JFK and Mariner 2
Date: 1 Jan 1961

Dr. William H. Pickering, director of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, presents a Mariner 2 spacecraft model to President John F. Kennedy, (right). NASA Administrator James Webb is standing directly behind the Mariner model.

The Mariner 2 probe flew by Venus in 1962 after the failure of Mariner 1, sending back data on its atmosphere, mass and weather patterns. It stopped transmitting in 1963 after delivering a wealth of scientific information.

Credit: NASA