#TBT An intrepid explorer captures the Martian marble. The two-part Viking 1 mission, comprised of a lander and an orbiter, reached Mars orbit during June of 1976. A month later, the Viking 1 lander became the first spacecraft to successfully land on the planet. The Soviet Mars 3 lander claimed a technical first with a survivable landing in 1971, but contact was lost seconds after it touched down. While the Viking 1 lander was on the surface, the Viking 1 orbiter continued to map and make scientific observations of the planet for four years. This mosaic of Mars is a compilation of images captured by the orbiter. The formation and evolution of Mars is comparable to Earth, and studying the Red Planet could teach us more about our own planet’s history and, possibly, its future. Our work on the Moon under #Artemis missions will prepare us for that next giant leap of sending astronauts to Mars. Image description: Mars is centered in the image, a bronze-colored sphere with the bottom edg...