UAE in space: Hazzaa Al Mansoori to become first Emirati astronaut

[MenInG]

Hazzaa Al Mansoori is about to make history as the first Emirati to reach space.

The 35-year-old former pilot is embarking on a mission this week to the International Space Station (ISS) after being chosen from thousands of applicants.

He has said he is "living the impossible".

Only two other people from Arab countries - Prince Sultan Bin Salman Abdulaziz Al Saud from Saudi Arabia and Muhammed Faris from Syria - have been to space. Both of their missions took place in the 1980s.

The trip is being hailed as a positive sign for the UAE's growing space sector. Other plans include an unmanned mission to Mars, with hopes of reaching the red planet in 2021 to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the founding of the state.

"This mission is a great milestone for me personally and for the United Arab Emirates," Hazzaa said at a news conference in July.

Who is Hazzaa Al Mansoori?
Hazzaa said his fascination with space began as a child in Abu Dhabi, capital of the UAE.

"I started to look at the stars since childhood," he recalled, adding that getting that bit closer to them had not seemed possible.

He has also long been inspired by the ambitions of UAE Founding Father Sheikh Zayed, who famously met US astronauts in Abu Dhabi in the 1970s.

But with no Emirati space programme at that time, he settled for taking to the skies as a pilot. After studying aviation at university, Hazzaa joined the armed forces and worked as a military pilot, flying F-16 fighter jets.

It was not until years later that he realised his dreams of space travel could become a reality.

How did he become an astronaut?
In December 2017, the ruler of Dubai and prime minister of the UAE, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, issued a public call on Twitter for young Emiratis to register for the UAE Astronaut Programme.

More than 4,000 people applied to be in with a chance of becoming the first Emirati astronaut.

Hazzaa and fellow applicant, Sultan Al Neyadi, were selected as the final two after a series of interviews and medical and psychological tests.

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Media captionInside the SpaceX Dragon Capsule that docked on the ISS
Sheikh Mohammed described the pair as representing the "pinnacle of the UAE's ambitions".

History professor Jörg Matthias Determann, author of Space Science and the Arab World, said the founding of the UAE at the height of the US Apollo space programme had inspired Emirati leaders.

"The United Arab Emirates is a young country. It was founded in 1971 - at the height of the Cold War space race and at the height of that lunar accomplishment in particular of the United States.

"This was the high time of US success in particular. The United States itself was trying to make the most of this great achievement by following up with a great publicity campaign."

"The Apollo achievements, they really coincided with the founding moments of the United Arab Emirates."

Dubai's Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre announced in April that Hazzaa had been chosen as the "prime astronaut" to make the inaugural journey, and Sultan as the "backup".

Hazzaa will travel to the ISS with US astronaut Jessica Meir and Russian astronaut Oleg Skripochka for his eight-day mission.

While aboard the ISS, he will carry out scientific experiments and present a tour of the station in Arabic for viewers back on Earth.

"I'm looking forward to coming back with knowledge and experience and to sharing it with everyone," Hazzaa said.

"By living in the International Space Station... it will give us more knowledge and more understanding of how we can go beyond this. To go to the Moon and to Mars eventually."

What will he take into space?
Hazzaa said he would take a family photo to the ISS and a UAE flag.

He will also carry a photograph of the meeting between Sheikh Zayed and the Apollo astronauts. "This is one of the pictures that inspired me and today I am living this dream," he said.

The former pilot is also reported to be taking seeds and a copy of Sheikh Mohammed's book, My Story.

Emirati food has been prepared for his trip, including balaleet - a UAE speciality of sweetened vermicelli served with an omelette - that he plans to share with the other astronauts.

Hazzaa said the mission was a "huge responsibility" but that by taking the UAE's first trip to space he hoped to inspire the next generation of explorers.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-49715269

 

[MenInG]

"The trip is being hailed as a positive sign for the UAE's growing space sector. Other plans include an unmanned mission to Mars, with hopes of reaching the red planet in 2021 to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the founding of the state."

Wow some big plans

 

[sweep_shot]

UAE has enough wealth. They can afford to invest in space program more.

 

[SensiblePakFan]

Nice. Another muslim in space.

 

[MenInG]

Seems they have more ambitions in space but is this sustainable? they need to have engineers etc first then do all this, they seem to be working on the idea that by doing this they will get more people into engineering etc?

====


If you thought Matt Damon living on Mars in The Martian could never happen, the UAE’s new Mars project will make you think again.

The UAE is aiming to build first inhabitable human settlement on Mars by 2117, which means we can expect to see a whole city on another planet in less than 100 years.

H. H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid stated in a report that future generations are expected to reap the benefits of the project.

In preparation for this alien settlement on the red planet, the UAE will build a complex of buildings called “Mars Scientific City”, a project worth Dhs500 million that aims to be open in the next three to four years.

