1 of 6 | After an interplanetary cruise of more than 300 days, Viking 1 reaches Mars orbit on June 19, 1976. The orbiter began photographing potential sites, and the Chryse Planitia region was chosen as the site where the first craft from Earth would land on another world. This image from June 29, 1976, shows a 30-mile wide swath of Chryse Planitia dominated by Belz Crater. Viking I touched down on the surface of Mars on July 20, 1976. File Photo courtesy of NASA | License Photo
July 20 (UPI) -- On this date in history:
In 1859, American baseball fans were charged an admission fee for the first time. About 1,500 spectators each paid 50 cents to see the Brooklyn All-Stars play the New York All-Stars.
In 1881, five years after U.S. Army Lt. Col. George A. Custer's defeat at the Battle of Little Bighorn, Sioux leader Sitting Bull surrendered to the Army, which promised amnesty for him and his followers.
In 1940, Billboard magazine published its first "Music Popularity Chart," topped by "I'll Never Smile Again" by the Tommy Dorsey orchestra with Frank Sinatra.
