A spacecraft from the United Arab Emirates swung into orbit around Mars on Tuesday in a triumph for the Arab world’s first interplanetary mission.
Mission controllers at the United Arab of Emirates space center in Dubai announced that the unmanned craft called Hope Probe, reached the end of its nearly seven-month, 460-million-mile journey and began circling around the red planet, where it will gather detailed data on Mars orbit.
The orbiter fired its main engines for 27 minutes in an intricate, high-stakes maneuver that slowed the craft enough for it to be captured by Mars’ gravity.
After the engine firing, it took a nail-biting 15 minutes or so for the signal confirming success to reach Earth. Ground controllers rose their feet and broke into applause. Tensions were high: Over the years, Mars has been the graveyard for a multitude of missions from various countries.
Two more unmanned Space craft of USA and China are following close behind, set to arrive at Mars over the next several days. All three missions were launched in July to take advantage of the close alignment of Earth and Mars.
Amal’s arrival puts the UAE in a league of just five space agencies in history that have pulled off a functioning Mars mission. As the country’s first venture beyond Earth’s orbit, the flight is a point of intense pride for the oil-rich nation as it seeks a future in space.
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