Burj Khalifa lit up as the UAE prepares to launch its Hope spacecraft. Reem Falaknaz / The National
Burj Khalifa lit up as the UAE prepares to launch its Hope spacecraft. Reem Falaknaz / The National
Burj Khalifa lit up as the UAE prepares to launch its Hope spacecraft. Reem Falaknaz / The National
Burj Khalifa lit up as the UAE prepares to launch its Hope spacecraft. Reem Falaknaz / The National

Burj Khalifa lights up to mark UAE Mars Mission's countdown


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The world's tallest building lit up briefly with a countdown timer as the UAE prepared to launch its Hope probe on its mission to Mars.

Red lights were beamed on to Burj Khalifa on Sunday as the world awaited the lift-off on July 15.

The launch will take place at 12.51am UAE time on Wednesday.

People can watch the event streamed live on the official mission website.

The live stream is available in English and Arabic, and can be viewed with or without commentary.

The mission remains on schedule, and several weather checks will be carried out in advance to ensure a smooth lift-off.

Latest updates showed the probe, which is inside the payload fairing, is in the process of being mounted on top of the rocket.

The rocket will be rolled out to the launch pad soon in an operation lasting up to 40 minutes to protect it and the craft from possible damage.

Sarah Al Amiri, president of the UAE Space Agency and deputy project manager of the mission, confirmed that all systems were "go" for the launch on Wednesday.

“The spacecraft is ready for launch and all of the systems are now at a level that is ready to be launched,” said Ms Al Amiri, also the UAE Minister of State for Advanced Science.

“We also checked the ground segment and the operations in mission control and they are ready to accept the spacecraft after launch.

“The final checks are currently ongoing on both the launch vehicle and mission control. We are ready to launch as scheduled early in the morning of July 15.”

The carrier rocket with Hope aboard will blast off from Japan and the probe is intended to be the first to provide a complete picture of the Martian atmosphere when it reaches the planet's orbit in 2021.

Data collected will help to answer questions about the planet, with studies of its lower and upper atmosphere.

The project has been in the works since 2014 and cost Dh735 million ($200m), from concept to design, construction and launch.

Global state-owned investor ranking by size

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Jigra
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Farage on Muslim Brotherhood

Nigel Farage told Reform's annual conference that the party will proscribe the Muslim Brotherhood if he becomes Prime Minister.
"We will stop dangerous organisations with links to terrorism operating in our country," he said. "Quite why we've been so gutless about this – both Labour and Conservative – I don't know.
“All across the Middle East, countries have banned and proscribed the Muslim Brotherhood as a dangerous organisation. We will do the very same.”
It is 10 years since a ground-breaking report into the Muslim Brotherhood by Sir John Jenkins.
Among the former diplomat's findings was an assessment that “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” has “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
The prime minister at the time, David Cameron, who commissioned the report, said membership or association with the Muslim Brotherhood was a "possible indicator of extremism" but it would not be banned.

Libya's Gold

UN Panel of Experts found regime secretly sold a fifth of the country's gold reserves. 

The panel’s 2017 report followed a trail to West Africa where large sums of cash and gold were hidden by Abdullah Al Senussi, Qaddafi’s former intelligence chief, in 2011.

Cases filled with cash that was said to amount to $560m in 100 dollar notes, that was kept by a group of Libyans in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.

A second stash was said to have been held in Accra, Ghana, inside boxes at the local offices of an international human rights organisation based in France.

Mercedes-AMG GT 63 S E Performance: the specs

Engine: 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 plus rear-mounted electric motor

Power: 843hp at N/A rpm

Torque: 1470Nm N/A rpm

Transmission: 9-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 8.6L/100km

On sale: October to December

Price: From Dh875,000 (estimate)

Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
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  3. Keep an open mind
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Anghami
Started: December 2011
Co-founders: Elie Habib, Eddy Maroun
Based: Beirut and Dubai
Sector: Entertainment
Size: 85 employees
Stage: Series C
Investors: MEVP, du, Mobily, MBC, Samena Capital

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Athletic Bilbao 1
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Museum of the Future in numbers
  •  78 metres is the height of the museum
  •  30,000 square metres is its total area
  •  17,000 square metres is the length of the stainless steel facade
  •  14 kilometres is the length of LED lights used on the facade
  •  1,024 individual pieces make up the exterior 
  •  7 floors in all, with one for administrative offices
  •  2,400 diagonally intersecting steel members frame the torus shape
  •  100 species of trees and plants dot the gardens
  •  Dh145 is the price of a ticket
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Uefa Champions League, last 16, first leg

Ajax v Real Madrid, midnight (Thursday), BeIN Sports

GAC GS8 Specs

Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo

Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm

Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm

Transmission: 8-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km

On sale: Now

Price: From Dh149,900

MATCH INFO

Uefa Champions League, last-16. first leg

Atletico Madrid v Juventus, midnight (Thursday), BeIN Sports

Stormy seas

Weather warnings show that Storm Eunice is soon to make landfall. The videographer and I are scrambling to return to the other side of the Channel before it does. As we race to the port of Calais, I see miles of wire fencing topped with barbed wire all around it, a silent ‘Keep Out’ sign for those who, unlike us, aren’t lucky enough to have the right to move freely and safely across borders.

We set sail on a giant ferry whose length dwarfs the dinghies migrants use by nearly a 100 times. Despite the windy rain lashing at the portholes, we arrive safely in Dover; grateful but acutely aware of the miserable conditions the people we’ve left behind are in and of the privilege of choice. 

Indika
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Champions League quarter-final, first leg

Tottenham Hotspur v Manchester City, Tuesday, 11pm (UAE)

Matches can be watched on BeIN Sports

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Habibi Funk: An Eclectic Selection Of Music From The Arab World (Habibi Funk)
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE

When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.

Final results:

Open men
Australia 94 (4) beat New Zealand 48 (0)

Plate men
England 85 (3) beat India 81 (1)

Open women
Australia 121 (4) beat South Africa 52 (0)

Under 22 men
Australia 68 (2) beat New Zealand 66 (2)

Under 22 women
Australia 92 (3) beat New Zealand 54 (1)

FA Cup quarter-final draw

The matches will be played across the weekend of 21 and 22 March

Sheffield United v Arsenal

Newcastle v Manchester City

Norwich v Derby/Manchester United

Leicester City v Chelsea

As You Were

Liam Gallagher

(Warner Bros)

From Zero

Artist: Linkin Park

Label: Warner Records

Number of tracks: 11

Rating: 4/5