It’s now been a month since Emirates Mars Mission’s Hope Probe has launched, and it’s now successfully on target to the Red Planet’s orbit.
The first interplanetary mission by an Arab nation has successfully completed its first trajectory correction manoeuvre (TCM1) and a major milestone for the mission to Mars.
The trajectory correction manoeuvre is the first firing of the Mars Hope probe’s six Delta-V thrusters, and will now see the probe directly targeting its Mars capture orbit.
Trajectory manoeuvres are typically used in planetary missions, launched on an initial flight path that is intended to ‘miss’ the mission’s planetary target until tests have confirmed the spacecraft is performing normally.
This mitigates the chance of an unplanned crash on the surface and subsequent potential contamination with Earth-originating pathogens. Trajectory control manoeuvres are usually performed during flight.
“TCM1 was a major milestone for us, not only because it is the first time we have deployed the spacecraft’s Delta-V thrusters, but also because it defines our path to cruise Mars,” said EMM Project Director Omran Sharaf.
“Hope has exceeded our expectations and is now on target to reach its Mars Orbit Insertion (MOI), requiring less adjustment to its course than we had originally planned.”
The MOI is scheduled in early in February 2021. Hope aims to build the first full picture of Mars’ climate throughout the Martian year.
You can find out more on the mission right here, and for pictures of Dubai’s Mars Science City, click here.
For more information and for live updates, visit emiratesmarsmission.ae.
