Shaikh Mohammad announced last year that the UAE will be sending an unmanned spacecraft to Mars by 2021, coinciding with the country’s 50th anniversary.

He had also announced that a UAE space agency would be created to supervise the mission and coordinate the country’s growing space technology.

“My brothers and sisters, we started today with god’s grace the launch of the first Arab-Islamic probe to discover planet Mars. It is going to be the first steps for Arabs in entering the age of space,” said Shaikh Mohammad on Twitter yesterday.

Shaikh Mohammad also said the journey to Mars is a big challenge and a source of inspiration to the Arab nation as a whole.

Twitter user Sulaiman Esmail suggested calling the probe ‘ZAYED-UAE1971’, while user Ali Al Qaydi suggested the name ‘Discover UAE’.

These are just examples of the thousands of suggested names for the Mars probe on Twitter.

It is expected to take the probe nine months to cross more than 92 million kilometres to reach Mars.

The UAE is one of only nine countries with space programmes to explore the Red Planet.

The mission, led by Emiratis, will expand the nation’s human capital through knowledge transfer from international partners, as well as increasing human knowledge about space exploration and distant planets.

Shaikh Mohammad said last year that the UAE Space Agency would be responsible for supervising and organising all such activities, developing the sector, ensuring knowledge transfer, enhancing the UAE’s position as a global player in aerospace, and maximising the contribution of space industries to the national economy. The agency will report to the Cabinet and enjoy financial and administrative independence.

UAE investments in space technologies already exceed Dh20 billion, including satellite data and TV broadcast company, Al Yah Satellite Communications, mobile satellite communication company, Thuraya Satellite Telecommunications, and Earth mapping and observation system, Dubai Sat.

Quelle: ZAWYA

It will be the Arab world’s first mission to another planet. A new UAE Space Agency will be created to coordinate the nation’s growing space technology sector and to supervise the mission.

The Mars probe’s nine-month and more than 60 million kilometre journey will coincide with the 50th anniversary of the UAE’s formation.

“The UAE Mars probe represents the Islamic world’s entry into the era of space exploration. We will prove that we are capable of delivering new scientific contributions to humanity,” the President, His Highness Shaikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, said on the country’s great ambitions and the giant leap it has taken in space research in such a short time.

“The UAE’s purpose is to build Emirati technical and intellectual capabilities in the fields of aerospace and space exploration and to enter the space industry and to make use of space technology in a way that enhances the country’s development plans,” the President added.

His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, shared the country’s as well as the region’s confidence in forging ahead to make great strides: “Despite all the tensions and the conflicts across the Middle East, we have proved today how positive a contribution the Arab people can make to humanity through great achievements, given the right circumstances and ingredients. Our region is a region of civilisation. Our destiny is, once again, to explore, to create, to build and to civilise,” Shaikh Mohammed said.

“We chose the epic challenge of reaching Mars because epic challenges inspire us and motivate us. The moment we stop taking on such challenges is the moment we stop moving forward,” Shaikh Mohammed added.

The UAE is one of only nine countries with space programmes to explore the Red Planet.

Laurent Lemaire, managing director of DIFC-based Elseco, the largest space underwriting entity worldwide, said the UAE is already home to the world’s largest space insurer, so is well-equipped to be among the top countries in the field of aerospace by their target date of 2021.

“Space is not just a business, it is also an energy focus point for a country from which technology can be developed and turned into business. Some very exciting times lie ahead for the industry,” Lemaire said.

“It is a tangible project illustrating an ambitious vision for the UAE and more largely for the Arab world,” he added.

The Red Planet project, to be led by Emiratis, would be a turning point in the UAE’s development, establishing the space technology sector as a key component of the national economy for years to come.

The mission will also expand the nation’s human capital through knowledge transfer from international partners.

The UAE’s investments in space technologies exceed Dh20 billion, including the satellite data and TV broadcast company, Al Yah Satellite Communications; the mobile satellite communication company, Thuraya Satellite Telecommunications; and the earth mapping and observation system, Dubai Sat.

Shaikh Mohammed said that the UAE Space Agency would be responsible for supervising and organising all such activities, developing the sector, ensuring knowledge transfer, enhancing the country’s position as a global player in aerospace, and maximising the contribution of space industries to the national economy. The agency will report to the Cabinet and enjoy financial and administrative independence.

Globally, space technologies are becoming increasingly important to the security and economy of nations, in many cases backed by massive national programmes and establishments. The sector is integral to many aspects of life from telecommunications and navigation to broadcasting and monitoring of weather and natural disasters.

The industry is estimated to be worth around $300 billion globally and growing by around eight per cent annually.

“We aim for the UAE to be among the top countries in the field of aerospace by 2021. We have a great belief in Allah and in the talents of our young people. We have the strongest determination, the greatest ambitions, and a clear plan to reach our targets,” President Shaikh Khalifa said.

Already a significant player in the aerospace industry, the UAE is on track to build the first Arab-made satellite. The Emirates Institution for Advanced Science and Technology, also known as EIAST, is build the indigenous satellite, expected to be in the earth’s orbit by 2017.

Omran Sharaf, director of programme management department, EIAST, told Khaleej Times in May that the Khalifa Sat project will be a 100 per cent Emirati satellite and will boost the UAE space programme.

Abu Dhabi-based Al Yah Satellite Communications Company, popularly known as Yahsat, will be launching its third satellite in 2016.

The third satellite will place the UAE satellite operator as the world’s eighth largest operator in terms of revenue and as a leader in innovative satellite solutions.

Yahsat, a wholly owned company of the Mubadala Development Company, launched its  second satellite Y1B on April 24, 2012. It’s first satellite, Y1A, was launched in April 2011 from European Space Centre in Kourou, French Guiana.

Quelle: Khaleej Times

.

ABU DHABI // The UAE Space Agency will reveal its strategy and operational plan tomorrow as part of its goal to make the country a leader in space exploration.

The agency plans to create an integrated and advanced industry, combined with space science educational programmes, so that the UAE can send an unmanned space probe to Mars by 2021. With an investment of almost Dh20 billion in commercial and scientific space projects, the Government hopes the country will become an international player within the space sector.

The investment will be shared among several companies and space programmes, including satellite communications companies Yahsat, Thuraya and the Emirates Institution for Advanced Science and Technology, which will lead the DubaiSAT 1 and 2 programmes.

The agency will also announce the creation of a space museum aimed at enhancing knowledge of the space industry.

Masdar Institute of Science and Technology, a member of the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre’s science and research team, has also set up a team of researchers to ensure its academic output aids the space programme.

It is estimated that 150 Emirati scientists and engineers will be needed to work on the Mars mission by 2020. To meet this growing need for specialists, the institute is planning to launch space-orientated education programmes.

“Masdar Institute is committed to supporting the UAE’s space ambitions and needs,” said Dr Mohammed Sassi, professor of mechanical and materials science.

“The team we have set up is tasked with ensuring that Masdar Institute is able to support the UAE’s Mars Mission to the fullest, capitalising on the diverse and high-value expertise of our faculty, our programmes, our students and our research infrastructure.”

The agency’s launch comes one day before the start of the fifth Global Space & Satellite Forum at Adnec.

Quelle: UAE