THE UAE MARS MISSION

The Emirates Mars Mission or Hope Mars Mission is a space exploration program to Mars, set to be launched by the United Arab Emirates. Upon launch, it will become the first-ever mission to The Red Planet by any Arab or Muslim country. The mission was announced by His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the President of the United Arab Emirates, in July 2014, and is aimed at enriching the capabilities of Emirati engineers and increasing human knowledge about the Martian atmosphere. The mission is being carried out by a team composed solely of Emirati engineers, and is a contribution towards a knowledge-based economy in the UAE.

Under the Emirates Mars Mission, the United Arab Emirates will send an unmanned probe to Mars by 2020. The probe has been named as ‘Hope Probe’ or ‘Al-Amal’ and it is scheduled to reach Mars in 2021, which coincides with the 50th anniversary of the United Arab Emirates’ formation.