• Mariner 10 - Time and Navigation
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    Launched in 1973, Mariner 10 became the first planetary explorer to use gravity assist when it traveled to Venus and Mercury. The spacecraft carried two telescopic cameras, a dish-shaped antenna for communications, and a sunshade because it traveled relatively close to the Sun. After a gravitational assist from Venus, Mariner 10 entered an orbit around the Sun that allowed it to pass by Mercury three times in 1974 and 1975.

    This artifact is currently on display at the National Air and Space Museum’s Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center. It will go on display in the Time and Navigation exhibition, scheduled to open at the National Air and Space Museum in 2013.

  • Mariner 10 - Time and Navigation

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WEB11982-2011

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