Apr 16 1974
From The Space Library
"I am sure life will move out from the Earth, probably first to the Moon and then to Mars," Dr. John E. Naugle, NASA Deputy Associate Administrator, said in a speech reviewing NASA's planetary program before the National Space Club. Just what form of life would be transplanted, whether man or some simple organism, would be the subject of debate. Four planets-Jupiter, Venus, Mars, and Mercury-had already been visited. The next major event would be the Viking landings on Mars in 1976. Historically, two significant events in 1965 had determined the direction of the planetary program. The first was a study at Woods Hole, Mass., which had recommended that the space program, following Apollo, should search for life on the planets and give first priority to the study of Mars-while also maintaining a wide-ranging program of general planetary exploration-because Mars most closely resembled the earth and was the most likely to support life. The second event, the 14 July 1965 flight of Mariner 4 past Mars, supported the recommendations when it found evidence of water in the Martian atmosphere.
"In retrospect, I think the decision . . . has been sound." But a major decision that faced NASA this summer, one year before the launch of Viking, was whether there should be follow-on Viking missions. "Should Mars continue to have first priority in planetary exploration? . . Clearly, if we find evidence of life on Mars, . . . Mars will have first priority." (Text)
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