Director of UAE's Hope probe mission describes exhilarating launch


Sarwat Nasir
  • English
  • Arabic

The project director of the UAE’s mission to Mars has described the challenge and exhilaration of Monday’s early morning launch.

Omran Al Sharaf told how the ambitious bid to explore the Red Planet had consumed years of his life, with the build-up leaving him exhausted but jubilant.

Speaking to The National, he said the atmosphere at mission control as the countdown began had been a mixture of sheer nerves and elation.

Omran Al Sharaf is the programme manager of the Emirates Mars Mission. Courtesy: Dubai Media Office
Omran Al Sharaf is the programme manager of the Emirates Mars Mission. Courtesy: Dubai Media Office

But he cautioned that a great deal of work lay ahead following the successful lift-off, with the probe now at the start of a nearly 500-million kilometre journey.

“For me, it’s shaped my life for the past several years – it’s been all about Mars,” said Mr Al Sharaf, 36.

“Just yesterday, I thought ‘wow, we are launching today’. Usually you are so busy running around, you don’t feel it.

For me, it's shaped my life for the past several years – it's been all about Mars.

“But yesterday, I felt it in the control room an hour and 40 minutes before launch and I thought ‘oh God, this is happening’.”

The Hope probe took off from Japan's Tanegashima Space Centre at 1.58am UAE time.

Two previous attempts to launch the craft in the last week were called off because of adverse weather.

The probe’s mission is to gather fresh data on the planet’s atmosphere through, in part, its sophisticated on-board camera.

High-resolution images of Mars’ surface, as well as dust storms and ice clouds, will be captured and sent back to Earth for study.

“The time just flew from the one hour and 40-minute countdown all the way to the first contact [with the probe],” said Mr Al Sharaf, describing the launch.

“It was an amazing learning experience, but not an easy one given the challenges.

“The whole time I was really nervous. Each second was very critical. The side boosters falling off and the opening of the fairing was very important.

“It was quite tiring and at certain points where there were two minute or three minute waiting periods, it felt like 20 minutes.

“It’s a very strange feeling to explain. I got exposed to things that people at a much older age do, but it gave me a very valuable experience.”

Hope's arrival in Mars’ orbit is expected to be in February 2021 and will coincide with the 50th anniversary of the UAE's formation.

It will orbit the planet at a distance of 22,000km to 44,000km, allowing scientists to see areas of its surface at all times of day.

The country’s leaders have spoken of their hope that the mission will prove an inspiration to the Arab world, providing yet another marker in the UAE’s ambitious space programme.

Last year, the Emirates sent its first astronaut to the International Space Station, an undertaking that also proved a resounding success.

“The UAE is ambitious and it has many different plans in its space programme,” said Mr Al Sharaf.

“We have a very difficult task ahead of us and this [the launch] was only 30 per cent of the journey.

“We still have the seven months [to reach Mars], the orbit insertion and [plans to begin] collecting data.”

Late on Monday, the US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo congratulated the UAE on the mission's launch.

In a tweet he wrote that he hoped the mission would inspire Emirati youth, just as astronaut Neil Armstrong had inspired Americans after the landing on the Moon in 1969.

"Congrats to the UAE on launching its Hope Mars mission," Mr Pompeo wrote.

"Proud that American expertise from Nasa and US universities supported the first Arab nation to join the Mars space community.

Mission to Mars. The National
Mission to Mars. The National

"Hope will inspire Emirati youth, just as Neil Armstrong inspired Americans 51 years ago today."

Naokazu Takemoto, the Japanese Minister of State for Science and Technology Policy, said: "It was a great honour to participate in the launch of the Hope Probe to Mars, which is a national project for the UAE.

"I hope to see the probe achieve successful outcomes, coinciding with the UAE’s 50th-anniversary celebrations next year."

