The UAE has announced the launch date for the region's most advanced imaging satellite.
MBZ-Sat will be launched in October, Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai, confirmed on Wednesday.
He spoke after visiting the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre, where he met staff and approved the plans.
“We are proud that the satellite was built by a team of Emirati engineers and we thank the bright minds behind these great achievements that are turning our ambitions into reality,” Sheikh Hamdan wrote on X.
Named after President Sheikh Mohamed, the satellite has been under development at MBRSC in Dubai for years.
MBZ-Sat will offer high resolution images round-the-clock for entities worldwide.
About 90 per cent of the satellite’s mechanical structures and most of its electronic modules were locally manufactured.
On Wednesday, Sheikh Hamdan was briefed on the satellite's development, its capabilities, and the strategic plan for its deployment.
“We are on the brink of a transformative era in space exploration, and the upcoming launch of MBZ-Sat marks a pivotal moment that affirms the UAE’s growing influence as a significant global contributor to the field of space technology,” he said.
Sheikh Hamdan also visited the clean room holding MBZ-Sat and signed a plaque bearing the satellite’s logo.
With development completed, the next phase for the satellite involves environmental testing, which is crucial to ensuring its resilience and functionality in space. Once this is successfully carried out, final launch preparations will commence.
The satellite is equipped with one of the most powerful cameras developed in the region, and can capture high-resolution images with unprecedented clarity, covering areas less than one square metre in size.
This imagery solution can support a wide variety of uses within mapping and analysis, environmental monitoring, navigation, infrastructure management and disaster relief efforts.
Following its launch, MBZ-Sat will be operated and monitored from the Mission Control Centre at MBRSC.
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Ballon d’Or (Men’s)
Ousmane Dembélé (Paris Saint-Germain / France)
Ballon d’Or Féminin (Women’s)
Aitana Bonmatí (Barcelona / Spain)
Kopa Trophy (Best player under 21 – Men’s)
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Best Young Women’s Player
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Yashin Trophy (Best Goalkeeper – Men’s)
Gianluigi Donnarumma (Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City / Italy)
Best Women’s Goalkeeper
Hannah Hampton (England / Aston Villa and Chelsea)
Men’s Coach of the Year
Luis Enrique (Paris Saint-Germain)
Women’s Coach of the Year
Sarina Wiegman (England)
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Safety 'top priority' for rival hyperloop company
The chief operating officer of Hyperloop Transportation Technologies, Andres de Leon, said his company's hyperloop technology is “ready” and safe.
He said the company prioritised safety throughout its development and, last year, Munich Re, one of the world's largest reinsurance companies, announced it was ready to insure their technology.
“Our levitation, propulsion, and vacuum technology have all been developed [...] over several decades and have been deployed and tested at full scale,” he said in a statement to The National.
“Only once the system has been certified and approved will it move people,” he said.
HyperloopTT has begun designing and engineering processes for its Abu Dhabi projects and hopes to break ground soon.
With no delivery date yet announced, Mr de Leon said timelines had to be considered carefully, as government approval, permits, and regulations could create necessary delays.
