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12th April 2013 17:55
Link to Post #1
1971 Soviet Mars 3 Lander Re-Discovered in NASA Mars Photos
http://news.yahoo.com/mars-photos-ma...203839074.html
It would appear that the Soviets successfully landed a probe on Mars in 1971,
and 14.5 seconds later, transmission capability was disabled. 
"...The Soviet Union lander was the first spacecraft to survive a Mars landing long enough to transmit data back to Earth. However, after transmitting for just 14.5 seconds after landing on Dec. 2, 1971, Mars 3 went dark for unknown reasons..."
~Clara Moskowitz | SPACE.com – 21 hrs ago
I guess my question is, did something fry due to natural causes OR was this craft disabled by a foreign entity or some hitherto unknown technology in orbit of Mars?
I don't think anyone will ever know what really happened, what with the Cold War.
Come to think of it, I don't recall ever once hearing in school that the Russians managed to land anything on Mars... all we got to hear (over and over) was the "success" of our own astronauts in supposedly landing on the moon.
Maybe I am a little too ignorant about the risks of space travel, even during unmanned missions -- but to me the fact that it DID transmit (for only a few seconds) is one of the greatest mysteries we've encountered in the space race (that we know of).
Did something native to Mars, or orbiting Mars, disable the Soviet Mars 3 Lander?
Nasa photos below:
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12th April 2013 22:46
Link to Post #2