Dubai, United Arab Emirates
The UAE’s “Hope” probe sent its first image of Mars a few days after it successfully entered the red planet’s orbit, the national space agency announced Sunday.
“The Mars mission in the United Arab Emirates has captured the photo of the largest volcano in the solar system, Olympus Mons, emerging in the early morning light,” said a statement.
The image was taken on Wednesday from a height of 24,700 km above the surface of Mars, the day after the probe was installed in Mars’ orbit, a statement said.
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Sheikh Mohamed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, Emirati Prime Minister and ruler of Dubai shared the color image in a tweet.
“First image of Mars taken by the first Arabian probe in history,” he wrote next to the photo.
This mission aims to discover the secrets of the Martian climate, but the Emirates want it to also serve as an inspiration for the youth of the region.
“Hope” became the first of three spacecraft to reach the red planet, after China and the United States launched missions in July, taking advantage of a period when Earth and Mars are closer.
The Emirati’s mission also aims to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the unification of the country’s seven emirates.
“Hope” will remain in orbit of the red planet for at least one Mars year, that is, 687 Earth days, using three scientific instruments to analyze Mars’ atmosphere.
More information is scheduled to be sent to Earth in September 2021, with the data available to scientists around the world.