The first interplanetary exploration by an Arab nation is about to launch.
On July 14, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will launch the Mars Hope probe from Japan, from the Tanegashima Space Center. It is an orbiter bound for Mars .
Mars hope
The Emirates mission to Mars will send the Hope probe on a 495 million kilometer journey to reach the orbit of the Red Planet in February 2021 with the goal of constructing the first complete picture of the climate of Mars over a Martian year. , about 687 Earth days.
Mars Hope is a fully autonomous spacecraft with three instruments to measure the atmosphere of Mars . Weighing in at 1,350 kilos and roughly the size of a small SUV. The mission will study the relationship between the upper and lower layers of the Martian atmosphere.
The spacecraft has been designed and developed by MBRSC engineers in collaboration with academic partners from the US universities of Colorado, Arizona and Berkeley.
The probe was assembled at the University of Colorado Boulder, taking advantage of its facilities and was later sent to Dubai, from where it traveled to the Japanese island of Tanegashima in mid-May in an Antonov 12, the world’s largest aircraft .
The Hope probe will be compact and hexagonal in shape and structure, with a mass of approximately 1,500 kg (3,300 lb) including fuel. The probe will be 2.37m wide and 2.90m high , the total size is roughly equivalent to a small car. I hope it will use three 600 watt solar panels to charge its batteries and that it will communicate with Earth using a high gain antenna with a 1.5m wide dish.