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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

    The original navigation report gives00:54:44GMT onMarch1, resolving the February28 versusMarch1 day disagreement in later histories. NSSDCA reports5.35seconds duration.

    Sun

  3. Milestone

    Canopus cone-angle update lost guide-star lock

    TM33-469 reports the anomaly around22:30GMT and a roughly2mm/s velocity change from attitude jets. This is a force discontinuity, not a smooth coast.

    Sun

  4. 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

  5. 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

Time-dependent navigation trajectory

Source states place the model at the selected time. Reconstructed flight, estimates, predictions and historical mission plans are identified by interval; gaps remain visible.

J2000 · Sun-centered display · positions interpolated between source states

Coverage: July 21, 1969 to August 9, 1969

Source records and sampling assumptions are retained with the repository data. Model attitude and surface appearance are illustrative.

  • Mariner 6: Physically reconstructed based on publicly available data · PDS PDART2017 fitted historical image geometry · source-covered Mars-flyby segment only · position accuracy expected at tens-of-kilometres scale · July 21, 1969 to August 9, 1969

Provenance

Sources

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

Data verified through September 14, 2026