Successful Hope Mission commemorates a Golden Jubilee where anything is possible

The United Arab Emirates (U.A.E.) made history on Feb. 9 when our Hope Mission successfully entered Mars’ orbit—as only one of six countries in the world to do so—and will be the first country to gather new pivotal scientific data on the atmosphere of the red planet to better understand our own planet, and with plans to build a future city on Mars. With the U.A.E. Hope Probe being launched last summer from the Tanegashima Space Centre in Japan during the global pandemic, the Hope Mission to Mars has truly come to serve as a beacon of hope for all in its successful journey. With the U.A.E. marking its Golden Jubilee this year—where our country began as a desert country with few resources to one with sustainable green spaces and the world’s tallest building, all thriving within one of the world’s leading global economies—the Hope Mission has also come to symbolize that anything is possible. This commitment to develop U.A.E.’s scientific capabilities, while contributing knowledge to the global community was spearheaded by our founding president, who united our seven emirates 50 years ago. The late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan met with Apollo 17 astronauts in 1976, just five years after our country united, and was a pioneer in making our current U.A.E. space achievements and national growth possible. The unmanned Hope probe which left Japan last July 20, soared on a 493.5-million kilometre, seven-month journey to Mars, successfully entering the Mars’ orbit on Feb. 9 to the applause of international science leaders and space agencies around the world. This milestone makes the U.A.E. the first Arab world country to journey into space, and when it arrived was one of only five space agencies to have entered Mars’ orbit, (along with the U.S., Russia, the EU, India—with China following after U.A.E.). This achievement is not our country’s alone to celebrate—but shared with enthusiasm around the world in a collaborative spirit to advance scientific knowledge. This commitment to shared knowledge is not new to the international space community. In fact, following the MOU signed between the U.A.E. and the Canadian Space Agency in 2018, on the exploration and use of space for peaceful purposes, the two space agencies also signed the Artemis Accords just five months ago with NASA, (and five other countries including: Australia, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, and the U.K.), to co-operate in the exploration of the moon, Mars, and other celestial bodies for peaceful purposes. The U.A.E.’s Hope Mission will be the world’s first probe to provide a complete picture of Mars’ atmosphere and its layers. Other mission objectives also include creating the first global picture of how the Mars atmosphere changes throughout the day, and between seasons, and why it is losing its upper atmosphere to observing weather phenomena (such as dust storms). All of this information will help to develop a comprehensive understanding of the Mars climate, and provide international scientists with a deeper understanding into the past and future evolution of our own planet, as well as gauge the potential for sustaining human life on Mars or other planets. Another measure of success for our space program, and our country in general has been the empowerment and active participation of women and youth. We are proud that 80 per cent of our U.A.E. space team are women, with the entire Emirates’ Mars Mission team being an average of just 27 years old. Emirati researchers who were an integral part to the Emirates’ Mars Mission. Photograph courtesy of the U.A.E. Space Agency This is reflective of women’s equality and youth engagement within our broader society, where more than 70 per cent of our university graduates are women, two-thirds of public-sector jobs are held by women, and through presidential decree, 50 per cent of our U.A.E. National Assembly are women. Through the development of our national space program and our commitment to women and youth engagement, we have also seen an increase in young women studying the sciences—who now make up almost 50 per cent of our STEM university graduates. The importance of involving youth in the future of science and space is also a value shared across international borders—which can be seen through the Canadian Space Agency’s initiative to award grants to Canadian university students to participate in the International Astronautical Congress (IAC 2021), and in the activities organized by the International Space Education Board (ISEB), both to be hosted in Dubai, U.A.E., from Oct. 24-30 later this year. This valuable opportunity will open doors for university students to learn more about the future of the space industry, develop their international networks, and present their research at the highest professional levels, while developing the next generation of space professionals. The IAC 2021 will bring together more than 400 members, from more than 70 countries to the U.A.E., and be the first time it is hosted in the Arab World since its establishment in 1950. Yet another upcoming U.A.E.-Canadian Space Agency initiative will be seen this spring, when a joint roundtable with our respective space industries will be held to explore even further collaborations. Some would argue that just as exciting as exploring Mars is the U.A.E.’s Mars 2117 Strategy, which aims to build the first human settlement on the red planet within the next 100 years. In preparing for this Mars settlement, our country is building a $180-million complex of buildings that will cover 1.9-million square feet. It will be the largest space simulation city ever built, and be self-sufficient enough to allow for a team of scientists to live there for one year. Termed the “Mars Science City,” it will have laboratories to study food, water, and energy development. It will also include a museum highlighting humanity’s greatest space achievements, which will be 3D printed, using U.A.E. desert sand. Yet another proud moment in U.A.E. history was seen in September 2019, when Major Hazza Al Mansouri became the first person from our country to travel to space; making U.A.E. only the 19th country to visit the International Space Station (ISS). Major Al Mansouri was joined by U.S. astronaut Jessica Meir, and Russian cosmonaut Oleg Skripochka on an eight-day journey, where they conducted multiple, potentially life-changing experiments on the ISS in the fields of medicine to food security. The U.A.E. is proud of its space achievements, and equally so, proud to share this exciting moment in history with the global community, where we seek collaborative answers together on how to make our own planet more sustainable, and where everyone will benefit from this knowledge. Fahad Saeed Al Raqbani is the ambassador of the U.A.E. to Canada. The Hill Times