Missions To The Planets

v1.2.3 / TOC (19 chapters) / 01 jan 09 / greg goebel / public domain

* Fifty years ago, before the beginning of the Space Age, the planets and smaller bodies of our solar system were mysterious, with little known in detail. Beginning in the 1960s, space probes began to journey to these other worlds, resulting in a revolution in knowledge that is still continuing. This document outlines the history of our explorations of the solar system and what we have learned.

[1.0] Introduction: The Earth

• [1.1] THE EARTH
  
• [1.2] THE HISTORY OF THE EARTH
  
• [1.3] THE EARTH IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM
  
• [1.4] EARTH STATISTICS
  

[2.0] Missions To The Moon (1)

• [2.1] A SURVEY OF THE MOON
  
• [2.2] THE MOON BEFORE THE SPACE AGE
  
• [2.3] PIONEER / LUNA 1:3
  
• [2.4] RANGER / LUNA 4
  
• [2.5] LUNA 5:14 / ZOND 3:6 / LUNAR ORBITER / SURVEYOR
  
• [2.6] APOLLO
  
• [2.7] FINAL SOVIET LUNAR MISSIONS
  

[3.0] Missions To The Moon (2)

• [3.1] CLEMENTINE / LUNAR PROSPECTOR / SMART-1
  
• [3.2] SELENE / CHANG'E 1 / CHANDRAYAAN 1 / FUTURE MOON MISSIONS
  
• [3.3] MOON STATISTICS / COMMENTS
  

[4.0] Missions To Mercury

• [4.1] MERCURY BEFORE THE SPACE AGE
  
• [4.2] THE DISCOVERY OF MERCURY'S DAY
  
• [4.3] MARINER 10 TO MERCURY
  
• [4.4] MESSENGER / BEPICOLOMBO
  
• [4.5] MERCURY STATISTICS
  

[5.0] Missions To Venus

• [5.1] VENUS BEFORE THE SPACE AGE
  
• [5.2] US MARINER 2 / MARINER 5
  
• [5.3] SOVIET VENUS PROBES 1961:1965
  
• [5.4] SOVIET VENUS PROBES 1967:1975
  
• [5.5] US MARINER 10 / PIONEER VENUS
  
• [5.6] SOVIET VENUS PROBES 1978:1984
  
• [5.7] US MAGELLAN (VENUS RADAR MAPPER)
  
• [5.8] VENUS IN THE SPACE AGE
  
• [5.9] VENUS STATISTICS
  

[6.0] Missions To Mars (1)

• [6.1] RED PLANET
  
• [6.2] FIRST OBSERVATIONS OF MARS
  
• [6.3] SAVAGE BARSOOM
  
• [6.4] MARS AT THE BEGINNING OF THE SPACE AGE
  
• [6.5] MARINERS TO MARS
  
• [6.6] SOVIET MARS PROBES
  
• [6.7] MANNED MARS MISSIONS ABANDONED / VIKINGS TO MARS
  

[7.0] Missions To Mars (2)

• [7.1] MARS IN THE 1980S
  
• [7.2] RETURN TO MARS: PHOBOS 1 & 2 / MARS OBSERVER / MESUR
  
• [7.3] MARS GLOBAL SURVEYOR / MARS PATHFINDER / MARS 96
  
• [7.4] THREE FAILURES: MARS CLIMATE ORBITER / MARS POLAR LANDER / NOZOMI
  
• [7.5] FOOTNOTES: MARS METEORITES / THE FACE ON MARS
  

[8.0] Missions To Mars (3)

• [8.1] 2001 NASA MARS ODYSSEY ORBITER
  
• [8.2] 2003 NASA MARS EXPLORATION ROVERS
  
• [8.3] 2003 ESA MARS EXPRESS ORBITER / BRITISH BEAGLE 2 LANDER
  
• [8.4] 2005 MRO / 2007 PHOENIX LANDER
  
• [8.5] FOLLOW-ON MARS MISSIONS / MARS SAMPLE RETURN
  

[9.0] Missions To Mars (4)

• [9.1] MARS IN THE 21ST CENTURY
  
• [9.2] FUTURE MANNED MARS MISSIONS?
  
