Mars-2 and Mars-3
After years of unsuccessful attempts by the Soviet Union , the Mars-2 orbiter , which was finally launched in 1971 , successfully reached Mars , but the landing system malfunctioned and the vehicle crashed to the surface . The Mars-3 rover , on the other hand , was able to maintain its mission on the surface for only a few seconds , although it successfully landed on the surface . They obtained important data on the Martian atmosphere , surface temperature and pressure and sent 60 photos to Earth .