The planet Mars has not been easy to reach via spacecraft, as this list of missions reveals.
Mars, at last! This is the first image sent by NASA's Viking 1 lander, taken just minutes after the spacecraft touched down on July 20, 1976. One of the lander's three footpads is at right.
NASA / JPL
In the table below, compiled by the editors of Sky & Telescope, green denotes a spacecraft that met its mission objectives, yellow means partial success, and red signifies that something went seriously wrong along the way — often within hours or even minutes of reaching the final destination.
| A History of Martian Exploration | ||||
| Mission | Origin | Launched | Intent | Result |
| Marsnik 1 (Korabl 4) | USSR | 1960 | flyby | launch failure |
| Marsnik 2 (Korabl 5) | USSR | 1960 | flyby | launch failure |
| Sputnik 22 (Korabl 11) | USSR | 1962 | flyby | Earth orbit only |
| Mars 1 | USSR | 1962 | flyby | radio failed |
| Sputnik 24 (Korabl 13) | USSR | 1962 | flyby | Earth orbit only |
| Mariner 3 | US | 1964 | flyby | launch shroud failed to jettison |
| Mariner 4 | US | 1964 | flyby | first flyby |
| Zond 2 | USSR | 1964 | flyby | radio failed |
| Mariner 6 | US | 1969 | flyby | returned 75 photos |
| Mariner 7 | US | 1969 | flyby | returned 126 photos |
| Mars 1969A | USSR | 1973 | orbiter | launch failure |
| Mars 1969B | USSR | 1973 | orbiter | launch failure |
| Mariner 8 | US | 1971 | orbiter | launch failure |
| Kosmos 419 | USSR | 1971 | lander | Earth orbit only |
| Mars 2 | USSR | 1971 | orbiter & lander | lander lost on entry |
| Mars 3 | USSR | 1971 | orbiter & lander | contact lost seconds after landing |
| Mariner 9 | US | 1971 | orbiter | returned 7,329 photos |
| Mars 4 | USSR | 1973 | orbiter | engine failure; flew past Mars |
| Mars 5 | USSR | 1973 | orbiter | only operational a few days |
| Mars 6 | USSR | 1973 | flyby & lander | lander failed on entry |
| Mars 7 | USSR | 1973 | flyby & lander | lander missed the planet |
| Viking 1 | US | 1975 | orbiter & lander | orbiter lasted 4 yr, lander 6+ yr |
| Viking 2 | US | 1975 | orbiter & lander | orbiter lasted 2 yr, lander 3½ yr |
| Phobos 1 | USSR | 1988 | orbiter & lander | lost en route to Mars |
| Phobos 2 | USSR | 1988 | orbiter & lander | orbit achieved; lost near Phobos |
| Mars Observer | US | 1992 | orbiter | lost before Mars arrival |
| Mars Global Surveyor | US | 1996 | orbiter | operated for 7½ years |
| Mars 96 | Russia | 1996 | orbiter & penetrators | launch failure |
| Mars Pathfinder | US | 1996 | lander & rover | operated for 2½ months |
| Nozomi | Japan | 1998 | orbiter | electronics failure; Mars flyby |
| Mars Climate Orbiter | US | 1998 | orbiter | lost on arrival |
| Mars Polar Lander | US | 1999 | lander | lost during landing |
| Deep Space 2 | US | 1999 | penetrators | lost during landing |
| Mars Odyssey | US | 2001 | orbiter | ongoing |
| Mars Express | ESA | 2003 | orbiter | ongoing |
| Beagle 2 | ESA | 2003 | lander | lost during landing |
| Spirit | US | 2003 | rover | operated for 7½ yr |
| Opportunity | US | 2003 | rover | ongoing |
| Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter | US | 2005 | orbiter | ongoing |
| Phoenix | US | 2007 | lander | operated for 5½ months |
| Fobos-Grunt | Russia | 2011 | lander (Phobos) | launch failure |
| Yinghuo 1 | China | 2011 | orbiter | launch failure |
| Curiosity (MSL) | US | 2011 | lander | ongoing |