Spread over 1.9million sq ft, the new city will help prepare humans for Mars, featuring a laboratory that will simulate the red planet’s terrain and harsh environment through advanced 3D printing technology.

A team of scientists and astronauts will live in the city’s simulated Mars environment for one year.

The UAE is one of the top nine countries to invest in space projects, and expects to launch the first bunch of Emiratis into orbit by April this year.

But that’s not all, as the country is also in talks with Virgin Galactic for space tourism, which means passengers could soon jet off from Abu Dhabi to infinity, and beyond!

For something a little more grounded yet still future-worthy, the world’s first social humanoid, Pepper the Robot, will make an appearance at Oasis Centre this weekend.

The future of the UAE isn’t just earthbound anymore.

https://www.timeoutdubai.com/news/395246-the-uae-wants-to-put-humans-on-mars-by-2117

 

[globalcitizen]

Absolutely brilliant UAE !!!

 

[Sir-fraz]

This is an absolute joke..
this guy doesnt even have any qualifications hes a fighter jet pilot.. how much money did the arabs give to get this done once must wonder.

im sure there were more deserving people who were actually more qualified to go.

 

[Salman]

Quick stop at Harrods on the way up?

 

[Varun]

For a country like the UAE, the tag of "first Emirati in space" is likely more valuable than whatever he did in space itself.

Goes with their "Tallest Building", "Fakest Islands", "Loopiest Rollercoasters", "Coldest Ice Creams" penchant.

 

[MenInG]

First city on Mars? complete with expats etc

 

[cric_man]

This is an absolute joke..
this guy doesnt even have any qualifications hes a fighter jet pilot.. how much money did the arabs give to get this done once must wonder.

im sure there were more deserving people who were actually more qualified to go.

Look up qualifications for Armstrong, Glenn et al....

 

[MenInG]

The United Arab Emirates said it plans to launch its “Hope” Mars probe on Friday local time from Japan's Tanegashima Space Center after a two-day delay due to poor weather there.

A rocket is due to blast off at 5:43am local time (20:43 GMT Thursday) carrying the unmanned spacecraft that is bound to orbit the Red Planet in the Arab world's first interplanetary mission.

The launch was postponed from 20:51 GMT Tuesday because of inclement weather at the remote Japanese launch site, but remains well within the launch window which runs until August 13.

The Emirati project is one of three racing to Mars, including Tianwen-1 from China and Mars 2020 from the United States, taking advantage of the period when the Earth and Mars are nearest: some 55 million kilometres apart.

“Hope” — or Al-Amal in Arabic — is expected to reach Mars's orbit by February 2021, marking the 50th anniversary of the unification of the UAE, an alliance of seven emirates.

Once there, it will loop the planet for a whole Martian year, or 687 days.

The probe is expected to detach from the launch rocket about an hour after blast-off, which is when the UAE Mars mission's deputy project manager Sarah al-Amiri said the real excitement will begin.

“In my heart of hearts, I'm looking forward to the initial 24 hours after separation, and that's where we see the results of our work,” said Amiri, who is also Minister of State for Advanced Sciences.

“It is when we first get the signal, when we know that every part of the spacecraft is functioning, when the solar panels are deployed, when we hit our trajectory and are headed towards Mars,” she told AFP earlier this month.

Keiji Suzuki from Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, which is carrying the Hope probe into space, had already warned on Monday that thunderstorms forecast could delay the launch.

Big ambitions
The UAE — which is better known for its skyscrapers, palm-shaped islands and mega attractions — has in recent years been pushing to expand its space sector.

While the objective of the Mars mission is to provide a comprehensive image of the weather dynamics in the Red Planet's atmosphere, the probe is a foundation for a much bigger goal — building a human settlement on Mars within the next 100 years.

The UAE also wants the project to serve as a source of inspiration for Arab youth, in a region too often wracked by sectarian conflicts and economic crises.

Dubai has hired architects to imagine what a Martian city might look like and build it in its desert as “Science City”, at a cost of around 500 million dirhams ($135m).

And last September, Hazza al-Mansouri became the first Emirati in space, part of a three-member crew that blasted off on a Soyuz rocket from Kazakhstan, returning home after an eight-day mission in which he became the first Arab to visit the International Space Station.

Several dozen probes — most of them American — have set off for the Red Planet since the 1960s. Many never made it that far, or failed to land.

The drive to explore Mars flagged until the confirmation less than 10 years ago that water once flowed on its surface.

“What is unique about this mission is that for the first time the scientific community around the world will have an holistic view of the Martian atmosphere at different times of the day at different seasons,” the mission's project manager Omran Sharaf told Monday's briefing.

