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Mission record

Mars 1960A

Also known as Korabl 4, Marsnik1, 1M No.1, Marsnik 1

U.S.S.R · Launched

Explore trajectory

Failed · Failure

An intended Soviet Mars flyby probe lost during launch. NSSDCA records that vibrations from the ignition of the second stage damaged the gyroscopic pitch control, causing the rocket to veer off-course; the emergency cutoff of engine procedure was instituted at 309.9 seconds after launch and the spacecraft reached an altitude of 120 km before reentry, eventually crashing in eastern Siberia. The same page records that the mission's identity is disputed: some Soviet scientists involved with the program claimed no knowledge of it, while V. G. Perminov, the leading designer of planetary spacecraft at the Lavochkin design bureau, states it was indeed intended for Mars and identical to Mars 1960B.

Destinations
Launch vehicle
Modified SS-6 (Sapwood) with 2nd Generation Upper Stage + Escape Stage
Launch site
Tyuratam (Baikonur Cosmodrome), U.S.S.R
Countries
Soviet Union
Mission types
Flyby

Chronology

Mission timeline

  1. Launch

    Launched from Tyuratam and lost during ascent

    NSSDCA's launch/orbital information page gives the launch date and time as 1960-10-10T14:27:49Z. Vibrations due to the ignition of the second stage damaged the gyroscopic pitch control, causing the rocket to veer off-course. The emergency cutoff of engine procedure was instituted at 309.9 seconds after launch. The spacecraft reached an altitude of 120 km before reentry, eventually crashing in eastern Siberia.

    Earth

Mission architecture

Vehicles

  • Mars 1960A · 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