1962    Mariner program: ''Mariner 1'' spacecraft flies erratically several minutes after launch and has to be destroyed.

1964    Mariner program: NASA launches the Mariner 4 probe toward Mars.

1967    Mariner program: ''Mariner 5'' is launched toward Venus.

1969    Mariner program: ''Mariner 7'' makes its closest fly-by of Mars (3,524 kilometers).

1971    Mariner program: Mariner 9 is launched to map 70% of the surface, and to study temporal changes in the atmosphere and surface, of Mars.

1973    Mariner program: NASA launches the ''Mariner 10'' toward Mercury. On March 29, 1974, it becomes the first space probe to reach that planet.