“We have a strategy to contribute to the global effort in developing technologies and science work that will help one day if humanity decides to put a human on Mars.”

https://www.dawn.com/news/1568946/uae-plans-to-launch-mars-probe-friday-after-weather-delay

 

[MenInG]

The United Arab Emirates' historic first mission to Mars is under way, after a successful lift-off in Japan.

The Hope probe launched on an H2-A rocket from Tanegashima spaceport, and is now on a 500-million-km journey to study the planet's weather and climate.

Two previous attempts to launch the probe in the past week had to be called off because of adverse weather.

Hope's arrival in February 2021 is set to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the UAE's formation.

Her Excellency Sarah Al Amiri, the science lead on Hope, spoke of her excitement and relief in seeing the rocket climb successfully into the sky. And she stated the impact on her country would be the same as that on America when its people watched the Apollo 11 Moon landing 51 years ago, also on 20 July.

"It was an anchor for an entire generation that stimulated everyone that watched it to push further and to dream bigger," she told BBC News.

"Today I am really glad that the children in the Emirates will wake up on the morning of the 20th of July having an anchor project of their own, having a new reality, having new possibilities, allowing them to further contribute and to create a larger impact on the world."

The UAE craft is one of three missions heading to Mars this month.

The US and China both have surface rovers in the late stages of preparation. The American mission, Perseverance, sent its congratulations to Hope. "I cannot wait to join you on the journey!" its Twitter account said.

The UAE has limited experience of designing and manufacturing spacecraft - and yet here it is attempting something only the US, Russia, Europe and India have succeeded in doing. But it speaks to the Emiratis' ambition that they should dare to take on this challenge.

Their engineers, mentored by American experts, have produced a sophisticated probe in just six years - and when this satellite gets to Mars, it's expected to deliver novel science, revealing fresh insights on the workings of the planet's atmosphere.

In particular, scientists think it can add to our understanding of how Mars lost much of its air and with it a great deal of its water.

The Hope probe is regarded very much as a vehicle for inspiration - something that will attract more young people in the Emirates and across the Arab region to take up the sciences in school and in higher education.

The satellite is one of a number of projects the UAE government says signals its intention to move the country away from a dependence on oil and gas and towards a future based on a knowledge economy.

But as ever when it comes to Mars, the risks are high. A half of all missions sent to the Red Planet have ended in failure. Hope project director, Omran Sharaf, recognises the dangers but insists his country is right to try.

"This is a research and development mission and, yes, failure is an option," he told BBC News.

"However, failure to progress as a nation is not an option. And what matters the most here is the capacity and the capability that the UAE gained out of this mission, and the knowledge it brought into the country."

The UAE government told the project team it couldn't purchase the spacecraft from a big, foreign corporation; it had to build the satellite itself.

This meant going into partnership with American universities that had the necessary experience. Emirati and US engineers and scientists worked alongside each other to design and build the spacecraft systems and the three onboard instruments that will study the planet.

While much of the satellite's fabrication occurred at the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP) at the University of Colorado, Boulder, considerable work was also undertaken at the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) in Dubai.

LASP's Brett Landin believes the Emiratis are now in a great place to do another mission on their own.

"I could give you the process for fuelling a spacecraft, but until you've put on an escape suit and transferred 800kg of highly volatile rocket fuel from storage tanks into the spacecraft, you don't really know what it's like," the senior systems engineer said.

"Their propulsion engineers have now done it and they know how to do it the next time they build a spacecraft."

The Emiratis didn't want to do "me too" science; they didn't want to turn up at the Red Planet and repeat measurements that had already been made by others. So they went to a US space agency (Nasa) advisory committee called the Mars Exploration Program Analysis Group (MEPAG) and asked what research a UAE probe could usefully add to the current state of knowledge.

MEPAG's recommendations framed Hope's objectives. In one line, the UAE satellite is going to study how energy moves through the atmosphere - from bottom to top, at all times of day, and through all the seasons of the year.

It will track features such as lofted dust which on Mars hugely influences the temperature of the atmosphere.

It will also look at what's happening with the behaviour of neutral atoms of hydrogen and oxygen right at the top of the atmosphere. There's a suspicion these atoms play a significant role in the ongoing erosion of Mars' atmosphere by the energetic particles that stream away from the Sun.

This plays into the story of why the planet is now missing most of the water it clearly had early in its history.

To gather its observations, Hope will take up a near-equatorial orbit that stands off from the planet at a distance of 22,000km to 44,000km.

"The desire to see every piece of real estate at every time of day ended up making the orbit very large and elliptical," explained core science team lead on Hope, David Brain from LASP.

"By making those choices, we will for example be able to hover over Olympus Mons (the largest volcano in the Solar System) as Olympus Mons moves through different times of day. And at other times, we'll be letting Mars spin underneath us.

