Mariner 6 launched on February 25th, 1969 and was one of two space crafts to do a Mars fly by together. Each Mariner was launched into orbit on an Atlas/Centaur. They ended up flying by Mars only 5 days apart and only a few days after Apollo 11! What a time to be alive!
Tune in LIVE ever Wednesday at 9:00 Central (3:00 UTC) to join the action at http://twitch.tv/everydayastronaut
Make sure and check out the Orbital Mechanics Podcast each week to get the run down on the mission!