The Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre is on the hunt for a landing vehicle that can take its Rashid 2 rover to the Moon's surface, an Emirati space official has said.
The space centre's first Rashid rover, on the country's maiden Moon mission, crash-landed on the lunar surface last year after the soft landing planned for the vehicle carrying it failed.
Adnan Al Rais, one of the assistant directors general at MBRSC, said at a media briefing on Thursday that they were monitoring the progress of space agencies and companies working on lunar landers.
"We're looking into all options, whether from space agencies or from the private sector, and monitoring their progress as well on their first mission and their plans for follow-up missions," Mr Al Rais said in response to a question by The National.
"The team plans to complete the feasibility study by mid year. Based on that, we will know the potential landing site."
Securing a lunar landing vehicle is crucial for MBRSC because it provides the essential technology for safely delivering the rover to the surface.
Lessons learnt from first Moon mission
The first Rashid rover was launched aboard the Hakuto-r Mission 1 lander, built by ispace, a Japanese company.
It failed to touch down on the surface because of a software issue that caused it to miscalculate its altitude, and ultimately ran out of fuel moments before landing.
Despite Hakuto-R's ultimate failure, engineers who worked on the rover were able to get plenty of data during the journey to the Moon and while in lunar orbit, according to Mr Al Rais.
"We had the advantage that our first mission took four months until we reached the surface of the Moon," he said.
"So, during that phase, we collected a lot of data. We understood the performance of the mission throughout the launch cruise phase all the way to the last few metres before landing.
"All of that helped us to also work on the second model and advance our technologies."
Limited options for a lunar lander
Only the US, the former Soviet Union, China and most recently India have been able to successfully carry out a soft lunar landing, which is when the vehicle touches down gently on the surface without crashing, so its hardware and instruments stay intact.
India succeeded in placing its Vikram lander in 2023, while China has been able to place three landers on the lunar surface between 2013 to 2020.
This means China has the highest success rate of lunar landings in this modern era of space exploration.
MBRSC had signed an agreement with China's space agency in 2022 to send Rashid 2 on board its Chang'e-7 mission in 2026, but that deal is seemingly no longer valid.
Russia made a failed attempt in 2023, its first Moon mission in more than 50 years.
The US has not been back to the Moon since the last Apollo mission in 1972.
American companies are trying to reach the surface in this modern space era, with Astrobotic failing recently when its Peregrine lander suffered a fuel leak shortly after launch.
An Israeli company made a hard landing in 2019.
US-based Intuitive Machines launched its Nova-C lunar lander on Thursday and it will attempt a soft touchdown on February 22.
MBZ-Sat satellite
During the media briefing, MBRSC officials also gave updates on other projects that engineers and scientists were working on, including the MBZ-Sat satellite.
Named after President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, the satellite is expected to be the most powerful imaging satellite in the region.
The space centre secured a launch on a rideshare mission on a SpaceX rocket, with a launch expected some time this year.
Amer Al Sayegh, senior director of the space engineering department at MBRSC, said it is the biggest satellite developed in the region, weighing about one tonne.
"We've been working on it since 2020 and we've done a lot of development and effort to reach this point today," he said.
Local companies have helped to develop most of the satellite, with the space centre hoping to get the private sector involved in more missions.
KhalifaSat was the first Earth-observation satellite built in-house by Emirati engineers, and was launched in 2018 by a Japanese rocket.
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Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
How to play the stock market recovery in 2021?
If you are looking to build your long-term wealth in 2021 and beyond, the stock market is still the best place to do it as equities powered on despite the pandemic.
Investing in individual stocks is not for everyone and most private investors should stick to mutual funds and ETFs, but there are some thrilling opportunities for those who understand the risks.
Peter Garnry, head of equity strategy at Saxo Bank, says the 20 best-performing US and European stocks have delivered an average return year-to-date of 148 per cent, measured in local currency terms.
Online marketplace Etsy was the best performer with a return of 330.6 per cent, followed by communications software company Sinch (315.4 per cent), online supermarket HelloFresh (232.8 per cent) and fuel cells specialist NEL (191.7 per cent).
Mr Garnry says digital companies benefited from the lockdown, while green energy firms flew as efforts to combat climate change were ramped up, helped in part by the European Union’s green deal.
