UAE's Moon mission on track for October launch


Sarwat Nasir
  • English
  • Arabic

The UAE will attempt to land a rover on the Moon in October, the chief of the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre said on Tuesday.

The Arab world's first Moon mission was announced in 2020, with a launch date set for 2024.

However, the Emirates was able to secure an earlier flight when it partnered with Japan's ispace to use its Hakuto-R mission lander to deliver the rover to the lunar surface this year.

Salem Al Marri, the director general of the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre, confirmed the rover would launch in October.

“We plan to launch our first rover, which will be the first object from the Arab world to land on another celestial body,” he said.

“We will be landing on the Moon in October of this year.”

Engineers at the UAE space centre are assembling the Rashid rover.

Work on the mission started in 2017.

After years in development, the Japanese lander that will take the UAE rover to the Moon is nearing completion.

The Hakuto-R lander has been in development since 2019. Technical problems in 2020 delayed its first launch plan.

It is now in the final stages of assembly and will be ready to receive the Rashid rover for integration in April.

Final tests will be carried out before the mission heads to Florida’s Kennedy Space Centre for launch on board a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.

Securing an already available commercial lander offers the UAE the easiest access to the lunar surface.

The Emirates' entire Moon mission relies heavily on the Japanese lander, which will act as a “lunar taxi” for the rover.

Engineers install the fuel tank on the Hakuto-R lander. Photo: ispace
Engineers install the fuel tank on the Hakuto-R lander. Photo: ispace

“The year ahead is the most important yet for us. This is everything we’ve worked for,” ispace founder Takeshi Hakamada said.

“Every member of our team has contributed to our progress and I continue to be grateful for our employees each day.

“There is still a lot of work to do, so we must remain focused and steadfast as we progress toward our first mission.

“However, by this time next year, I am optimistic that we will be able to look up at the Moon during the New Year celebrations and see it in a way we’ve never seen it before.”

The lander will also provide the Rashid rover with wired communication and power during the cruise phase and wireless communication on the lunar surface.

In the months ahead, engineers will install radiators, insulation layers, solar panels, landing gear and deployment mechanisms on the lander.

An artist's impression of the Hakuto-R lander approaching the Moon. Photo: ispace
An artist's impression of the Hakuto-R lander approaching the Moon. Photo: ispace

The lander is carrying seven payloads from space agencies and private companies.

They include a lunar robot by the Japanese space agency, 360-degree cameras by Canadian company Canadensys Aerospace, and an artificial intelligence flight computer by another Canadian organisation, Mission Control Services.

If the lander reaches the Moon and delivers these payloads, it will mark a major milestone for the commercial space industry.

More private companies are seeking to establish delivery services to the Moon to cater to space agencies and private organisations that wish to reach the lunar surface.

Intuitive Machines, a private space company in Houston, will soon launch its own lunar lander on top of a SpaceX rocket.

The Nova-C lunar lander will carry five commercial payloads to the Moon’s surface for Nasa and private companies.

The Nasa-sponsored flight will also carry the first British mission, a small rover built by private company Spacebit, to the Moon’s surface.

OPTA'S PREDICTED TABLE

1. Liverpool 101 points

2. Manchester City 80 

3. Leicester 67

4. Chelsea 63

5. Manchester United 61

6. Tottenham 58

7. Wolves 56

8. Arsenal 56

9. Sheffield United 55

10. Everton 50

11. Burnley 49

12. Crystal Palace 49

13. Newcastle 46

14. Southampton 44

15. West Ham 39

16. Brighton 37

17. Watford 36

18. Bournemouth 36

19. Aston Villa 32

20. Norwich City 29

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dubai World Cup prize money

Group 1 (Purebred Arabian) 2000m Dubai Kahayla Classic - $750,000
Group 2 1,600m(Dirt) Godolphin Mile - $750,000
Group 2 3,200m (Turf) Dubai Gold Cup – $750,000
Group 1 1,200m (Turf) Al Quoz Sprint – $1,000,000
Group 2 1,900m(Dirt) UAE Derby – $750,000
Group 1 1,200m (Dirt) Dubai Golden Shaheen – $1,500,000
Group 1 1,800m (Turf) Dubai Turf –  $4,000,000
Group 1 2,410m (Turf) Dubai Sheema Classic – $5,000,000
Group 1 2,000m (Dirt) Dubai World Cup– $12,000,000

ELIO

Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett

Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina

Rating: 4/5

The burning issue

The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.

Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins

Read part two: how climate change drove the race for an alternative 

Read part one: how cars came to the UAE

 


 

Cinco in numbers

Dh3.7 million

The estimated cost of Victoria Swarovski’s gem-encrusted Michael Cinco wedding gown

46

The number, in kilograms, that Swarovski’s wedding gown weighed.

1,000

The hours it took to create Cinco’s vermillion petal gown, as seen in his atelier [note, is the one he’s playing with in the corner of a room]

50

How many looks Cinco has created in a new collection to celebrate Ballet Philippines’ 50th birthday

3,000

The hours needed to create the butterfly gown worn by Aishwarya Rai to the 2018 Cannes Film Festival.

1.1 million

The number of followers that Michael Cinco’s Instagram account has garnered.

TRAP

Starring: Josh Hartnett, Saleka Shyamalan, Ariel Donaghue

Director: M Night Shyamalan

Rating: 3/5

At a glance

Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.

 

Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year

 

Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month

 

Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30 

 

Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse

 

Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth

 

Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances

Infiniti QX80 specs

Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6

Power: 450hp

Torque: 700Nm

Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000

Available: Now

Bangladesh tour of Pakistan

January 24 – First T20, Lahore

January 25 – Second T20, Lahore

January 27 – Third T20, Lahore

February 7-11 – First Test, Rawalpindi

April 3 – One-off ODI, Karachi

April 5-9 – Second Test, Karachi

Our family matters legal consultant

Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais

Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
BIGGEST CYBER SECURITY INCIDENTS IN RECENT TIMES

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Microsoft Exchange server exploitation: March 2021; attackers used a vulnerability to steal emails

Kaseya attack: July 2021; ransomware hit perpetrated REvil, resulting in severe downtime for more than 1,000 companies

Log4j breach: December 2021; attackers exploited the Java-written code to inflitrate businesses and governments

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5. Zakat 

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Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor

Power: 727hp

Torque: 1,000Nm

Transmission: 8-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km

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9.20pm: Handicap (TB) Dh165,000 1,400m.

10pm: Handicap (TB) Dh175,000 2,000m.

MATCH RESULT

Al Jazira 3 Persepolis 2
Jazira:
Mabkhout (52'), Romarinho (77'), Al Hammadi (90' 6)
Persepolis: Alipour (42'), Mensha (84')

Fixtures (all in UAE time)

Friday

Everton v Burnley 11pm

Saturday

Bournemouth v Tottenham Hotspur 3.30pm

West Ham United v Southampton 6pm

Wolves v Fulham 6pm

Cardiff City v Crystal Palace 8.30pm

Newcastle United v Liverpool 10.45pm

Sunday

Chelsea v Watford 5pm

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Monday

Manchester City v Leicester City 11pm

 

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Favourite book: Kane and Abel by Jeffrey Archer

Favourite quote: “The world makes way for the man who knows where he is going.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson, American essayist

Favourite Authors: Arab poet Abu At-Tayyib Al-Mutanabbi

Favourite Emirati food: Luqaimat, a deep-fried dough soaked in date syrup

Hobbies: Reading and drawing

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Founder: Smeetha Ghosh, one co-founder (anonymous)

Launch year: 2020

Employees: four – plans to add another 10 by July 2021

Financing stage: $250,000 bootstrap funding, approaching VC firms this year

Investors: Co-founders

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Engine: 5.0-litre V8

Power: 480hp at 7,250rpm

Torque: 566Nm at 4,600rpm

Transmission: 10-speed auto

Fuel consumption: L/100km

Price: Dh306,495

On sale: now

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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One in nine do not have enough to eat

Created in 1961, the World Food Programme is pledged to fight hunger worldwide as well as providing emergency food assistance in a crisis.

One of the organisation’s goals is the Zero Hunger Pledge, adopted by the international community in 2015 as one of the 17 Sustainable Goals for Sustainable Development, to end world hunger by 2030.

The WFP, a branch of the United Nations, is funded by voluntary donations from governments, businesses and private donations.

Almost two thirds of its operations currently take place in conflict zones, where it is calculated that people are more than three times likely to suffer from malnutrition than in peaceful countries.

It is currently estimated that one in nine people globally do not have enough to eat.

On any one day, the WFP estimates that it has 5,000 lorries, 20 ships and 70 aircraft on the move.

Outside emergencies, the WFP provides school meals to up to 25 million children in 63 countries, while working with communities to improve nutrition. Where possible, it buys supplies from developing countries to cut down transport cost and boost local economies.

 

Updated: January 26, 2022, 2:06 PM`