On July 4, 1997, Sojourner, the Mars Pathfinder robotic rover landed successfully on Mars. It explored the Red Plant for almost three months, but covered just over 100 m. The mission carried a series of scientific instruments to analyze the Martian atmosphere, climate, geology and the composition of its rocks and soil. This mission was the first of a series of missions to Mars that included rovers, and was the first successful lander. Lunar and Mars rovers - in this photo gallery by TASS