In a daring high-speed swan dive from space, the first interplanetary probe of an Arab nation will attempt to enter orbit around Mars on Tuesday, followed closely in the coming days by ambitious missions to the red planet from space. United States and China.
The UAE’s 1.5-tonne SUV satellite, called al-Amal, or Hope, carries three sensors designed to make the first full weather observations on the planet’s surface. The $ 200 million mission is the keystone of a national effort to make science and technology the cornerstones of the small Gulf state’s economy in anticipation of a day when its revenue from oil prices are declining, UAE officials said.
“It’s about stimulating a lot of changes within the UAE economy that today more than ever should have a solid foundation in science,” said Sarah al-Amiri, Emirates ’state minister of advanced science and president. of the United Arab Emirates Space Agency. “The best way to do that, based on what we’ve been experiencing as a nation, has been a space exploration mission.”
At the most critical moment of its 306 million-mile journey from Earth, which began in July with the launch of a Japanese rocket that launched it into space, the Hope spacecraft was due to launch its propellers on board for 27 minutes to reach a stable orbit around Mars. The maneuver had to be controlled autonomously by on-board computers, because the 22-minute lag in radio transmissions between the vessel and the Earth made control on land impossible.
“This is the first time we have actually used the six thrusters and our entire control system,” mission chief Omran Sharaf said at the Emirates Mohammed bin Rashid space center in Dubai before the maneuver. “My feelings? Very very nervous. Very nervous. Worried. Scared. But I’m sure too. Happy. Proud.”