What was the landing site of NASA's Viking 1 lander?

NASA’s Viking 1 lander touched down in Chryse Planitia on Mars in 1976.

Chryse Planitia, meaning “Golden Plain,” is a broad, low-lying plain in Mars’s northern equatorial region. Viking 1 landed in its western section on July 20, 1976, becoming the first U.S. spacecraft to land successfully on Mars and return images and scientific data from the surface.

The region was chosen partly because orbital imagery showed channels that appeared to have been carved by ancient flowing water. However, Viking 1’s immediate surroundings looked relatively dry and volcanic rather than like a preserved riverbed. The lander analyzed soil, atmosphere, weather, and possible biological activity for more than six Earth years.

A common mix-up is with Ares Vallis, where NASA’s Pathfinder landed in 1997. Ares Vallis is an outflow channel that empties toward Chryse Planitia, but it is not Viking 1’s landing site. Viking 2 landed much farther east, in Utopia Planitia.