Dubai Bling season three

Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed 

Rating: 1/5

AUSTRALIA SQUAD v SOUTH AFRICA

Aaron Finch (capt), Shaun Marsh, Travis Head, Chris Lynn, Glenn Maxwell, D'Arcy Short, Marcus Stoinis, Alex Carey, Ashton Agar, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Pat Cummins, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Adam Zampa

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
MATCH INFO

Uefa Champions League last 16, first leg

Liverpool v Bayern Munich, midnight, Wednesday, BeIN Sports

Know your cyber adversaries

Cryptojacking: Compromises a device or network to mine cryptocurrencies without an organisation's knowledge.

Distributed denial-of-service: Floods systems, servers or networks with information, effectively blocking them.

Man-in-the-middle attack: Intercepts two-way communication to obtain information, spy on participants or alter the outcome.

Malware: Installs itself in a network when a user clicks on a compromised link or email attachment.

Phishing: Aims to secure personal information, such as passwords and credit card numbers.

Ransomware: Encrypts user data, denying access and demands a payment to decrypt it.

Spyware: Collects information without the user's knowledge, which is then passed on to bad actors.

Trojans: Create a backdoor into systems, which becomes a point of entry for an attack.

Viruses: Infect applications in a system and replicate themselves as they go, just like their biological counterparts.

Worms: Send copies of themselves to other users or contacts. They don't attack the system, but they overload it.

Zero-day exploit: Exploits a vulnerability in software before a fix is found.

Tonight's Chat on The National

Tonight's Chat is a series of online conversations on The National. The series features a diverse range of celebrities, politicians and business leaders from around the Arab world.

Tonight’s Chat host Ricardo Karam is a renowned author and broadcaster with a decades-long career in TV. He has previously interviewed Bill Gates, Carlos Ghosn, Andre Agassi and the late Zaha Hadid, among others. Karam is also the founder of Takreem.

Intellectually curious and thought-provoking, Tonight’s Chat moves the conversation forward.

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THREE POSSIBLE REPLACEMENTS

Khalfan Mubarak
The Al Jazira playmaker has for some time been tipped for stardom within UAE football, with Quique Sanchez Flores, his former manager at Al Ahli, once labelling him a “genius”. He was only 17. Now 23, Mubarak has developed into a crafty supplier of chances, evidenced by his seven assists in six league matches this season. Still to display his class at international level, though.

Rayan Yaslam
The Al Ain attacking midfielder has become a regular starter for his club in the past 15 months. Yaslam, 23, is a tidy and intelligent player, technically proficient with an eye for opening up defences. Developed while alongside Abdulrahman in the Al Ain first-team and has progressed well since manager Zoran Mamic’s arrival. However, made his UAE debut only last December.

Ismail Matar
The Al Wahda forward is revered by teammates and a key contributor to the squad. At 35, his best days are behind him, but Matar is incredibly experienced and an example to his colleagues. His ability to cope with tournament football is a concern, though, despite Matar beginning the season well. Not a like-for-like replacement, although the system could be adjusted to suit.

Electric scooters: some rules to remember
  • Riders must be 14-years-old or over
  • Wear a protective helmet
  • Park the electric scooter in designated parking lots (if any)
  • Do not leave electric scooter in locations that obstruct traffic or pedestrians
  • Solo riders only, no passengers allowed
  • Do not drive outside designated lanes
THE LOWDOWN

Photograph

Rating: 4/5

Produced by: Poetic License Motion Pictures; RSVP Movies

Director: Ritesh Batra

Cast: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Sanya Malhotra, Farrukh Jaffar, Deepak Chauhan, Vijay Raaz

RESULTS
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Mina Cup winners

Under 12 – Minerva Academy

Under 14 – Unam Pumas

Under 16 – Fursan Hispania

Under 18 – Madenat

Dust and sand storms compared

Sand storm

  • Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
  • Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
  • Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
  • Travel distance: Limited 
  • Source: Open desert areas with strong winds

Dust storm

  • Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
  • Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
  • Duration: Can linger for days
  • Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
  • Source: Can be carried from distant regions
HOW TO WATCH

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Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
The biog

