On Aug. 27, 1962, NASA launched Mariner 2, the world's first successful interplanetary spacecraft.
Mariner 2 flew by Venus after a 3½-month voyage through space. The mission launched just one month after the Mariner 1 mission failed during launch. After departing from Cape Canaveral, Mariner 2 almost met the same fate when an electrical problem with the Atlas-Agena rocket caused it to start rolling, which made it unable to respond to any guidance commands from mission control. By some miracle, the problem fixed itself, and Mariner 2 was on its way to Venus!
Mariner 2 flew by Venus after a 3½-month voyage through space. The mission launched just one month after the Mariner 1 mission failed during launch. After departing from Cape Canaveral, Mariner 2 almost met the same fate when an electrical problem with the Atlas-Agena rocket caused it to start rolling, which made it unable to respond to any guidance commands from mission control. By some miracle, the problem fixed itself, and Mariner 2 was on its way to Venus!
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TechTranscript
00:00 On this day in space.
00:03 In 1962, NASA launched Mariner 2, the world's first successful interplanetary spacecraft.
00:09 Mariner 2 flew by Venus after a three and a half month voyage through space.
00:13 The mission launched just one month after the Mariner 1 mission failed during launch.
00:17 After departing from Cape Canaveral, Mariner 2 almost met the same fate
00:20 when an electrical malfunction with the Atlas-Agena rocket caused it to start rolling,
00:24 which made it unable to respond to any guidance commands from mission control.
00:28 By some miracle, the problem fixed itself, and Mariner 2 was on its way to Venus.
00:32 And that's what happened on this day in space.
00:35 [ music ]