Three Martian probes will finally be ending their months-long journey across millions of miles and will reach Mars this week, but first to do so is the Hope probe, which was sent by the United Arab Emirates and the first interplanetary probe sent by an Arab nation.
UAE's Hope Mars Orbiter First to Reach Planet
According to CBS News, UAE's $200 million Hope probe will reach Mars this Tuesday, February 9, ending its 300 million-mile journey that lasted for seven months as it's the first one to be launched, thanks to a Japanese H-2A rocket.
Hope, or Al Amal, was launched on July 19, 2020.
Hope will be followed by Tianwen-1 orbiter from China, which is expected to reach Mars on Wednesday, February 10, and finally the Perseverance probe from the United States, which the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) expecting the $2.4 billion probe to enter the Martian atmosphere next Thursday, February 18.
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How Hope Will End the Journey and Start the Mission
The Mars probe is expected to enter the planet's orbit at around 10:30 AM EST at an altitude of about 1,470 above the Martian surface.
Then, the moment of truth for the UAE space agency and scientists will start as the orbiter will ignite its thrusters for a 27-minute "burn" that will slow the spacecraft down as it descends into the elliptical "capture orbit" with a high point of around 31,000 miles and a low point of 620 miles.
After that, Hope will be maneuvered into its planned orbit from 12,400 miles to 26,700 miles, where it will have the perfect spot to study the Martian atmosphere day in and day out.
The probe has three science instruments: two complex spectrometers and a high-resolution camera that will capture data from the Red Planet and send it over to scientists back here on Earth for further analysis.
Encouraging Future Scientists
If the landing of Emirates' Hope Mars probe is successful, the Arab country will be joining a handful of other nations to have tried their hands on interplanetary missions.
The UAE space agency hopes to provide Arab youths with a "moonshot moment" and encourage them to tackle space exploration more.
Sarah Al Amiri, a deputy project manager, UAE minister of state for advanced sciences, and chairperson of the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Center, said that among their mission objectives is to "stimulate a lot of students" as well as people within the STEM society.
"We've seen a large shift with the mindset of students, first and foremost within the Emirates, but we've also seen a lot of keen engagement with the region ... and that has triggered a lot of thoughts with regards to what is possible, and how to be able to use the talents of youth positively rather than using them towards destruction," she said.
Hope was built in the United States by Emirates engineers who are working at the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics at the University of Colorado, Boulder, with the help of University of California, Berkeley, and the Arizona State University.
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Written by: Nhx Tingson
