Emiratis design ‘rocket fountain’ to celebrate the UAE’s space missions
A group of Emirati designers created a fountain to celebrate the UAE’s recent space missions.
Five designers and engineers came up with the concept after the launch of the Hope probe in July. The structure resembles the Japanese rocket that propelled the Emirati- built spacecraft into orbit, launching it on its 200-day journey to the Red Planet.
The team hoped to draw the interest of developers and create a cultural landmark somewhere in the Emirates. The main structure would be 30 metres high, with water cascading below it as though it were steam from the rocket’s engines.
“Our concept captures and mimics the moment the Hope probe vehicle launcher took off,” said Salem Al Messabi, 31, creative director at InspireTBB in Abu Dhabi’s creative freezone twofour54. “We started with the idea of drawing a mural on a wall and bringing out water from the wall, with some sort of mixed-art installation, painting and waterfalls.
“When we started researching and developing the concept of the fountain, we discovered a couple of floating water tap fountains, like the magic tap fountain in Ypres, Belgium. This optical illusion has brought us to thinking bigger.”
Mr Al Messabi and friend Abdulaziz Al Mheiri came up with the design. “The water movement not only hides the structure inside but it also gives the illusion of the rocket being launched,” he said. “We want to create a cultural landmark that celebrates the achievements of our country.”
Mr Al Mheiri, 34, a plant manager at Shams Power Company in Abu Dhabi, said his role was to help study the design from an engineering perspective.
“Saleh and I have the yin and yang combination, he takes care of the artistic part of it and I take care of the functional and realistic implementation of this project,” he said.
“My current job helps me not only to make this concept doable but also to take it a step further by making sure it follows the sustainability standards that we aspire to achieve.
“We developed a way to create the model from recyclable materials and to run the fountain partially by solar power.”
The 3D model was created by Muna Al Aidaros, 31, an Emirati interior designer at Minterno Design in Abu Dhabi.
“The main challenge was time, because designing such heavy models takes a lot of time and we were trying to finish as many concepts as we could in a short time,” Ms Al Aidaros said.
Sadeq Al Katheri, who takes care of the project’s business development aspects, said the idea had grabbed the attention of government and private companies.
“Most of the people who are contacting us are really excited and interested in this project,” he said.