Editing Soviet space program (section)

== Martian missions ==
[[File:Mars3 iki.jpg|thumb|The Mars 3 spacecraft]]
[[File:1972. Марс-3.jpg|thumb|A Soviet stamp from 1972 showing Mars 3]]
The first Soviet mission to [[Exploration of Mars|explore Mars]], [[Mars 1]], was launched in 1962. Although it was intended to fly by the planet and transmit scientific data, the spacecraft lost contact before reaching Mars, marking a setback for the program. In 1971, the Soviet Union launched [[Mars 2]] and [[Mars 3]]. Mars 2 became the first spacecraft to reach the surface of mars, however this was a [[hard landing]] and was destroyed on impact.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Harland |first=David M. |title=The Soviet Space Program: The History of the U.S.S.R.'s Space Achievements |publisher=Springer |year=1999}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Mars 2 |url=https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraft/display.action?id=1971-045A |website=nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov}}</ref> However, Mars 3 achieved a historic milestone by becoming the first successful soft landing on Mars. Mars 3 used parachutes and rockets as part of its landing system, however contacted the surface at a somewhat high speed of 20 metres per second. Unfortunately, its lander transmitted data for only up to 20 seconds before it went silent.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mars 3 |url=https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraft/display.action?id=1971-049F |website=nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov}}</ref>

Following the initial successes and setbacks, the [[Mars 4]], [[Mars 5]], [[Mars 6]], and [[Mars 7]] missions were launched between 1969 and 1973. Mars 4 and Mars 5 performed successful flybys, performing analysis which detected the presence of a weak Ozone layer and magnetic field corroborating analysis done by the American [[Mariner 4]] and [[Mariner 9]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mars 5 |url=https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraft/display.action?id=1973-049A |website=nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov}}</ref> Mars 6 and Mars 7 failed to successfully land.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mars 4 |url=https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraft/display.action?id=1973-047A |website=nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov}}</ref>