The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is planning a second attempt to land a rover on the Moon, as announced by the Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid. The new mission, named Rashid 2, will be developed and sent to space, following the probable crash of Japan’s Hakuto-R Mission 1 spacecraft carrying the Rashid rover on Tuesday. The announcement comes after the successful deployment of the Rashid 1 rover on the lunar surface, carrying the flag of the Emirates.
Sheikh Mohammed emphasized that the UAE is a country founded on ambition and will not set small goals for itself. The first mission, Rashid 1, was the first under the UAE’s home-grown Moon exploration programme, which took a team of 11 engineers at the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre six years to build. Despite Tuesday’s setback, the UAE is committed to continuing to raise the ceiling of its ambitions and create a team of young men and women capable of managing advanced space projects.
The project is a demonstration of the UAE’s commitment to its space programme and is part of its broader efforts to invest in advanced technologies and build its knowledge economy. The country is rapidly establishing itself as a regional hub for space exploration and innovation, having already launched several satellites, established partnerships with leading global space agencies, and set a goal of establishing a human settlement on Mars by 2117. The Rashid 2 mission is expected to continue to build on these successes and cement the UAE’s position as a leading space-faring nation.
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