His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, may God protect him, witnessed, accompanied by His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, and His Highness Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, the launch of the explorer Rashid, on the first Arab mission to the surface of the moon.
SpaceX and iSpace announced the completion of additional reviews and inspections of the Hakuto-R vehicle, and that the launch rocket and its payload appear to be in a good position to start the mission.
Explorer Rashid carries the Japanese landing craft “Hakuto-R” aboard the “SpaceX Falcon 9” launch rocket, so that the UAE records a new achievement in the space sector, being the “first Arab mission”. The duration of the scientific mission is “one lunar day”, that is, Equivalent to 14 days of those on Earth, and the spacecraft will take a low-energy path to the moon instead of a direct approach, as the journey takes about 5 months after launch, while the explorer is scheduled to land on the moon by April 2023.
The Hakuto-R lander is responsible for providing delivery services for the explorer and equipment for the project, providing wire communications and power during the approaching phase of the moon, and radio communications after landing, as commands will be sent, received, and information received will be analyzed daily until the explorer successfully reaches the lunar surface.
The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket is a reusable two-stage rocket designed and manufactured by SpaceX for the reliable and safe transportation of people and payloads to Earth’s orbit and beyond. It is also the world’s first reusable orbital rocket. Reusability allows SpaceX to re-fly the most expensive parts of the rocket, which in turn lowers the cost of getting into space.
“Rashid” will land in the “Marie Frigoris” area, specifically the “Atlas Crater” area as a main landing site, while this site is considered safe and provides an important scientific value, as the ground station team at the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Center can direct it according to the ease and difficulty of the terrain and the importance of the area to be desired. Explore it, and the explorer will move on the surface of the moon.
The landing site of the explorer Rashid is of great importance not only to the Emirates, but to the whole world, as it is a site that has not been reached by any scientific missions previously, which makes the Emirates proactive in providing answers to humanity, as the Atlas crater, located at 47.5 degrees north and 44.4 degrees east, was chosen. On the outer, southeastern edge of the Mare Frigoris region, or what is known as the “Sea of Cold,” located in the far north of the Moon.