"We'll get full disc images of Mars, but our camera has filters, so we'll be doing science with those images - getting global views with different goggles on, if you like."

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-53394737

 

[LongHorn]

The launch was paid for by UAE..... but it was Americans/Japanese who did most of the work.
There are plenty of really smart UAE Nationals, but they are not the ones sending spaceships to Mars

 

[Bigboii]

Seems they have more ambitions in space but is this sustainable? they need to have engineers etc first then do all this, they seem to be working on the idea that by doing this they will get more people into engineering etc?

====


If you thought Matt Damon living on Mars in The Martian could never happen, the UAE’s new Mars project will make you think again.

The UAE is aiming to build first inhabitable human settlement on Mars by 2117, which means we can expect to see a whole city on another planet in less than 100 years.

H. H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid stated in a report that future generations are expected to reap the benefits of the project.

In preparation for this alien settlement on the red planet, the UAE will build a complex of buildings called “Mars Scientific City”, a project worth Dhs500 million that aims to be open in the next three to four years.

Spread over 1.9million sq ft, the new city will help prepare humans for Mars, featuring a laboratory that will simulate the red planet’s terrain and harsh environment through advanced 3D printing technology.

A team of scientists and astronauts will live in the city’s simulated Mars environment for one year.

The UAE is one of the top nine countries to invest in space projects, and expects to launch the first bunch of Emiratis into orbit by April this year.

But that’s not all, as the country is also in talks with Virgin Galactic for space tourism, which means passengers could soon jet off from Abu Dhabi to infinity, and beyond!

For something a little more grounded yet still future-worthy, the world’s first social humanoid, Pepper the Robot, will make an appearance at Oasis Centre this weekend.

The future of the UAE isn’t just earthbound anymore.

https://www.timeoutdubai.com/news/395246-the-uae-wants-to-put-humans-on-mars-by-2117

South Indians jeeway jeeway

 

[MenInG]

The United Arab Emirates is celebrating its first mission at Mars.

It has put a probe called Hope in orbit around the planet, making it only the fifth spacefaring entity to do so after the US, the Soviet Union, Europe and India.

The spacecraft, which left Earth seven months ago, had to make a braking manoeuvre to be sure of being captured by Mars' gravity.

UAE scientists can now look forward to studying the planet's atmosphere.

Their satellite carries three instruments that will observe, among other targets, how neutral atoms of hydrogen and oxygen - remnants from Mars' once abundant water - leak into space.

In the process, Hope will return spectacular, high-resolution, full-disk images of the planet.

Tuesday marked the most critical phase in the mission.

Hope had been approaching Mars at over 120,000km/h (relative to the Sun) and needed to execute a precise 27-minute burn on its braking engines to scrub some of that speed or risk skipping off into ever deeper space.

The manoeuvre, performed by six thrusters on the probe, commenced at about 19:30 GST (15:30 GMT), with confirmation received at Earth some 11 minutes later - the delay being the time it took for radio signals to traverse the 190-million-km separation between Mars and Earth.

The past few days have witnessed tremendous enthusiasm for Hope and its mission, with public monuments, buildings and heritage sites across the federation all lit up in red.

Dubai's Burj Khalifa, the tallest human-made structure on Earth, had been flashing a countdown to Tuesday's big moment.

Hope is regarded as a triumph for a small gulf nation that dared to think seven years ago that it could inspire the next generation by launching an interplanetary space mission.

"We wanted to arrive at Mars; (I'm) really grateful, and it's like a weight of seven years has been lifted from my shoulders," said Her Excellency Sarah Al Amiri, UAE minister of state for advanced technology and chair of the UAE Space Agency.

"On arriving at Mars. I'm now truly looking forward to the scientific discoveries. And I truly hope this mission will impact an entire generation to strive to do things that are even bigger," she told BBC News.

Hope is now running in an initial ellipse around Mars that comes as close as 1,000km from the planet and goes out to almost 50,000km. Over the course of the next few weeks, this will be trimmed to a 55-hour, 22,000km-by-43,000km orbit that is inclined to the equator by about 25 degrees.

"It depends on what that initial orbit looks like but we would need around three manoeuvres to get into our science orbit," said propulsion engineer Ayesha Sharafi.

This path is very different to previous satellites that have tended to operate with greater proximity to Mars to facilitate high-resolution imagery of the surface and communications with landed robots.

But it's from this high perch that Hope plans to carry out some novel research. It's going to trace how energy moves through the atmosphere from the very bottom to the very top.

A key influencer in this respect is dust which can on occasions blow up into storms that envelop the entire planet.

"Dust plays a hugely important role in the Martian atmosphere. There are a few places on Earth where the atmosphere can be that dusty, but they're localised and maybe for short times," explained Prof David Brain, a University of Colorado at Boulder planetary expert who is working with the UAE team.

