The UAE’s Mission to Mars: ‘Hope’ to Break Through Glass Ceilings and Change Perceptions

For many people, the perception of the Middle East has often been one of war, crisis, political upheaval or, at best, somewhere that the West sources its oil & gas, or a holiday destination where you can shop in mega malls, or relax and sunbathe on the beaches of Dubai.

Whilst the latter part is certainly true, there has always been much more to region than most folks are aware of.  For example, did you know that the Middle East has given the world such gems as algebra, coffee, toothbrushes and one of the very first flying machines.

In 857 AD, the poet, astronomer, musician and engineer - Abbas Ibn Firnas made the world's first ever flying machine from silk and eagle feathers and, at the age of 70, jumped from a mountain while strapped into it. The machine floated into the sky and successfully stayed there for all of ten minutes.

Fast forward to 2020 and those stereotypical perceptions are now very misplaced and outdated. We are once again seeing an era of ingenuity, innovation and invention.

Scientists behind the project in the United Arab Emirates, are led by the Minister of State for Advanced Science, Sarah bint Yousif Al Amiri, who is also the Chair of the UAE Council of Scientists and Deputy Project Manager of the Emirates Mars Mission.

With her team of local Emirati engineers and scientists, they have worked in collaboration with the University of Colorado Boulder, University of California, Berkeley and Arizona State University. Together they have developed and built a satellite that they will send to Mars to study its weather and climate.

‘Hope’, as the 1.3-tonne probe is called, is launching on an H-2A rocket from Japan's remote Tanegashima spaceport. The 500-million-km journey should see the robotic craft arrive and orbit the ‘Red Planet’ in February 2021 - in time for the 50th anniversary of the UAE's formation.

Although humans have yet to step foot on Mars, the road to the red planet has never been busier.

Three countries -- the UAE, US and China -- are embarking on missions this summer, taking advantage of the biennial window when Earth and Mars are closest together.

The Emirates Mission to Mars, which aims to capture the most comprehensive picture yet of the Red Planet's atmosphere, will be the first of the trio to lift off. Unfortunately, the planned launch in mid-July has been delayed due to inclement weather conditions, but a window of opportunity remains until August 13 when the launch will make history as the Arab world's first interplanetary mission.

Over one third of the engineers working on the project are young female Emiratis; another impressive statistic in a region that is seeing more and more local women taking up positions of influence and power.

The UAE's space ambitions are part of a push for economic diversification in a country where oil still influences the economy. The sector accounted for 30 percent of the nation's GDP last year, but the government believes that initiatives like the Emirates Mars Mission will help by encouraging Emirati students to explore new subjects and career paths.

To emphasize these intentions, the autonomous spacecraft was named "Al Amal," which translates to "Hope" in English. The team believes this gesture will resonate beyond the UAE.

Simply making it this far was an impressive feat for the Gulf country. Most Mars missions take between 10 to 12 years to develop, but, scientists at the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre, (MBRSC) in Dubai, had just six years to carry out the project.

If all goes according to plan, “Hope” will spend an entire Martian year in orbit, or 687 days, analysing hydrogen and oxygen levels. The data will provide unprecedented information about Mars' atmosphere, which could help scientists better understand why the planet became uninhabitable.

But even though the probe is still seven months away from reaching Mars, it is clear that the project has already achieved success in the UAE.

We look forward to seeing the UAE break through this glass ceiling and quite literally skyrocket in to new and ground-breaking territory.