• [9.3] TERRAFORMING MARS?
  
• [9.4] MARS STATISTICS
  

[10.0] Missions To The Asteroids

• [10.1] THE DISCOVERY OF THE ASTEROIDS
  
• [10.2] THE ASTEROID BELT
  
• [10.3] TROJAN ASTEROIDS / NEAR EARTH ASTEROIDS (NEAS)
  
• [10.4] PROPERTIES OF THE ASTEROIDS
  
• [10.5] EXPLORING THE ASTEROIDS: NEAR / HAYABUSA / DAWN
  

[11.0] Missions To Jupiter (1)

• [11.1] JUPITER BEFORE THE SPACE AGE
  
• [11.2] PIONEER 10 & 11
  
• [11.3] VOYAGER 1 & 2
  
• [11.4] THE TRIALS OF GALILEO
  
• [11.5] GALILEO AT JUPITER
  

[12.0] Missions To Jupiter (2)

• [12.1] JUPITER IN THE SPACE AGE
  
• [12.2] MAJOR MOONS / JUPITER'S RINGS / NEW MOONLETS / JUNO
  
• [12.3] JUPITER STATISTICS
  

[13.0] Missions To Saturn (1)

• [13.1] THE DISCOVERY OF SATURN
  
• [13.2] SATURN BEFORE THE SPACE AGE
  
• [13.3] THE PIONEER, VOYAGER, & CASSINI MISSIONS TO SATURN
  

[14.0] Missions To Saturn (2)

• [14.1] SATURN IN THE SPACE AGE
  
• [14.2] SATURN STATISTICS
  

[15.0] Missions To Uranus

• [15.1] THE DISCOVERY OF URANUS
  
• [15.2] URANUS BEFORE THE SPACE AGE
  
• [15.3] VOYAGER 2 AT URANUS
  
• [15.4] THE URANIAN MOONS
  
• [15.5] THE URANIAN RING SYSTEM
  
• [15.6] URANUS STATISTICS & COMMENTS
  

[16.0] Missions To Neptune

• [16.1] THE DISCOVERY OF NEPTUNE
  
• [16.2] NEPTUNE BEFORE THE SPACE AGE
  
• [16.3] VOYAGER 2 AT NEPTUNE
  
• [16.4] CLOSEUP ON TRITON
  
• [16.5] NEW MOONS OF NEPTUNE
  
• [16.6] RINGS OF NEPTUNE
  
• [16.7] NEPTUNE STATISTICS
  

[17.0] Missions To The Comets

• [17.1] THE DISCOVERY OF COMETS
  
• [17.2] COMETS DESCRIBED
  
• [17.3] THE DISCOVERY OF THE OORT CLOUD
  
• [17.4] THE DISCOVERY OF THE KUIPER BELT
  
• [17.5] THE 1986 HALLEY MISSIONS
  
• [17.6] COMET EXPLORATION IN THE 21ST CENTURY
  

[18.0] Missions To The Kuiper Belt

• [18.1] DISTANT PLUTO
  
• [18.2] THE DISCOVERY OF PLUTO
  
• [18.3] THE REDISCOVERY OF PLUTO
  
• [18.4] MISSION TO PLUTO
  
• [18.5] TENTH PLANET?
  
• [18.6] WORLDS OF THE KUIPER BELT
  

[19.0] Planets Beyond

• [19.1] THE PLANET HUNTERS
  
• [19.2] THE NEW PLANETS
  
• [19.4] EXTRASOLAR PLANETS & PLANETARY EVOLUTION
  
• [19.4] FUTURE EXTRASOLAR PLANET HUNTING EFFORTS
  
• [19.5] COMMENTS, SOURCES, & REVISION HISTORY