[Viking Lander]

The Viking program was a NASA Langley Research Center-managed project whose objective was to study the atmosphere and surface of Mars, obtain high-resolution imagery and to search for evidence of life. The program sent two space probes, each composed of two sections: an orbiter and a lander, each launched by Titan IIIE rockets with Centaur upper stages. The contract for the lander went to Martin Marietta of Denver, CO, who was also responsible for the launch system. Marietta labels are visible on the flight case included with the lot. The landing site for each mission was chosen by astronomer Carl Sagan. 

This spare of the Surface Sampler Acquisition Assembly, which would be fitted with sampler boom and a soil sampler head, was one of the key components of the Viking Lander. In practice, the sampler boom extends from the housing assembly pushing the sampler head to the Martian surface to take a scoop of soil. The soil is deposited into a receptacle on the Lander which routes the sample to three scientific experiments: biological, gas chromatograph/mass spectrometer and water analysis. The information collected during the two Viking missions provided data that helped to form most of the knowledge of Mars through the 21st century.

There was an issue with the corresponding part of the Viking I Lander sent to Mars. The boom latch pin in Viking I did not drop out of the scoop assembly as anticipated and caused the robotic arm to lock. Millions of miles away, NASA and contractor Martin Marietta engineers were able to troubleshoot the problem from the Lander’s transmitted images. They sent a set of commands to the spacecraft to extend the arm further, which freed the pin to drop to the Martian surface and allowed the mission to proceed with use of the important instrument. Now fifty years after the mission’s successful landing on Mars, the prototype sampler arm present here is a testament not only of exploration but human innovation and resolve in overcoming challenges millions of miles away. 

Viking Program components, especially recognizable examples such as this, are extremely rare on the market.