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The Viking missions to Mars carried Martian exploration further by providing more detailed orbital reconnaissance of Mars along with two surface landers. The landers were equipped to analyze Martian surface material, obtained via mechanical scoops, for the presence of living organisms. But peculiarities of Martian surface chemistry left the results shrouded in doubt. Most scientists today agree that Viking found no evidence of life, but they also point out that this lack does not imply the absence of life on Mars, only the inadequacy of Viking’s onboard experiments. The Viking missions (two orbiters and two landers) flew in 1975.
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