Going to Mars is hard.

A staggering 52% of all missions sent to the Red Planet have failed either during launch, in transit, or while attempting to land on/enter orbit of Mars.

Now, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) looks to join the extremely small list of nations/space organizations that have reached for our shared Martian goal.

Meet Al Amal, “hope” -- a name chosen by the Arab public to send a message of optimism to millions of Arabs across Earth.

Al Amal is the Emirates’ first interplanetary mission and furthers the UAE’s rapidly-expanding presence in space exploration following last year’s launch of the first Emirati astronaut to the International Space Station.

The Emirates is the seventh nation/supranational space organization to try to reach Mars behind the Soviet Union/Russia, the United States, Japan, the European Space Agency, China, and India.

After a multi-month cruise between planets, Al Amal is scheduled to arrive in Mars orbit in 2021 to help celebrate the 50th anniversary of the founding of the United Arab Emirates.

If the probe successfully enters orbit, the Emirates will become only the fifth nation/entity to successfully reach Mars; China and Japan have yet to succeed with a Red Planet mission.

Over the course of its planned two Earth year -- one Martian year -- mission, Al Amal’s instruments will allow scientists from across Earth to investigate:

• the day-to-day and season-to-season changes in Mars’ weather cycles,
• dust storm formation, and
• weather variations across the planet.

These objectives were agreed by the global Mars science community and will help produce more accurate computer models of Martian and Earth weather formations.

Mars’ continued loss of hydrogen and oxygen molecules to space from its atmosphere can help us understand how Earth’s climate formed and evolved over millions of years.

This information is also vital for future robotic and human missions to the Red Planet.

All data gathered will be made available to over 200 research universities and institutes across the world to facilitate knowledge sharing.

Image: Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre

The H-IIA Launch Vehicle is a high-performance Japanese rocket consisting of a first stage, second stage, payload fairing, and either two or four Solid Rocket Boosters (SRB-A). The propulsion system uses liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen as propellants. Two models are in operation: the H-IIA 202 with two SRB-As and the H-IIA 204 with four SRB-As.

Specs
Height: 53 m (174 ft)

Diameter: 4 m (13 ft)

Mass: 285,000–445,000 kg (628,000–981,000 lb)

Stages: 2

The first stage is powered by the high-performance LE-7A engine and includes an engine section, cryogenic propellant tanks, a center fuselage, and an interstage connecting it to the second stage. SRB-As, developed to enhance lift-off thrust, are mounted on the first stage depending on mission needs.

The second stage uses the reliable LE-5B engine and features its own cryogenic tanks, avionics, and other systems. A key capability of the LE-5B is that it can be restarted up to three times, allowing for precise orbital insertions during complex missions.

Courtesy of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries

LA-Y1 is a launch pad at Japan’s Tanegashima Space Center, specifically located within the Yoshinobu Launch Complex. It serves as the primary launch site for Japan’s H-II and H-IIA rockets, which are used for deploying satellites into low Earth orbit (LEO) and geostationary transfer orbit (GTO).

The Yoshinobu Launch Complex, which includes both LA-Y1 and the adjacent LA-Y2 pad, is situated on the northern side of Tanegashima Space Center. Rockets are assembled vertically in the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) before being transported to the launch pad on a mobile platform. The journey from the VAB to LA-Y1 takes approximately 30 minutes.

LA-Y1 has been operational since its first launch in February 1994 and has hosted numerous missions, including the deployment of Japan’s Akatsuki and Hayabusa2 missions, as well as the Emirates Mars Mission. The pad is equipped to handle the H-IIA's first-stage engine, the LE-7A, and is supported by facilities such as the Takesaki Range Control Center, which manages launch operations and tracking.

Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.