"Dust absorbs a lot of energy; it can become very warm and radiate energy. And so when you're talking about energy transport, dust is a much larger part of the big picture at Mars."

Hope is leading a wave of missions to Mars this February.

On Wednesday, it will be the turn of China with its Tianwen-1 orbiter . Like Hope, it must complete a braking manoeuvre to be captured by the planet's gravity.

Tianwen-1 is carrying a rover that will be despatched to the surface, most likely in May.

Next week, on Thursday 18 February, the Americans will arrive at Mars with another of their big rovers. The Perseverance robot is being aimed an crater that once held a giant lake. It will look for signs of fossilised life.

BBC

 

[faraz39]

On one hand, they are investing in science and space exploration so that's a good thing.

But how much of the work was actually done by Emiratis to claim this as some kind of Emirati achievement other than paying for it? The rocket was built in the US by Americans and launched by the Japanese from Japan. Seems like they gave fancy job titles to Emiratis.

Even if the work was done by expats in UAE, I'd say this was an Emirati spaceship. Right now it's an American spaceship launched by the Japanese and paid for by the Emiratis.

 

[Nadeemp]

On one hand, they are investing in science and space exploration so that's a good thing.

But how much of the work was actually done by Emiratis to claim this as some kind of Emirati achievement other than paying for it? The rocket was built in the US by Americans and launched by the Japanese from Japan. Seems like they gave fancy job titles to Emiratis.

Even if the work was done by expats in UAE, I'd say this was an Emirati spaceship. Right now it's an American spaceship launched by the Japanese and paid for by the Emiratis.

What a a joke. He is a passenger on a bus. Emirates did not gain anything and have no bragging rights. Big up to the Indians who did it with their own technology.

 

[sweep_shot]

UAE Hope mission returns first image of Mars

The United Arab Emirates' Hope mission has returned its first picture of Mars.

The spacecraft entered into an orbit around the Red Planet on Tuesday, making the UAE the first Arab nation in history to have a scientific presence at Earth's near neighbour.

This first image will be followed by many similar such views of Mars.

Hope was put in a wide orbit so it could study the planet's weather and climate systems, which means it also will see the planet's full disk.

It's a type of view that's familiar fare from Earth-based telescopes, but less so from satellites actually positioned at Mars.

They traditionally have been kept close in to the planet so they can get high-resolution pictures of the surface and act as telecommunications relay stations for landed robots in contact with Earth.

The picture at the top of this page was captured by Hope's EXI instrument from an altitude of 24,700 km (15,350 miles) above the Martian surface at 20:36 GMT on Wednesday - so, one day after arriving at the Red Planet.

The north pole of Mars is in the upper left of the image. At centre, just emerging into the early morning sunlight, is Olympus Mons, the largest volcano in the Solar System. Look right on the boundary between night and day, the so-called terminator.

The three shield volcanoes in a line are Ascraeus Mons, Pavonis Mons, and Arsia Mons. Look east, to the limb of the planet, and you can see the mighty canyon system, Valles Marineris. It's part covered by cloud.

"The transmission of the Hope Probe's first image of Mars is a defining moment in our history and marks the UAE joining advanced nations involved in space exploration," the mission's twitter account stated. "We hope this mission will lead to new discoveries about Mars which will benefit humanity."

Hope is now running in an initial ellipse around Mars that comes as close as 1,000km from the planet and goes out to almost 50,000km. Over the course of the next few weeks, this will be trimmed to a 55-hour, 22,000km-by-43,000km orbit that is inclined to the equator by about 25 degrees.

It's from this high perch that Hope plans to carry out some novel research. It's going to trace how energy moves through the atmosphere from the very bottom to the very top.

One of its quests is to study the leakage into space of neutral atoms of hydrogen and oxygen - remnants from Mars' once abundant water. This will add to our understanding of precisely how a previously warm and wet planet became the cold, dusty, desiccated world it is today.

On the day the UAE Hope probe took this first image, the Chinese Tianwen-1 orbiter arrived at Mars.

Like Hope, it had to execute a braking manoeuvre to be sure of being captured by the planet's gravity.

The Tianwen-1 mission carriers a rover which will be despatched to the surface in May or June.

China's space agency has released early imagery of what its satellite saw during its orbit insertion.

These pictures come not from a science camera like Hope's EXI instrument, but from low-resolution cameras used by engineers to inspect the spacecraft.

In the movie below, the view is dominated by Tianwen-1's solar panel, but the Martian atmosphere and surface topography are clearly visible.

This coming week, it is the turn of the Americans. Their Perseverance rover reaches Mars on Thursday and will try immediately to land in a near equatorial crater called Jezero.

Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-56060890.

 

[FearlessRoar]

UAE leaders attend launch of historic lunar gateway to send Emiratis to lunar orbit

The UAE will send the first Emirati and Arab astronaut to the lunar orbit, as part of a new space project announced on Sunday.

The UAE confirmed its participation in Nasa’s Lunar Gateway Station alongside the USA, Japan, Canada and the European Union. The Lunar Gateway will serve as humanity’s first space station around the Moon.

President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, attended the launch of the UAE’s contributions to the historic Lunar Gateway.

On his official X account, President Sheikh Mohamed said: “I was pleased to attend with my brother Mohammed bin Rashid the launch of the UAE’s contributions to the historic Lunar Gateway, which will serve as humanity’s first space station around the Moon.”

“Through our long-term investment in space exploration and scientific innovation, the UAE is determined to work alongside its international partners to enable collective progress for all,” Sheikh Mohamed tweeted.

Meanwhile, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid said that as part of the nation’s contribution, the UAE will develop a complete unit weighing 10 tons for the station.

Additionally, the UAE will establish a space operations centre within our country, along with a global centre for astronaut training.

On his official X account, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid said; “In the UAE, we began the new year with remarkable projects. Today, I joined President of the UAE in announcing our participation in a global scientific endeavour to construct a lunar space station, in collaboration with the United States, Canada, Japan, and the European Union.

“The lunar space station signifies humanity’s return to the moon and serves as a vital platform for launching missions to Mars,” Sheikh Mohammed added.

He noted that the work on this project will commence immediately, aligning with one of the most significant space ambitions of the coming decade.

“We are proud of our projects, our skilled workforce, and the aspirations of our youth. Filled with optimism, we look forward to a new year that promises to be the most beautiful and greatest yet for the UAE,” His Highness stated.

Its primary functions include acting as a solar-powered communication hub, facilitating scientific research, accommodating government-agency astronauts on short-term missions, and serving as a storage facility for rovers and robotic missions.

Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of Dubai Executive Council, congratulated the UAE’s leadership, people, and the Arab world as the UAE joins the development of the Gateway Lunar Space Station, alongside the USA, Japan, Canada, and the European Union.

“This project stands out as one of the most significant international endeavours in space exploration in the 21st century. As an integral part of this project, the first Emirati and Arab astronaut will journey to the Moon upon the project’s completion in 2030,” Sheikh Hamdan said.

"My team at the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) will be responsible for designing, developing, and operating the Emirates Airlock, which is the access point between the Gateway Lunar Space Station's pressurised cabin and the vacuum of space.”

“Through this project, the UAE will play a vital role in bringing humans back to the Moon after a gap of over 50 years. The Gateway will serve as a launchpad for spacewalk missions around the Moon and future missions to Mars, embodying the spirit of Sheikh Zayed’s ambition and the boundless aspirations of our nation that knows the impossible is possible,” the Dubai Crown Prince added.

Additionally, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said: “Today, we announced the UAE’s Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre will provide the Crew and Science Airlock for NASA Gateway, humanity’s first space station that will orbit the Moon. This is an exciting moment for international collaboration in the cosmos and the future of human space exploration.”

This ambitious endeavour represents a collaborative multinational effort involving four prominent International Space Station partner agencies: NASA, the European Space Agency (ESA), the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA).

The Lunar Gateway, also known as Gateway, is the first extraterrestrial space station, strategically positioned in lunar orbit.

The nation’s contribution in the development of the Crew and Science Airlock module on the Lunar Gateway Station, aims to strengthen its global presence in the fields of space science and technology.

The UAE is the fifth partner in this project, which will be among the most important global achievements of the 21st century, and represents a historic achievement among the UAE’s accomplishments in the space sector.

This contribution comes in cooperation with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The project represents humankind’s renewed ambition to revisit the Moon after an absence of more than fifty years. This initiative involves landing on the Moon’s surface in preparation for upcoming missions directed towards Mars.

The UAE will be responsible for developing the lunar space station’s Crew and Science Airlock, a critical component for maintaining a safe environment for astronauts. This unit will act as a portal of the station, serving as the entry and exit point for missions and astronauts travelling to the Moon’s surface from the Lunar Gateway Station.

The UAE will also undertake the management and operation of the station’s Airlock. The Airlock’s length is 10 metres, its width is 4 metres, weight 10 tonnes, while the size of the entire station is: 19 x 20 x 42M.

The station will double as a space laboratory, enabling a range of scientific and technical experiments, and will have a minimum lifespan of 15 years, which is subject to extension.

The first elements of Gateway are expected to be launched by 2025, while the Emirates Airlock is scheduled to be launched by 2030.

