Emirates lunar mission launched successfully

The first Arab mission to the lunar surface has been launched successfully.

The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the UAE's Rashid rover blasted off from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in the U.S. on Sunday. The rover was onboard the Hakuto-R Mission 1 lander, built by Japanese company ispace.

The four-wheeled rover, weighing 10 kilograms, was built entirely by Emirati engineers from the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre.

The lander's next goal is to land successfully on the Moon. So far, only the United States, former Soviet Union and China have achieved a soft landing on the lunar surface. 

The Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) said the integrated spacecraft will take a low-energy route to the moon rather than a direct approach, which means the landing will take about five months after launch, in April 2023.

The Hakuto-R Mission 1 lander will deploy two robotic rovers, the UAE's Rashid rover and a two-wheeled, baseball-sized device from Japan's JAXA space agency. It is also carrying an experimental solid-state battery made by NGK Spark Plug Co 5334.T.

Highlight of the launch of Falcon 9 rocket carrying the Rashid Rover, the first Emirati mission to the surface of the Moon.#EmiratesLunarMission#UAEtotheMoon pic.twitter.com/V5prbO5Sc8

— MBR Space Centre (@MBRSpaceCentre) December 11, 2022

The launch was watched in person by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai at the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre in Dubai. 

The rover is named in honour of his father, the late Sheikh Rashid Bin Saeed Al Maktoum.

.@HHShkMohd, accompanied by @HamdanMohammed & @MaktoumMohammed, witnesses the launch of Rashid Rover during a visit to @MBRSpaceCentre. #UAEtotheMoon pic.twitter.com/pL5996ajJ2

— Dubai Media Office (@DXBMediaOffice) December 11, 2022

Praising the achievement, His Highness wrote said that "reaching the moon means reaching an exceptional milestone in the ambitious march of a country and a people whose aspirations have no ceiling". 

"Our aim is knowledge transfer and developing our capabilities and to add a scientific imprint in the history of humanity," he tweeted.

دولة الإمارات أطلقت اليوم المستكشف راشد بهدف الهبوط على سطح القمر.. لتكون الرابعة عالمياً والأولى عربياً التي تهبط على سطح القمر في حال تكللت المهمة بالنجاح بإذن الله وتوفيقه.. pic.twitter.com/my6vAPJptx

— HH Sheikh Mohammed (@HHShkMohd) December 11, 2022

Our next stop is 384,400km away. We look forward to Rashid leaving an Arab footprint on the surface of the Moon. We thank Team @MBRSpaceCentre for the launch of the Rashid Rover and for raising the UAE flag in space pic.twitter.com/oQWkxGwsQ9

— Hamdan bin Mohammed (@HamdanMohammed) December 11, 2022

نبارك لأصحاب السمو حكام الإمارات وشعبها انطلاق "المستكشف راشد" إلى القمر. ونبارك للعرب بدء المهمة العربية الأولى لاستكشاف سطح القمر ونتمنى لها النجاح. الإمارات تعبر محطة تاريخية جديدة في إنجازاتها الفضائية، بسواعد علمائها في مركز محمد بن راشد للفضاء، وتثبت بأنها وطن اللامستحيل. pic.twitter.com/FwdGe463xQ

— Maktoum Bin Mohammed (@MaktoumMohammed) December 11, 2022