UAE’s Rashid Rover poised to take off later this month
LUNAR ROVER IS EXPECTED TO LAND ON THE LUNAR SURFACE BY APRIL 2023
UAE-made Rashid Rover is set to be launched to the moon on November 28 — at the earliest — at 12.46pm (UAE time), and is expected to land on the lunar surface by April 2023, the Mohammad Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) announced, yesterday.
MBRSC also confirmed Atlas Crater, located at 47.5°N, 44.4°E on the moon’s southeastern outer edge of Mare Frigoris (“Sea of Cold”), would be the rover’s landing site. MBRSC added that the date and time are subject to change, depending on weather and other conditions at launch; and the landing site was chosen “to maintain flexibility during operations”.
Multiple contingencies
The first Emirati Lunar Mission (ELM) will be delivered to the lunar surface by a lander built by Japanese company ispace called Hakuto-R M1, aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket that will lift off from the Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
Rashid Rover will explore the characteristics of lunar soil, the petrography and geology of the moon, dust movement, surface plasma conditions, and the moon’s photoelectron sheath.
“The novel discovery within the unexplored lunar site is one of the many reasons why the Emirates Lunar Mission is one of the most anticipated moon missions,” MBRSC noted.
Early this week, MBRSC director general Salem Al Marri has tweeted that a team from MBRSC is already at Kennedy Space Centre in Cape Canaveral, Florida, for the launch of Rashid Rover.
MBRSC added the integrated launch vehicle is within the premises of Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, and will be moved to the launch pad closer to the launch date.
In a separate press statement from Tokyo yesterday, ispace said: “The primary landing site
In order to reach to the moon within six days, you would need to burn a lot of fuel which means that you need a big tank and a big propulsion system to do that.”
was chosen along with multiple contingencies, which may be used depending on variables that occur during transit. The site meets the technical specifications of the lander technology demonstration mission, the scientific exploration objectives for the MBRSC mission, as well as the mission requirements of our other customers.
“Careful consideration of the target site criteria included continuous sun-illumination duration and communication visibility from the Earth. Alternative landing targets include Lacus Somniorum, Sinus Iridium and Oceanus Procellarum, among others. Landing is currently expected to take place around the end of April 2023.”
According to ispace, the integrated spacecraft Hakuto-R M1 will take a low-energy route to the moon rather than a direct approach, which means the moon landing is expected to happen in April 2023, five months after launch.
Fuel-saving route
Dr Hamad Al Marzooqi, project manager of Emirates Lunar Mission at MBRSC, told Gulf News the rationale for the fuelsaving but long route. He said: “Main factor is the cost of the mission. The cost comes from the volume and mass of the spacecraft.
“In order to reach to the moon within six days, which is the shortest path, you would need to burn a lot of fuel which means that you need a big tank and a big propulsion system to do that. But it will have a huge impact in cost.”
SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will take Hakuto-R M1 into the moon’s orbit, and following its successful separation from the launch vehicle (rocket), Hakuto-R M1 will use the gravitational pull of the Earth and sun to guide it to the moon.
Dr Hamad Al Marzooqi| MBRSC