Viking 1, an unmanned U.S. planetary probe,was launched from
Cape Canaveral, Florida, on a mission to Mars on this day in
1975.

On June 19, 1976, the spacecraft entered into orbit around Mars
and devoted the next month to imaging the Martian surface with
the purpose of finding an appropriate landing site for its lander.

The same day, the craft sent back the first close-up photographs
of the rust-colored Martian surface.

In September 1976, Viking 2—launched only three weeks after
Viking 1—entered into orbit around Mars, where it assisted Viking
1 in imaging the surface and also sent down a lander.

First "clear" image ever transmitted from the surface of Mars
– shows rocks near the Viking 1 Lander (July 20, 1976).

First color image taken by the Viking 1 lander (July 21, 1976).

James Arthur Lovell Jr. (March 25, 1928 – August 7, 2025)

The Apollo 13 commander was remembered for ‘legendary leadership in pioneering human space flight.’ Lovell died
on Thursday in Lake Forest, Illinois. 

Jim Lovell, center, with fellow Apollo 13 astronauts Fred
Haise and Jack Swigert.

"Houston, we have a problem." The iconic five-word phrase spoken by Tom Hanks, portraying astronaut Jim Lovell, in
the 1995 blockbuster Apollo 13 instantly became one of the
most memorable movie quotes of all time.

Ranger 7, an unmanned U.S. lunar probe, took the first close-up
images of the moon—4,308 in total—before it hit the lunar surface northwest of the Sea of Clouds. The images were 1,000 times as
clear as anything ever seen through earth-bound telescopes.

The U.S. Congress passed legislation establishing the
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA),
a civilian agency responsible for coordinating America’s
activities in space, on July 29, 1958. The agency opened
for business on Oct. 1, 1958.

President Eisenhower signed the National Aeronautics
and Space Act of 1958 into law on July 29, creating
NASA.

At 12:51 EDT on July 24, 1969, Apollo 11, the U.S. spacecraft that
had taken the first astronauts to the surface of the moon, safely
returned to Earth.

The American effort to send astronauts to the moon had its origins
in a famous appeal President John F. Kennedy made to a special
joint session of Congress on May 25, 1961.
        
        

The Apollo 11 astronauts are, from left, Neil Armstrong,
Michael Collins and Buzz Aldrin. They were quarantined
after splashdown to ensure they did not bring back any contamination from the moon. (Image credit: NASA)