A Very Sad End for Russia's Mars '96

Above: Proton rocket bearing Russia's Mars '96 being tilted into vertical position on November 12, 1996, at the Baikanour Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Mars '96 launched November 16th. Unfortunately, the fourth stage of the Proton booster apparently failed.

The Mars 96 spacecraft re-entered Earth's atmosphere on November 17th and crashed into the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Chile around 6:30 p.m. Arizona (MST) time.

The Mars Global Surveyor TES Team and Arizona Mars K-12 Education Program extend condolences to our Mars '96 colleagues.