Mars through the eye of the Hope probe since arriving a year ago

The Emirati Hope probe celebrates its first year around Mars. Launched on July 19, 2020 from Tanegashima in Japan, Hope (or al-Amal in Arabic) inserted itself into the orbit of Mars February 9, 2021. Thanks to the success of the “Emirates Mars Mission” (EMM for Emirates Mars Mission), the United Arab Emirates becomes the fifth country to place an artificial satellite around the Red Planet. Despite its young age, the Emirati space agency demonstrates the extent of its ambitions. The Hope probe aims to be a real technological flagship, realizing great pictures of mars while positioning itself as an asset in the scientific study of the planet.

Young agency, big ambitions

If the Emirati space agency (UAE Space Agency, in English) was only officially created in 2014, the institution wishes toimplant progressively in the field of space exploration. The development of the Hope probe was also announced in 2014, with a clear scientific objective: to study theatmosphere martian, sound weatherand participate in the international effort to be able to learn more about desert planet evolution. The space agency thus indicates on its site that one of Hope’s missions is to determine the reason why thehydrogen and theoxygen are gradually disappearing from Mars, which would explain why a planet capable of hosting a form of microbial life 3 billion years ago could have developed such a hostile climate.

To manage to build Hope and achieve its objective, the Emirati agency has been helped by various institutions, particularly American ones. the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, based in Colorado, USA, proved to be the primary assembly location for the probe, while researchers and engineers from the Universities of California, Berkeley and the University of Arizona provided expertise in device design.

State-of-the-art instrumentation

Hope takes the form of a cube of 2.90 meters by 2.35 meters. With its 1,350 kilograms, the probe carries three instruments : two spectrometers and a camera. EMIS (Emirates Mars Infrared Spectrometerfor Emirates Martian Infrared Spectrometer) is responsible for taking readings of the spectrum infrared in order to analyze the composition of the atmosphere of Mars as well as its climate. The second spectrometer, EMUS (Emirates March Ultraviolet Spectrometerthe Emirates’ Martian ultraviolet spectrometer) is devoted to the observation of hydrogen and oxygen in the Martian atmosphere, to determine how the planet is gradually losing these elements necessary for the development of life.

But one of the elements that will have most popularized Hope’s mission is indeed her camera, EXI (Emirates Exploration Imager, Emirates Exploration Imager). The latter, thanks to its high resolution, allowed the Emirati space agency to release many photos of Mars. The details on the surface of the red planet appear more accurate than ever. Apart from the aesthetic aspect, EXI also has a scientific scope, having the possibility of observing and analyzing the components of certain elements such as the dry ice found at the poles.

The success is at the rendezvous for the first Mars mission of the United Arab Emirates. But the space agency does not want to stop there: it should send its first lunar roverRashid, explore our natural satellite in the year 2022.

Another look at Mars with the Hope mission and its stunning images

Article of Xavier Demeersmannpublished on 04/02/2022

There are many missions in orbit around Mars or on its surface. Our neighbor is the most scrutinized planet in the Solar system and for the past year, the Hope probe from the United Arab Emirates has been part of it. Closely scrutinizing its atmosphere, it provides us with images of the Martian globe and its changes in weather.

On February 9, it will be a year since the first space probe from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to explore Mars was successful insertion into orbit around the planet. Hope (Al Hamal in Arabic) had left the Earth during the summer of 2020, at the same period as the American and Chinese missions, namely respectively Perseverance (and Ingenuity with him) and Tianwen-1and this, thanks to the opposition of Mars (it was in October), which had the objective of reducing the path between our two planets.

During the months following his arrival, the probe of theUAE space Agency conducted his research on the very fine atmosphere of the Red Planetin many wavelengths, through its three instruments, with the main aim of creating the first global image ever made. A first version should be unveiled in the coming days, the mission’s researchers announced. Hope, who has already added several pieces to the puzzle of understanding the very thin atmosphere of Mars by highlighting delicate and very ” discreet dawns », aims to shed light on the question of the meteorology Mars, its changes over time seasonsinteractions with the solar windthe erosion of the atmosphere and the escape of its gas in the space.

Stunning images of Mars

While waiting for these first maps and the more complete and interactive versions to follow, many planetary image enthusiasts have flocked to the data revealed by the EMM Space Agency (Emirates Mars Mission). Images that they processed with enthusiasm, without counting the time spent. Their results are spectacular.

Mars may be an arid and desert planet, there is no room for boredom when you travel through these landscapes shaped by giant volcanoesofancient riversimpacts of meteorites, etc — a remark that applies to the detailed images of the Martian surface provided by the probe MRO of the Nasa. We see Mars turning purple or veiling itself under a wash of mist according to the seasons. In one Earth year, Hope has so far only been able to see almost two seasons in each hemisphere. Observation and measurements continue (Hope’s position around Mars live).