It was on July 19, 2020, that the United Arab Emirates launched its first Mars probe named Hope from Japan. According to the latest updates, the spacecraft is one-fifth of its way, and now, it has spotted Mars for the first time. To celebrate this milestone achievement, the space probe has also sent some photos of the Red Planet from the darkness of the space. The image sent back by Hope shows Mars as a tiny dot, a portrait very similar to the iconic ‘pale blue dot’ image taken by the Voyager 1 space probe.

“The Hope probe is officially 100 million km (60 million miles) into its journey to the Red Planet. Mars, as demonstrated in the image captured by the probe’s star tracker, is ahead of us, leaving Saturn and Jupiter behind. The Hope probe is expected to arrive at Mars in February 2021,” said His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE.

The Hope probe is considered a very challenging space mission, and during its course to the Red Planet, it should perform about six trajectory correction maneuvers. Earlier this month, the first trajectory correction maneuver was carried out successfully by the probe.

“We have accomplished our first trajectory correction maneuver, which was the first test of Mars Hope’s propulsion and trajectory control systems, as well as the first time the spacecraft’s six Delta-V thrusters have been activate,” said Omran Sharaf, project director of the Hope Mission.

If everything goes well, the Hope probe will study the climate of Mars, and the data obtained by the mission will help humans to know more about the weather pattern that prevails in the Red Planet.

In the meantime, NASA’s Perseverance probe is also en route to Mars. The ultimate aim of this mission is to detect signs of ancient alien life on the Red Planet.

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The nation held its breath on July 19 along with the entire region, as the Probe took off from Land of Rising Sun, aboard a Mitsubishi H-IIA rocket in the first mission to the red planet by any West Asian, Arab or Muslim majority country.
Further details about the mission will be announced in a press conference that will take place in Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre Monday at 13:00 on July 20

The Hope Probe blasted off from Japan’s Tanegashima Space Centre at 01:58 Monday morning, the Probe then was successfully released from the rocket at 02:55, and its solar panels were turned on to ensure at 03:00, then the panels were set to face the sun properly.

The UAE Space Agency and Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre have announced that the first transmission was received at 03:11am. The team of the Ground Control Station has analyzed the data to ensure that the solar panels are facing the sun properly.
The Ground Control Team is monitoring the functions of the Probe to ensure that all systems are working properly.

It will take seven months to travel the 493 million km, it is expected to reach its Mar’s orbit in February 2021 marking the 50th anniversary of the UAE. The launch of the probe was delayed two time due to unstable weather conditions, the July 20th was chosen as the third launch date.

The Hope Probe team will communicate and share findings with the global Mars science community on key questions that no other mission has addressed before.

Once it enters Mars’ orbit in the first quarter of 2021, the Hope probe will mark the UAE’s 50th anniversary. The probe will travel 493 million kilometers into space in a journey that will take seven months, and will orbit the Red Planet for one full Martian year of 687 days to provide the first truly global picture of the Martian atmosphere. The Hope probe will be the first to study the Martian climate throughout daily and seasonal cycles. It will observe the weather phenomena in Mars such as the massive famous dust storms that have been known to engulf the Red Planet, as compared to the short and localized dust storms on earth.

The Mars Hope probe will examine the interaction between the upper and lower layers of the Martian atmosphere and causes of the Red Planet’s surface corrosion, as well as study why Mars is losing its upper atmosphere.

Exploring connections between today’s Martian weather and the ancient climate of the Red Planet will give deeper insights into the past and future of Earth and the potential of life on Mars and other distant planets.

The probe will gather and send back new Mars data to the Science Data Center in the UAE via different ground stations spread around the world. The data will be catalogued and analyzed by the Emirates Mars Mission science team, and shared for free with the international Mars science community as a service to human knowledge.

The insights and data gained from understanding the Martian climate will add new dimensions to human knowledge about how atmospheres work, which will help scientists and researchers evaluate distant worlds for conditions that might support life. Understanding the geographical and climate changes of Mars and the other planets will help us gain deeper insights to find solutions for key challenges facing mankind on earth.

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The cost of the Hope Mars Mission is among the lowest in the world at US$ 200 million compared with similar programmes, said UAE Minister of Cabinet Affairs Mohammad bin Abdullah Al Gergawi.
At a media briefing in Dubai on June 7, Al Gergawi elaborated the achievements of the Emirates Mars Mission team. This includes development of 200 new designs, manufacturing of 66 pieces of the probe components in the UAE, publishing 51 research papers on the project, and benefitting over 60,000 participants through EMM’s scientific and academic programmes.
“Today, the mission reached another milestone, when the spacecraft was positioned on to the rocket that will send it into space,” he said. “Commitment to deadlines is an approach that the UAE is following in all its plans and projects.”
The Mission’s success, Al Gergawi said, is in line with the UAE’s success in containing the coronavirus.
The Hope Probe is set to lift off on July 15 at 00:51:27 UAE time from the Tanegashima Space Centre, Japan. The probe is anticipated to enter the Mars orbit in February 2021, coinciding with the UAE’s Golden Jubilee celebrations.

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