The UAE Mars Mission is coming to a climax on Tuesday February 9 as the seven-month journey through space nears its end.
As the Hope Probe reaches Mars’ orbit the UAE is celebrating the achievement with landmarks lit up red and eyes firmly on screens and the skies to see if the mission is a success.
Offering travellers to the UAE a unique souvenir, for a limited time, those arriving in the UAE will get an out of this world stamp on their passport.
Celebrating the UAE Mars Mission, all incoming travellers will get a stamp that says “You’ve arrived in the Emirates. The Emirates is arriving at Mars on 09.02.2021” as well as an image of the Hope Probe in orbit around Mars.
What’s more, the stamp is printed using Martian ink. Martian ink? As in ink gathered from Mars? No, steady on.
The special Martian ink has been made using volcanic basalt rocks, the same rocks that give Mars its rusty red colour.
So the ink hasn’t travelled from the red planet but it’s made of the same stuff as that big red rock in the sky.
The rocks used to make the ink were collected on a journey to the Al Hajar Mountains in Sharjah’s Mleiha Desert.
The rocks were crushed unto a paste, dried in the sun and will now be used as ink for the special passport stamps.
“On July 20, 2020, the world watched in excitement as Emirates Mars Mission’s Hope Probe blasted off towards Mars,” said Khaled Al Shehhi, executive director of production and digital communication Sector at UAE Government Media Office.
“Now, seven months later on February 9 2021, the Hope Probe is set to arrive to the Red Planet’s orbit – a major milestone for the UAE and for the Arab world that embodies hope, and conveys the ambition and motivation of the region’s people in overcoming the most pressing challenges to realise their dreams.
“To commemorate this historic occasion and celebrate the mission’s incredible victory with the rest of the world, we have created a special stamp printed with ‘Martian Ink’ – made of basalt rocks found in the deserts of the UAE.
“This will be embossed on the passports of all the visitors to the UAE arriving at this time for a limited period.”
We don’t know about you but we’re considering booking a flight just to fly back and get one on our passports.
We’re in full on Martian mode and we’ve got both eyes on the UAE Mars Mission.
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