The Airlock development stages will include five main stages: The planning stage; the design phase; the qualification process; the flight preparation; and the operations stage.

The planning stage consists of establishing objectives, strategies and Project partners for the creation of the Airlock module, while the second stage will include the development of detailed designs and specifications for the components of the Airlock unit in order to be assembled.

The qualification process stage is characterised by testing and qualifying the Airlock unit’s components to ensure their reliability and safety for space conditions and requirements. The fourth phase of the Airlock’s development will include the preparations and launching of the space components, and integrating them into the Lunar Gateway Station.

The Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) will be responsible for managing, maintaining and operating the Airlock, ensuring it functions effectively as part of the Gateway.

The pivotal NASA mission “Artemis” is focused on returning humans to the Moon and establishing sustainable long-term Lunar missions. The Artemis missions are expected to provide invaluable insights into lunar resources, technologies, and how to live and work on another celestial body, significantly advancing our understanding of the Moon, Mars and the expanses of the universe.

The Lunar Gateway Station is a key component of this endeavour, as humanity’s first space station orbiting the Moon. This station, built in collaboration with international and commercial partners, will provide essential functions to support astronaut health and mission objectives.

The Gateway will enable long-term astronaut stays, enhanced communication with the lunar surface, and facilitate studies on solar and cosmic radiation, as part of the programme’s vision of lunar exploration and future missions to Mars.

The UAE’s involvement in the Gateway marks a momentous advancement in international space collaboration. This will elevate the nation as a pivotal leader in the global space community of the future.

The UAE will hold a permanent seat and contribute scientifically to the largest programme for lunar and space exploration. It will be among the first countries to send an astronaut to the Moon, with priority access to advanced scientific and engineering data gathered by the station, enhancing its journey of knowledge.

Gateway supports sustained exploration and research in deep space, including docking ports for a variety of visiting spacecraft; space for crew to live, work, and prepare for lunar surface missions for a duration of up to 90 days; and on-board science investigations to study helio-physics, human health, and life sciences, among other areas.

Hamad Obaid AlMansoori, Chairman of the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC), said, “Our participation in this project marks a new chapter in the UAE’s journey of space exploration. Guided by the ambition of our leadership, we are entering a fresh era in space exploration. Their wise vision has been a driving force behind our involvement in the development of Nasa’s Lunar Gateway Station, a global milestone showcasing the UAE’s commitment and expanding capabilities.”

Salem Humaid Al Marri, Director-General at Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre, said, “We are grateful for the unwavering commitment and ambitious vision of our wise leadership, which has transformed space into a field of innovation and scientific progress. The UAE’s contribution in this project is not just a national triumph but a global achievement. It showcases our ability to actively contribute to space exploration. This project emphasises the significance of international cooperation in this field, and reflects our keenness to participate in the re-establishment of human presence on the Moon and advance space missions towards Mars.”

Source: Gulf News

UAE leaders attend launch of historic lunar gateway to send Emiratis to lunar orbit

The Lunar Gateway to serve as humanity’s first space station around the Moon

gulfnews.com

 

[FearlessRoar]

Abu Dhabi selected as launchpad for luxury space travel to Earth’s curvature​

Residents and visitors in the UAE capital can soon embark on a luxury space voyage and be propelled 40,000 meters to the curvature of the Earth in a capsule powered by helium balloons.

With a price tag of $164,000-$219,000 per passenger, European space exploration company EOS-X SPACE has announced plans to launch space tourism flights from Abu Dhabi in the third quarter of 2025. The company’s pressurized carbon-fiber capsule can take seven passengers and one pilot to an altitude of 131,234 feet in a five-hour return voyage.

Unlike competitors like Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic, which offer adrenaline-pumping, rocket-powered joyrides, EOS-X SPACE promises a “more serene and immersive experience,” its CEO told Al Arabiya English. A pressurized capsule carried by an eco-friendly helium balloon will gently lift passengers to the edge of the stratosphere, 40,000 meters above the Earth.

The strategic decision of selecting Abu Dhabi as the primary launch site was driven by the emirate’s reputation as a global tourism hub, and its favorable climate, EOS-X SPACE CEO Kemel Kharbachi told Al Arabiya English.

He said the UAE capital was the “perfect place” to launch space tourism voyages and that he hoped “tens of thousands” of visitors each year will eventually take trips to outer Earth from Abu Dhabi – and two sister sites planned in and Seville, Spain, which will start operating in the third quarter of 2025, and Tulum, North America, which is expected to begin operating in 2026.

“There are two significant reasons for this decision (to launch in Abu Dhabi),” he said. “First, Abu Dhabi is a major financial capital and tourism powerhouse. Secondly, it offers us very stable weather conditions, allowing us to operate more than six months of the year. In addition, our target audience consists of high-income earners, a demographic well-represented by the local and native population.”

