeagle 2, 2003Beagle 2, 2003Beagle 2, 2003
JapanNozomi, 1998Nozomi, 1998
Phobos missions!Country/Agency!Impact!Lander!Rover!Sample return
Soviet UnionPhobos 1, 1988Phobos 1, 1988Phobos 1, 1988
RussiaFobos-Grunt, 2011Fobos-Grunt, 2011Fobos-Grunt, 2011

Missions by organization/company

CountrySuccessfulPartial failureFailureOperationalGravity assistTotal
United StatesNASA13-54123
Soviet UnionEnergia1610--17
RussiaRoscosmos-12--3
ESAESA-2--13
ChinaCNSA1-11-2
IndiaISRO1----1
UAESA1--1-1
JapanISAS--1--1
United KingdomNSC--1--1

Future missions

Under development

NameProposed
launch date
TypeStatusReference
EscaPADENET Spring 2025Two orbitersunder development [76]
Martian Moons eXploration2026Phobos sample return missionunder development
Tianwen-32028Mars sample return missionplanned[77]
TEREXMid 2020sOrbiterplanned[78]
Rosalind Franklin2028Roverunder development
Mars Lander Mission2031Orbiter, lander, rover, aircraftplanned[79]

Proposed missions

Unrealized concepts

1970s

1990s

2000s

2010s-2020s

See also

Notes and References

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