Venera Memes

The Soviets really said "Venus? Send our best scientists and equipment!" and then "Mars? Eh, just whack it with a hammer and see what happens." Fun space fact: The USSR's Venera missions were engineering marvels that survived Venus's hellish 900°F surface and crushing pressure for up to 127 minutes. Meanwhile, their Mars landers either crashed, lost contact immediately, or transmitted a partial image before dying. Soviet engineering priorities were clearer than their Mars photos!