The French space agency has opened an office in Abu Dhabi. UAE Space Agency
The French space agency has opened an office in Abu Dhabi. UAE Space Agency

The UAE's mission to build a city on Mars is an ideas race first



In 1917, Albert Einstein published his first paper on cosmology, the vacuum cleaner had just been invented and the television, toaster, hairdryer and ballpoint pen were still light years away. It would have been impossible for the average person 100 years ago to envisage man would land on the Moon, let alone that humans might one day live on Mars.

Yet the UAE is planning to do just that by building the first city on the Red Planet within a century as part of its 2117 Mars project. This week Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, the UAE Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, was one of the first people to get a glimpse of what life in a Martian city might look like. A short film, viewed with a virtual reality headset, took him on a simulated tour of a city built under a huge dome, complete with flying vehicles, trees and vegetation. It is thought work on the planet more than 50 million kilometres away could start in just 30 years. In three years, the unmanned Emirates Mars Mission, a joint venture by the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre and the UAE Space Agency, will go into orbit to carry out scientific observations in preparation.

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All this is part of a plan to put the UAE at the forefront of planetary exploration and, eventually, to launch homegrown astronauts into space. Astronautical training could start in the UAE as early as next year. Why? Because our fascination with the world around us, and the exploration of other worlds, is universal and enduring. Human beings have always been driven to find new discoveries and to test the limits of knowledge and expertise, as well as to pose fundamental questions about our purpose and place in the universe. That is the never-ending question civilisation has been asking itself from time immemorial.

The space race is an ideas race first and foremost and one befitting a nation which places such value in a knowledge economy. For the new age of space exploration isn't simply about sending astronauts into space; it is to build a credible foundation of expertise, research, technology and development, which in turn will lead to other offshoot projects and new boundaries and ideas being explored. It makes sense that the UAE, bold and larger-than-life in its vision and the realisation of its aspirations, should be part of that space race. Whether it will cross the finishing line first really is the final frontier.

Director: Laxman Utekar

Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna

Rating: 1/5

The years Ramadan fell in May

1987

1954

1921

1888

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Company%20profile
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Babumoshai Bandookbaaz

Director: Kushan Nandy

Starring: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Bidita Bag, Jatin Goswami

Three stars

The National in Davos

We are bringing you the inside story from the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting in Davos, a gathering of hundreds of world leaders, top executives and billionaires.

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THE LIGHT

Director: Tom Tykwer

Starring: Tala Al Deen, Nicolette Krebitz, Lars Eidinger

Rating: 3/5

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
How to protect yourself when air quality drops

Install an air filter in your home.

Close your windows and turn on the AC.

Shower or bath after being outside.

Wear a face mask.

Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.

If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.

Indoor Cricket World Cup

Venue Insportz, Dubai, September 16-23

UAE squad Saqib Nazir (captain), Aaqib Malik, Fahad Al Hashmi, Isuru Umesh, Nadir Hussain, Sachin Talwar, Nashwan Nasir, Prashath Kumara, Ramveer Rai, Sameer Nayyak, Umar Shah, Vikrant Shetty

Cryopreservation: A timeline
  1. Keyhole surgery under general anaesthetic
  2. Ovarian tissue surgically removed
  3. Tissue processed in a high-tech facility
  4. Tissue re-implanted at a time of the patient’s choosing
  5. Full hormone production regained within 4-6 months
The Bio

Favourite place in UAE: Al Rams pearling village

What one book should everyone read: Any book written before electricity was invented. When a writer willingly worked under candlelight, you know he/she had a real passion for their craft

Your favourite type of pearl: All of them. No pearl looks the same and each carries its own unique characteristics, like humans

Best time to swim in the sea: When there is enough light to see beneath the surface

The specs

Engine: 0.8-litre four cylinder

Power: 70bhp

Torque: 66Nm

Transmission: four-speed manual

Price: $1,075 new in 1967, now valued at $40,000

On sale: Models from 1966 to 1970

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
UK%20-%20UAE%20Trade
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