Usage Conditions May Apply Usage Conditions Apply There are restrictions for re-using this media. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page. IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and image viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. More - https://iiif.si.edu View Manifest View in Mirador Viewer Usage Conditions May Apply Usage Conditions Apply There are restrictions for re-using this media. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page. IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and image viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. More - https://iiif.si.edu View Manifest View in Mirador Viewer

Two Viking Landers reached Mars in the summer of 1976 carrying identical biology experiments designed to search for the presence of Martian organisms by looking for metabolic products. Known as the Viking Lander Biology Instrument (VLBI), the landers had three distinct instruments (pyrolytic release (PR), labeled release (LR), and gas exchange (GEX)) that incubated samples of the Martian surface under a number of different environmental conditions to determine if they might contain traces of biological matter. The VLBI provided no clear evidence for the presence of living microorganisms in soil near the landing sites.

The VLBI was manufactured by the TRW Systems Group under subcontract to the Martin Marietta Corp (now Lockheed Martin), the prime contractor for the Viking Lander. This object, serial number 103, was mounted on the Viking primary test article for several tests prior to the mission. The artifact was transferred to NASM by NASA in 1992.

 Display Status

This object is not on display at the National Air and Space Museum. It is either on loan or in storage.
Object Details
Country of Origin United States of America Type SPACECRAFT-Uncrewed-Instruments & Payloads Contractor Martin Marietta Corp.
 Manufacturer TRW Systems Group
 Dimensions Overall: 24 in. high x 14 in. wide x 14 in. long (60.96 x 35.56 x 35.56cm)
 Materials Aluminum, plastic, glass, conducting metals
 Inventory Number A19830019000 Credit Line Transferred from NASA, Langley Research Center Data Source National Air and Space Museum Restrictions & Rights Usage conditions apply
For more information, visit the Smithsonians Terms of Use.