TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
UAE to send rover to the Moon in 2022
The UAE -- made up of seven emirates including the capital Abu Dhabi and freewheeling Dubai -- announced in September 2020 that it planned to launch the "Rashid" rover by 2024.
Change Size
One of the first images released on June 23, 2009 from NASA's Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) using the visible light camera during the swingby of the moon. LCROSS has nine science instruments that collect different types of data which are complementary to each other. These instruments provide for a robust collection of data about the composition of the lunar regolith. The probe is scheduled to crash into the lunar south pole later this year. (NASA/NASA)
L
unar exploration firm iSpace said Wednesday it will transport a United Arab Emirates unmanned rover to the Moon next year, as the Gulf state seeks to expand its space sector.
The UAE -- made up of seven emirates including the capital Abu Dhabi and freewheeling Dubai -- announced in September 2020 that it planned to launch the "Rashid" rover by 2024.
The rover "will be transported to the Moon on iSpace’s lunar lander" during a mission in 2022, the Japanese company said in a statement.
iSpace "will deliver the Emirates lunar mission's 'Rashid' rover to the Moon, provide wired communication and power during the cruise phase, and engage in wireless communication on the lunar surface".
The UAE is a newcomer to the world of space exploration but is quickly making its mark.
In September 2019, the oil-rich country sent the first Emirati into space as part of a three-member crew that blasted off on a Soyuz rocket from Kazakhstan for an eight-day mission.
Then in February, its "Hope" probe successfully entered Mars' orbit on a journey to reveal the secrets of Martian weather, making history as the Arab world's first interplanetary mission.
Read also: UAE's 'Hope' probe sends home first image of Mars
iSpace, which was founded in 2010, will use Elon Musk's SpaceX (Falcon 9) rocket for its first mission to launch a lander next year -- set to blast off from Florida in the United States.
Dubai's ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum has said that the Emirati-made rover will cover "areas not yet reached in previous exploration missions".
It is part of the country's strategy to build new knowledge-based and scientific capabilities, he added.
The project marks another first for the UAE, making it the first trip to the Moon by an Arab country.
The Dubai Media Office has said that the 10-kilogramme (22-pound) rover will be an integral part of efforts to build the first settlement on Mars in 2117 -- one of the UAE's most ambitious plans.