Electric car company Tesla would be on the list if it had been part of the S&P 500 Index, but it only joined on December 21. “Tesla has become one of the most valuable companies in the world this year as demand for electric vehicles has grown dramatically,” Mr Garnry says.
By contrast, the 20 worst-performing European stocks fell 54 per cent on average, with European banks hit by the economic fallout from the pandemic, while cruise liners and airline stocks suffered due to travel restrictions.
As demand for energy fell, the oil and gas industry had a tough year, too.
Mr Garnry says the biggest story this year was the “absolute crunch” in so-called value stocks, companies that trade at low valuations compared to their earnings and growth potential.
He says they are “heavily tilted towards financials, miners, energy, utilities and industrials, which have all been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic”. “The last year saw these cheap stocks become cheaper and expensive stocks have become more expensive.”
This has triggered excited talk about the “great value rotation” but Mr Garnry remains sceptical. “We need to see a breakout of interest rates combined with higher inflation before we join the crowd.”
Always remember that past performance is not a guarantee of future returns. Last year’s winners often turn out to be this year’s losers, and vice-versa.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
A timeline of the Historical Dictionary of the Arabic Language
- 2018: Formal work begins
- November 2021: First 17 volumes launched
- November 2022: Additional 19 volumes released
- October 2023: Another 31 volumes released
- November 2024: All 127 volumes completed
10 tips for entry-level job seekers
- Have an up-to-date, professional LinkedIn profile. If you don’t have a LinkedIn account, set one up today. Avoid poor-quality profile pictures with distracting backgrounds. Include a professional summary and begin to grow your network.
- Keep track of the job trends in your sector through the news. Apply for job alerts at your dream organisations and the types of jobs you want – LinkedIn uses AI to share similar relevant jobs based on your selections.
- Double check that you’ve highlighted relevant skills on your resume and LinkedIn profile.
- For most entry-level jobs, your resume will first be filtered by an applicant tracking system for keywords. Look closely at the description of the job you are applying for and mirror the language as much as possible (while being honest and accurate about your skills and experience).
- Keep your CV professional and in a simple format – make sure you tailor your cover letter and application to the company and role.
- Go online and look for details on job specifications for your target position. Make a list of skills required and set yourself some learning goals to tick off all the necessary skills one by one.
- Don’t be afraid to reach outside your immediate friends and family to other acquaintances and let them know you are looking for new opportunities.
- Make sure you’ve set your LinkedIn profile to signal that you are “open to opportunities”. Also be sure to use LinkedIn to search for people who are still actively hiring by searching for those that have the headline “I’m hiring” or “We’re hiring” in their profile.
- Prepare for online interviews using mock interview tools. Even before landing interviews, it can be useful to start practising.
- Be professional and patient. Always be professional with whoever you are interacting with throughout your search process, this will be remembered. You need to be patient, dedicated and not give up on your search. Candidates need to make sure they are following up appropriately for roles they have applied.
Arda Atalay, head of Mena private sector at LinkedIn Talent Solutions, Rudy Bier, managing partner of Kinetic Business Solutions and Ben Kinerman Daltrey, co-founder of KinFitz
What the law says
Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
The specs
Engine: 6.2-litre supercharged V8
Power: 712hp at 6,100rpm
Torque: 881Nm at 4,800rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 19.6 l/100km
Price: Dh380,000
On sale: now
The five pillars of Islam
Roll of honour
Who has won what so far in the West Asia Premiership season?
Western Clubs Champions League - Winners: Abu Dhabi Harlequins; Runners up: Bahrain
Dubai Rugby Sevens - Winners: Dubai Exiles; Runners up: Jebel Ali Dragons
West Asia Premiership - Winners: Jebel Ali Dragons; Runners up: Abu Dhabi Harlequins
UAE Premiership Cup - Winners: Abu Dhabi Harlequins; Runners up: Dubai Exiles
West Asia Cup - Winners: Bahrain; Runners up: Dubai Exiles
West Asia Trophy - Winners: Dubai Hurricanes; Runners up: DSC Eagles
Final West Asia Premiership standings - 1. Jebel Ali Dragons; 2. Abu Dhabi Harlequins; 3. Bahrain; 4. Dubai Exiles; 5. Dubai Hurricanes; 6. DSC Eagles; 7. Abu Dhabi Saracens
Fixture (UAE Premiership final) - Friday, April 13, Al Ain – Dubai Exiles v Abu Dhabi Harlequins
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