Back in the 60's early 70's would it have been possible for Russia to launch a secret manned mission to Mars?

Question

The press might have been misinformed about the nature of the Mars mission and the pilot could have been ordered to keep radio silence and let modules guidance system take the craft on it's course, once media attention died down the cosmonaut could have taken control of the craft to make course corrections if needed, mind you this is just something to think about, i'm sure the size of the craft would have tipped off someone to it's true nature.

Answer 1

No it wasn't possible for Russia to launch a secret manned mission to Mars.

Answer 2

Neither the U.S. nor the Russian Moon-mission technology of the 1960s and 1970s could have been extended to a Mars mission.  It was essentially tailor-made to go to the Moon and ONLY to the Moon.

Answer 3

nope.... we'd struggle HARD to do it NOW.... let alone 30-40 years ago...  

Answer 4

The Russians could not even successfully land on the Moon during that time, so Mars would have been impossible.

Even if every nation in the world cooperated and we used the most advanced technology available today, we *still* couldn't successfully land a manned mission to Mars.  

At best, such a mission is probably still at least 50 years in the future and would have to be staged from the Moon.

Answer 5

Theoretically-speaking, yes, it would have been possible, but they would have been subject to the same problems that plague today's space missions: muscle and bone degeneration, in-flight mechanical problems, cabin fever, etc.

Also, bear in mind that during the 1960's, Russia's technical expertise was lacking, so they relied on old-fashioned technology that had proven itself already. For example, when Russian defector Viktor Belenko defected in 1976 by flying his Mig-25 to Japan, intelligence officers were stunned to discover that this "top-of-the-line" Russian plane used vacuum tubes instead of transistors, and a body of plate steel instead of aluminum.

Now, imagine a Russian space capsule on its way to Mars, and several of the tubes in the radio burn out, and the spares they have are not the same ones they need. What next?

There's also the political problems involved. From 1964 through the 1970's, Russia was under the command of Leonid Brezhnev, a tired die-hard communist whose term in office was marked by a rapid increase in cronyism and backroom deals; corruption, drunkenness, crime, and bureaucracy increased geometrically at this time. A manned Mars mission would probably not generate enough political support to secure funding.

Answer 6

I'd have to doubt it.  Their largest rocket, the N1, was never launched successfully, and that was part of their lunar program.  To produce, test, and construct a Mars-capable craft (even a series of crafts, joined in orbit), would've been detected not only by us, but other world powers.  Not to mention how hard it would be to *hide* such a project.  

Answer 7

no way. they didn't have the kind of technology they would need to launch a sneek mission back then.