Interplanetary Mission: Viking-2 Reconstruction Plan
Viking-2 (Viking program to Mars, NASA, 1975) Figure 1. Booklet The Viking Mars Mission created by Martin Marietta (1972). check this Launching Site The launching site for the Viking-2 was in Cape Canaveral, Florida, USA. With the latitude of 28.4740° N, 80.5772° W. Cape Canaveral was chosen for rocket launches to take advantage of the Earth's rotation. The linear velocity of the Earth's surface is greatest towards the equator that is available, the relatively southerly location of the cape allows rockets to take advantage of this by launching eastward, in the same direction as the Earth's rotation. It is also highly desirable to have the downrange area sparsely populated, in case of accidents, an ocean is ideal for this. Moreover, modern rockets now consist of many stages, when one stage is no longer needed (runs out of fuel), it can be discarded from the rocket into the ocean. The east coast of Florida has logistical advantages over potential competi...
