The UAE’s milestone Mars mission will inspire children for generations to come, Hazza Al Mansouri said with less than 48 hours to the launch of the probe.
The former military fighter jet pilot said the UAE’s progress in the space sector – which included his journey to the International Space Station last year – had already inspired young people across the Arab world.
Like hundreds of thousands of people at home, he too plans on watching the live-stream of the launch of the Hope probe at 12.51am on Wednesday morning. He will be joined by his children, who he said have become obsessed with space science since his landmark mission.
It's really exciting for me because I'll watch my country's flag going to another planet
“You won’t believe what’s happening in my home," Maj Al Mansouri told The National.
"My kids are all about space. They are really excited [about the Mars mission].”
“We watched the SpaceX launch together. It was late, but they insisted on watching that. Now, they said they want to watch the launch of the Hope probe.
“They’ve started drawing a lot of pictures of Mars and asking me a lot of questions about what the probe will do and why it’s going there.”
His four children travelled to Kazakhstan to watch their father make history by being launched to space on September 25 last year.
Two of them even watched him put on his space suit three hours before lift-off.
Maj Al Mansouri’s space mission was broadcast live all around the world, and had a particularly high viewership in Arab countries.
Since then, there has been a growing interest in space among young Arabs, said Maj Al Mansouri, who filmed numerous question-and-answer sessions with pupils and students during his eight-day stay on the ISS.
He expects the Mars mission to push that excitement further and encourage children to pursue careers in the space industry.
“For the UAE, this is one of the milestone missions in the space sector,” he said.
“The announcement [of the Mars project] came in 2014 and it was really challenging for Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre’s engineers to get it ready in six years," because such missions usually take nearly 10 years.
"But we managed and it will reach Mars at the same time of our Union’s 50th anniversary.”
He said he was most excited about the images and data the Hope probe will send to Earth from the Red Planet.
The spacecraft will capture high-resolution photos and study the relationship between the upper and lower atmospheres of the planet.
Maj Al Mansouri said the mission would be critical to help scientists understand how life can be enhanced for humans on Earth.
“This probe will give a full picture of Mars and more understanding of the planet,” he said.
Research has indicated that life may have existed on Mars.
But the planet’s water dried up and the atmosphere is now too thin for any life to exist.
The Hope probe will also study why gases are leaking from the atmosphere.
“This is really important because what happened on Mars so many years ago can happen here," Maj Al Mansouri said.
"Analysing all of the factors and reasons behind it will help us learn how to live a better life on Earth.”
More than anything, Maj Al Mansouri said he was proud to see the UAE reach another major space milestone.
“I’m really honoured to be living at a time when there are so many space achievements happening here in the UAE," he said.
The launch can be watched live on the Emirates Mars Mission website.
Opening weekend Premier League fixtures
Weekend of August 10-13
Arsenal v Manchester City
Bournemouth v Cardiff City
Fulham v Crystal Palace
Huddersfield Town v Chelsea
Liverpool v West Ham United
Manchester United v Leicester City
Newcastle United v Tottenham Hotspur
Southampton v Burnley
Watford v Brighton & Hove Albion
Wolverhampton Wanderers v Everton
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
How Filipinos in the UAE invest
A recent survey of 10,000 Filipino expatriates in the UAE found that 82 per cent have plans to invest, primarily in property. This is significantly higher than the 2014 poll showing only two out of 10 Filipinos planned to invest.
Fifty-five percent said they plan to invest in property, according to the poll conducted by the New Perspective Media Group, organiser of the Philippine Property and Investment Exhibition. Acquiring a franchised business or starting up a small business was preferred by 25 per cent and 15 per cent said they will invest in mutual funds. The rest said they are keen to invest in insurance (3 per cent) and gold (2 per cent).
Of the 5,500 respondents who preferred property as their primary investment, 54 per cent said they plan to make the purchase within the next year. Manila was the top location, preferred by 53 per cent.
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Favourite holiday destination: Whenever I have any free time I always go back to see my family in Caltra, Galway, it’s the only place I can properly relax.
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Business Insights
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ATP WORLD No 1
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