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Gorgeously illustrated with NASA photography, the large-format NASA Missions to Mars examines everything from the first tentative steps toward the fourth planet to the 2021 landing of rover Perseverance and beyond.
List of contents
CONTENTS
Preface
Piers Bizony
Introduction to Mars
A special essay by Andy Chaikin
1 RED PLANET VISIONS
Aliens, empires, and invasions
2 FIRST CONTACT
Discovering Mars as it really is
3 ROBOT EXPLORERS
Searching for life, past or present
4 HUMAN MARTIANS
Strategies to settle a new world
Fold-out map of Mars
Index
Acknowledgments & credits
About the author
Piers Bizony has written about science and aerospace for a variety of magazines. He is the author of The Space Shuttle: Celebrating Thirty Years of NASA's First Space Plane and One Giant Leap: Apollo 11 Remembered, as well as 2001: Filming the Future and Space: 50, marking the fiftieth anniversary of Sputnik.
Summary
Gorgeously illustrated with NASA photography, the large-format (12 × 12 inches) NASA Missions to Mars examines everything from the first tentative steps toward the fourth planet to the 2021 landing of rover Perseverance and beyond.
Space exploration has always been about pushing boundaries, but perhaps the achievement which has most piqued a sense of possibility has been the exploration of Mars. Beginning with Soviet and American flybys in the early 1960s that were part and parcel of the Space Race, acclaimed space historian Piers Bizony continues through complete coverage of the Viking 1 and 2 missions of 1975–1976. Bizony also traces NASA’s acclaimed rover program, describing the development, technologies, mission histories, and achievements of the rovers Sojourner, Opportunity, Spirit, and Curiosity—all on the 25th anniversary of their first landing.
This awe-inspiring book features:
- An engaging and complete history of Mars exploration
- A treasure trove of imagery from the NASA archives, including photos and cartography beamed home, artworks and concept drawings created during development phases, as well as photography created to document testing phases
- A glimpse of future plans for Mars exploration and habitation
- Coverage of orbiters sent to the red planet by not only NASA but by space agencies from Russia, India, Japan, Europe, China, and the UAE
- A two-sided 24-inch gatefold
Humankind’s fascination with Mars can be traced back to prewar science fiction. While the billions of dollars and ingenious innovations have allowed us incredible views from more than 51 million miles away, no less incredible are the insights these missions, hardware, and scientists have provided into our universe—and our own planet.
NASA Missions to Mars is your complete illustrated history of those efforts and
a necessary volume for the bookshelf of any space enthusiast!
