Sat Jul 19 18:54:00 UTC 2025: Okay, here’s a summary of the text, followed by a rewritten news article suitable for “The Hindu”:

**Summary**

The article recounts the history of the Viking 1 and Viking 2 missions to Mars in the mid-1970s. These missions, consisting of both orbiters and landers, were designed to search for signs of life and analyze the Martian environment. Viking 1 launched in August 1975 and landed successfully in July 1976, sending back the first surface images of Mars. Viking 2 followed soon after, landing in September 1976. While no definitive evidence of life was found, the missions provided invaluable data on Martian temperature, soil composition, atmospheric conditions, and geological features. Viking 1 operated until a human error caused its demise in 1982, after setting a record for longevity on the Martian surface. It was renamed the Thomas Mutch Memorial Station after the imaging team lead died.

**News Article**

**The Hindu: Science & Technology**

**Viking 1: A Pioneer’s Legacy on Mars Remembered**

*Updated – July 23, 2025 09:22 am IST*

Forty-nine years after its historic landing, the legacy of the Viking 1 mission to Mars continues to inspire and inform our understanding of the red planet. Launched in 1975 and landing on July 20, 1976, the Viking 1 lander, part of NASA’s ambitious two-part Viking project, transmitted the first ever surface images of Mars, forever changing our perspective on our celestial neighbour.

The Viking missions, managed by NASA’s Langley Research Center, were the logical progression from previous flyby and orbital explorations, aimed at directly investigating the Martian environment for signs of life. The ambitious project, which included both orbiters and landers, faced budget constraints leading to smaller launch vehicles with scaled-down objectives.

After a 304-day journey, Viking 1 entered Martian orbit and carefully selected a landing site in the Chryse Planitia region. Its twin, Viking 2, successfully landed in Utopia Planitia on September 3.

While the seismometer failed, the twin missions provided a wealth of data. Viking 1 provided insights into the planet’s temperature, ranging from a frigid -86 degrees Celsius before dawn to -33 degrees Celsius in the afternoon, as well as volcanic soil and the prevalence of sulphur. The evidence also helped to determine the thin, dry, cold atmosphere of Mars is primarily carbon dioxide. Though pictures were high on the agenda, the lander did several other things as well.

Although no definitive evidence of life was discovered, the missions revealed ancient riverbeds and evidence of vast flooding, fuelling further exploration of Mars and the quest to find proof of extraterrestrial life.

Both the Viking 1 and 2 orbiters and landers exceeded their planned 90-day life times. A faulty command ended the operations of Viking 1 in 1982 after 2,307 Earth days or 2,245 Martian sols. Before it was decommissioned, the Viking 1 lander and the site where it remains were renamed the Thomas Mutch Memorial Station after the imaging team lead died.

The Viking 1 lander held the record for the longest operating spacecraft on the surface of Mars until the Opportunity rover finally broke the record. The data and images captured by the Viking missions remain invaluable, continuing to shape our understanding of Mars and paving the way for future explorations.

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