The UAE project to explore Mars is on the right path towards the orbit of the Red Planet

The Hope Probe successfully completes the first lane guidance operation

The Emirates Mars Exploration Project today, the first Arab project of its kind to explore Mars, announced the successful completion of the first guidance operations of the Hope Probe, which falls under a series of path-guiding maneuvers, and constitutes a major station and an important stage in the probe's journey to the Red Planet, which will last for seven months.

The director of the Emirates Mars Exploration Project, Eng. Omran Sharaf, stressed that the outstanding performance of the UAE project to explore Mars, with the unlimited support of the wise leadership, has put the Hope Probe on the right path towards achieving the goal of reaching the Red Planet, to carry out its scientific mission and enrich the global scientific community with new scientific information and data. Noting that every challenge the mission succeeds in overcoming throughout the journey of the probe is an unprecedented achievement for the project team and its supporters, the space sector and its national strategy, and an additional step towards achieving its ambitious goals.

This trajectory directing was the first operation of its kind for the six propulsion devices of the Probe of Hope, in this important operation, which now put the probe in its direct path towards Mars. Engineer Omran Sharaf, Director of the Emirates Mars Exploration Project, said: “The success of the first route guidance process for the Hope probe is an important milestone for us, as it is the first in which the propulsion system of the probe is operating in space, and because it determines the final path of the probe towards Mars.”

After the successful launch of the Hope Probe from the launch pad on the island of Tangashima in southern Japan on July 20, the team planned to implement seven guidance operations for the probe's trajectory in its 493 million km journey to Mars, but the launch efficiency and initial operations of the probe contributed to putting the probe in more trajectory. Close to the final track. In this context, Eng. Omran Sharaf also said: "The results of the launch of the Hope Probe have exceeded our expectations. It is now on its path in the direction required to reach the orbit of Mars. It requires us less than we had planned in advance of adjustments in its path."  

In compliance with international standards for planetary protection, space missions to Mars and other planets are initially launched away from the path that leads directly to the planet, with the aim of giving the opportunity to conduct tests that confirm the safety of the spacecraft's operations before changing its course towards its final destination, in order to ensure that the risks of its crash are neutralized. The surface of the target planet and protects it from any pollutants originating from the planet. Therefore, trajectory modifications are performed at a later stage in the launch of the probe during its journey into outer space. 

The Hope probe is expected to reach Mars orbit in February 2021, coinciding with the golden jubilee of the founding of the United Arab Emirates, to paint an integrated picture of the climate of the Red Planet over a Martian year.

The Emirates Mars Exploration Project "Probe of Hope" represents the culmination of the steps of transferring knowledge, innovation and development that have been launched since 2006 in the country, and witnessed the work of Emirati cadres and engineers with scientific partners in the fields of design, engineering and space manufacturing, as a complement to concerted efforts in order to create quality economic opportunities and establish a pioneering position. The UAE has a strong interest in space science, research and exploration, as well as the consolidation of hope, positivity, self-belief and the ability to actively contribute to the march of human knowledge among Arab youth.

The UAE mission to explore Mars is part of an integrated effort to create an economic opportunity around leadership in space science, research and outer space exploration.

The Hope probe carries three instruments to measure and study the atmosphere of Mars, and weighs about 1,350 kg, the size of a small car. It was designed and built by the engineers of the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Center in cooperation with knowledge transfer partners, namely the University of Colorado at Boulder (Space and Atmospheric Physics Laboratory), University of California at Berkeley (Space Science Labs), and Arizona State University (College of Earth and Space Exploration). The probe will contribute to a deeper understanding of the climate changes in the Martian atmosphere by collecting data throughout the day and the different seasons and comparing them with each other. The probe will also make some basic measurements that help us understand the nature of the weather in both its lower and middle layers. It will also contribute to the formation of the first integrated picture of the Martian atmosphere, which will be provided to the global scientific community in more than 200 academic and research institutions.

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