He said EOS-X SPACE is “totally different” from what other space tourism companies offer.

“Seventy percent of our core is experience. Right now there is no company that offers an experience of this level or with the customization capacity with which we will work,” he told Al Arabiya English.

“(Also) unlike other companies, which provide brief space flights akin to astronaut launches – lasting only about eleven minutes in some cases and requiring extensive training and demanding physical conditions – the EOS-X SPACE capsule provides a pleasant five-hour journey where passengers can enjoy the darkness, the curvature of the Earth, and the experience itself without needing exceptional physical fitness.”

The CEO also said anyone who’s able to board an airplane can access the space trip.

The voyage starts with a two-hour ascent followed by two hours of cruising at altitude, offering views of Earth’s curvature, before the one-hour descent.

The EOS-X SPACE experience is designed to be as much about the journey as the destination.

Passengers will embark on a curated, week-long program featuring cultural immersion, gourmet dining experiences, and a range of regenerative medicine and wellness treatments at a state-of-the-art EOS-X Space Hubs facility at Yas Island which will house not only the company’s shuttle and spaceport but also feature a sprawling hotel complex.

Kharbachi said EOS-x clients will also “enjoy immersive pre-flight experiences including virtual flight simulators and other educational activities.”

Guests will be accommodated in luxury resorts, “equipped with all the comforts of a five-star resort”, said Kharbachi, adding that this holistic approach aims to cater to high-net-worth individuals seeking not just a trip to space, but a transformative life experience.

The company estimates a potential market of around 20 million “ultra-rich” individuals worldwide who can afford the price tag for this unparalleled adventure.

The culmination of the luxury week will be a five-hour voyage in the company’s Spaceship One capsule.

Kharbachia also emphasized the sustainable nature of EOS-X SPACE helium balloon technology. Unlike rocket launches, which release significant amounts of pollutants into the atmosphere, the company’s balloons have a minimal environmental footprint.

“There are different types of rockets, and those involving direct carbon dioxide emissions can emit approximately 200 to 400 tons of carbon dioxide per launch, comparable to a commercial flight from New York to London,” he said. “However, rockets emit more than just carbon dioxide. Rockets using kerosene do not produce ‘clean’ burns, which releases pollutants into the upper atmosphere. Even hydrogen-based rockets, though cleaner, emit nitrogen and water vapor, creating very bright and long-lasting clouds in the upper atmosphere.”

Furthermore, the company plans to recycle and repurpose the balloons after their service, potentially finding new life in the luxury fashion industry.

Despite the experience being positioned within the ultra-luxury travel market, the company is confident in the market demand, citing the growing global population of high-net-worth individuals seeking unique and exclusive experiences.

The company has ambitious revenue projections, with an anticipated revenue growth of 220 percent over five years, forecasting a turnover of $1.127 billion and a gross profit of $324 million by 2029.

EOS-X SPACE will “offer the highest standards of certification and safety” in all the three countries it intends to operate in.

“In particular, we work with the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). For capsule development, largely conducted in Spain, we collaborate closely with military pilots from the National Institute for Aerospace Technology (INTA), a research body under the Ministry of Defense of Spain, a prominent European aeronautical power. In every country, we work with governments and regulatory bodies to meet all legal requirements in every area.”

Kharbachia said EOS-X SPACE was inspired by Felix Baumgartner, an Austrian skydiver, daredevil and BASE jumper reportedly known for jumping to Earth from a helium balloon in the stratosphere in 2012. He landed in the state of New Mexico in the US.

“EOS-X leverages proven and existing technology, inspired by this mission in which Baumgartner showcased the potential of space exploration by skydiving from a high-altitude balloon in the stratosphere (39,045 meters after a 2.5-hour ascent). EOS-X’s technology is based on the same reliable systems but offers a more comfortable experience through a capsule. Therefore, the company ensures safety and reliability for its passengers by deploying proven systems on all flights.”

The arrival of EOS-X SPACE marks further development in the UAE’s burgeoning space sector.

The country has made significant strides in space exploration in recent years, with the successful launch of the Emirates Mars Mission and the ongoing development of its astronaut program.

Its initiatives include the National Space Strategy 2030, aimed at improving the space sector’s contribution to the national economy, and the UAE Astronaut Program, which is developing a national team of astronauts for scientific and manned space exploration missions.

The country also celebrated a major milestone last year when Emirati astronaut Sultan Al Neyadi took off for a historic six-month mission on the International Space Station – the Arab world’s longest space mission. He made history as the first Arab astronaut to complete a spacewalk on the International Space Station.

https://english.alarabiya.net/News/gulf/2024/07/18/abu-dhabi-selected-as-launchpad-for-luxury-space-travel-to-earth-s-curvature-