First ever satellite to land on the planet Mars was a Russian probe called Mars 2.
Albeit it did not land but crashed. The first lander on Mars, soft landed on 2 December 1971. First ever satellite to land on the planet Mars was a Russian probe called Mars 2. NASA.gov brings you the latest images, videos and news from America's space agency. This started the "space race" with the Soviet Union. Taken by the Viking 1 lander shortly after it touched down on Mars, this image is the first photograph ever taken from the surface of Mars. The Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM), also called Mangalyaan ("Mars-craft", from Sanskrit: मंगल mangala, "Mars" and यान yāna, "craft, vehicle"), is a space probe orbiting Mars since 24 September 2014.
It was taken on July 20, 1976.
On January 31, 1958, Explorer 1 launched and became the first U.S. satellite, using its single instrument to send back data about the radiation environment high above Earth's surface.
Contact lost 14.5 seconds after transmission start. Albeit it did not land but crashed. It was launched on 5 November 2013 by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
Get the latest updates on NASA missions, watch NASA TV live, and learn about our quest to reveal the unknown and benefit all humankind. The first attempts to reach Mars happened near the dawn of space exploration. The first partial image (70 lines) was transmitted.