Name: Marie Byrne

Nationality: Irish

Favourite film: The Shawshank Redemption

Book: Seagull by Jonathan Livingston

Life lesson: A person is not old until regret takes the place of their dreams

The biog

Place of birth: Kalba

Family: Mother of eight children and has 10 grandchildren

Favourite traditional dish: Al Harees, a slow cooked porridge-like dish made from boiled cracked or coarsely ground wheat mixed with meat or chicken

Favourite book: My early life by Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, the Ruler of Sharjah

Favourite quote: By Sheikh Zayed, the UAE's Founding Father, “Those who have no past will have no present or future.”

ELIO

Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett

Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina

Rating: 4/5

The specs

Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
Power: 620hp from 5,750-7,500rpm
Torque: 760Nm from 3,000-5,750rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed dual-clutch auto
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh1.05 million ($286,000)

Tour de France 2017: Stage 5

Vittel - La Planche de Belles Filles, 160.5km

It is a shorter stage, but one that will lead to a brutal uphill finish. This is the third visit in six editions since it was introduced to the race in 2012. Reigning champion Chris Froome won that race.

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets

Sting & Shaggy

44/876

(Interscope)

The Great Derangement: Climate Change and the Unthinkable
Amitav Ghosh, University of Chicago Press

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SPECS
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ESSENTIALS

The flights 
Fly Etihad or Emirates from the UAE to Moscow from 2,763 return per person return including taxes. 
Where to stay 
Trips on the Golden Eagle Trans-Siberian cost from US$16,995 (Dh62,414) per person, based on two sharing.

Copa del Rey final

Sevilla v Barcelona, Saturday, 11.30pm (UAE), match on Bein Sports

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The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre 6-cyl turbo

Power: 374hp at 5,500-6,500rpm

Torque: 500Nm from 1,900-5,000rpm

Transmission: 8-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 8.5L/100km

Price: from Dh285,000

On sale: from January 2022 

ESSENTIALS

The flights

Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.

The hotels

Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.

The tours

A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages. 

MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW

Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman

Director: Jesse Armstrong

Rating: 3.5/5

Our family matters legal consultant

Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais

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

Specs – Taycan 4S
Engine: Electric

Transmission: 2-speed auto

Power: 571bhp

Torque: 650Nm

Price: Dh431,800

Specs – Panamera
Engine: 3-litre V6 with 100kW electric motor

Transmission: 2-speed auto

Power: 455bhp

Torque: 700Nm

Price: from Dh431,800

The specs

Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel

Power: 579hp

Torque: 859Nm

Transmission: Single-speed automatic

Price: From Dh825,900

On sale: Now

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The%20Specs
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Sole survivors
  • Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
  • George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
  • Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
  • Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Dubai works towards better air quality by 2021

Dubai is on a mission to record good air quality for 90 per cent of the year – up from 86 per cent annually today – by 2021.

The municipality plans to have seven mobile air-monitoring stations by 2020 to capture more accurate data in hourly and daily trends of pollution.

These will be on the Palm Jumeirah, Al Qusais, Muhaisnah, Rashidiyah, Al Wasl, Al Quoz and Dubai Investment Park.

“It will allow real-time responding for emergency cases,” said Khaldoon Al Daraji, first environment safety officer at the municipality.

“We’re in a good position except for the cases that are out of our hands, such as sandstorms.

“Sandstorms are our main concern because the UAE is just a receiver.

“The hotspots are Iran, Saudi Arabia and southern Iraq, but we’re working hard with the region to reduce the cycle of sandstorm generation.”

Mr Al Daraji said monitoring as it stood covered 47 per cent of Dubai.

There are 12 fixed stations in the emirate, but Dubai also receives information from monitors belonging to other entities.

“There are 25 stations in total,” Mr Al Daraji said.

“We added new technology and equipment used for the first time for the detection of heavy metals.

“A hundred parameters can be detected but we want to expand it to make sure that the data captured can allow a baseline study in some areas to ensure they are well positioned.”