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Mission record

Mariner 6

Also known as Mariner F, PL-691E, Mariner Mars 69A, Mariner6, Mariner Mars 1969

NASA-Office of Space Science Applications · Launched

Explore trajectory

Completed · Success

Mariner 6 and 7 comprised a dual-spacecraft mission to Mars, the sixth and seventh missions in the Mariner series of spacecraft used for planetary exploration in the flyby mode; Mariner 6 was the first of the two to launch. The primary objectives were to study the surface and atmosphere of Mars during close flybys to establish the basis for future investigations, particularly those relevant to the search for extraterrestrial life, and to demonstrate and develop technologies required for future Mars missions. Mariner 6 also had the objective of providing experience and data which would be useful in programming the Mariner 7 encounter 5 days later. Closest approach occurred at 05:19:07 UT on 31 July 1969 at a distance of 3431 km from the martian surface, and the spacecraft returned 49 far encounter and 26 near encounter images of Mars.

Destinations
Launch vehicle
Atlas-Centaur
Launch site
Cape Canaveral, United States
Countries
United States
Mission types
Flyby

Chronology

Mission timeline

  1. Launch

    Launched from Launch Complex 36B at Cape Kennedy

    NSSDCA's launch/orbital information page gives the launch date and time as 1969-02-25T01:29:02Z. Mariner 6 was launched from Launch Complex 36B at Cape Kennedy on 25 February at 01:29:02 UT (24 February, 8:29:02 p.m. EST). The main booster was jettisoned 4 min. 38 sec. after launch followed by a 7.5 minute Centaur burn to inject the spacecraft into Mars direct-ascent trajectory. After Mariner 6 separated from the Centaur the solar panels were deployed.

    Earth

  2. Milestone

    Midcourse correction

    A midcourse correction involving a 5.35 second burn of the hydrazine rocket occurred on 1 March 1969. A few days later the explosive valves were deployed to unlatch the scan platform. Some bright particles released during the explosion distracted the Canopus sensor, and attitude lock was lost temporarily. It was decided to place the spacecraft on inertial guidance for the Mars flyby to prevent a similar occurrence.

  3. Milestone

    Far-encounter imaging began 50 hours out

    On 29 July, 50 hours before closest approach, the scan platform was pointed to Mars and the scientific instruments turned on. Imaging of Mars began 2 hours later. For the next 41 hours, 49 approach images (plus a 50th fractional image) of Mars were taken through the narrow-angle camera.

    Mars

  4. Flyby

    Flyby of Mars at 3431 km

    At 05:03 UT on 31 July the near-encounter phase began, including collection of 26 close-up images. Due to a cooling system failure, channel 1 of the IR spectrometer did not cool sufficiently to allow measurements from 6 to 14 micrometers so no infrared data were obtained over this range. Closest approach occurred at 05:19:07 UT at a distance of 3431 km from the martian surface. Eleven minutes later Mariner 6 passed behind Mars and reappeared after 25 minutes. X-band occultation data were taken during the entrance and exit phases. NSSDCA's launch/orbital information page records the same encounter, giving a closest approach time of 1969-07-31 05:19:07 and a periapsis of 3431.00 km.

    Mars

Mission architecture

Vehicles

  • Mariner 6 · Spacecraft

    Destinations: Mars

Trajectory record

Trajectory dataset not yet available

No verified trajectory dataset is committed for this mission, so Mission Atlas renders no path.

Provenance

Sources

Each source is listed once and labeled with the mission, event, trajectory, or destination/body context it supports.

Data verified through September 2, 2026