Hope Probe will revive rich Arab and Islamic history: Minister
Sarah Bint Yousif Al Amiri revealed that the Probe’s scientific mission is expected to start in April 2021, and the mission’s team currently works 12 hours every day
Sarah Bint Yousif Al Amiri, Minister of State for Advanced Sciences and Science Lead of the Emirates Mars Mission, stated that the UAE creates opportunities for its citizens before they even dream of them, noting that this should encourage everyone to work hard to reinforce the country’s leadership and preserve its overall achievements.
She added that the Hope Probe will begin its historic mission to Mars at 00:51:27 ater midnight UAE time on Wednesday, 15th July, 2020, from the Tanegashima Space Station in Japan.
During a remote media interview, Al Amiri revealed that the probe’s scientific mission is expected to start in April 2021, and the mission’s team currently works 12 hours per day. The mission is a journey filled with challenges since its launch six years ago, as well as knowledge and learning, she added.
She thanked the UAE’S leadership on behalf of the Probe team for giving them this unique opportunity and noted that they are all proud to be part of the project, and explained that the design of a satellite to explore Mars was not easy, and their challenges increased as they progressed.
Al Amiri also stressed that the mission’s land control station is currently testing control scenarios before the launch of the probe.
The Hope Probe, which is expected to reach Mars in February 2021, coinciding with the UAE’S Golden Jubilee celebrations, is a national project that highlights the vision of the UAE’S leadership to establish an Emirati space programme, which will reflect the country’s commitment to promoting international cooperation and partnerships in finding solutions to global challenges for the well-being of humankind.
The Hope Probe, which will send a message of hope to the peoples of the world, aims to revive the rich Arab and Islamic history in the area of science, and affirms the UAE ambitions to defy the impossible and shape a bright future for humanity.
Earlier, achieving a critical milestone in its readiness for launch, the Emirates Mars Mission - Hope Probe spacecrat was encapsulated within the payload fairing ahead of its litoff from the Tanegashima Space Centre (TNSC), in Japan on July 15, 2020.
“All testing and checks leading to the full launch and mission-readiness are currently being carried out,” read a joint statement by UAE Space Agency and the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre, MBRSC, adding that the capsule has been positioned securely onto the rocket.
“Throughout the process, the team continues to monitor the stages of the Probe. This will be followed by joint operations with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI), to trickle-charge the spacecrat and set it for takeoff. This stage also included functional tests of the spacecrat subsystems, along with electrical power, communication, altitude control, command and control, propulsion, thermal control and sotware systems,” the Centre noted in a statement.
The encapsulated Probe has been transferred to another building where the rocket [first and the second stage] and the launch pad are located. The mounting of the spacecrat onto the rocket involved a thorough monitoring of the interface points, ensuring that all was in order.
Subsequently, the Multi-layer Insulation (MLI) and the Arming Plugs were firmly sealed.
About an hour ater the launch, the Probe will separate from the launch rocket. It will launch its solar panels and begin the sevenmonth journey towards the Red Planet using a propulsion system.
“The encapsulation marks a major milestone in the spacecrat’s journey and is the step that precedes the probe spacecrat being mounted on top of the rocket that will carry it into the Martian orbit,” the statement said.
It added that before the Probe was placed inside the capsule, it was covered with thermal sheets to protect it against the dynamic temperature, pressure variations and environment during its cruise.
“The encapsulation process was overseen by a team of Emirati engineers on-ground in Japan, along with their Japanese counterparts,” it went on to say.