The UK is playing a crucial part in a Nasa-led project that will pave the way for missions to the Moon and Mars, the exploration science manager at the country's space agency said.
Libby Jackson was speaking before Monday's launch of Artemis 1, an uncrewed test flight that will fly around and beyond the Moon.
The Artemis programme will be rolled out in stages, ultimately returning astronauts to the surface of the Moon for the first time in 50 years and paving the way for the eventual human exploration of the Red Planet.
“The horizon goal of exploring Mars has been there since the Apollo missions back in the 1970s and it is a goal that’s always been 30 to 40 years in the future. But the Artemis missions are starting to bring that closer,” said Ms Jackson.
“The robotic missions that we have seen go, including the Hope Mission, the Nasa missions, the European Space Agency missions, all of them are building our knowledge base that we need in order to send explorers to Mars, whether that’s robotic or human.”
The Artemis 1 mission will include the launch of the new Space Launch System (SLS) rocket, which will take the Nasa-built Orion capsule — made with European-built parts, including Orion’s engines — towards the Moon.
The mission aims to test the rocket and the spacecraft’s performance.
And the UK is a key player in the project, said Ms Jackson.
“The main involvement we have is through the Goonhilly Earth Station down in Cornwall. That will be tracking the Orion spacecraft after launch,” she said.
“But then there is the sort of really fun bit that it’s doing, which is, there are a number of Cubesats on board and they are going to be deployed in deep space out towards the Moon.
“And Goonhilly will be relaying the telemetry, providing commands, the services you need to fly a spacecraft.
“They are providing that service to some of those spacecraft. That’s the most direct part we are doing now.
“This is the start of this programme that will return humans to the Moon.”
Although the exploration of Mars is the ultimate aim, the Moon is worth exploring in its own right, added Ms Jackson.
“It’s a record of the solar system that we are a part of. By understanding the Moon, which came from the Earth, we understand the Earth’s past, but it can also help us to better understand and predict the Earth’s future,” she said.
If all goes well with Artemis 1, the project will advance to Artemis 2 and 3.
Artemis 2 will be a crewed flight that will travel beyond the Moon, taking humans farther than they have ever ventured in space before.
And, if all goes to plan, Artemis 3 will bring the first female astronaut and first astronaut of colour on the Moon, where they will spend a week conducting studies of the lunar surface in 2025.
In addition to its work on the Artemis, the UK is preparing for its first ever satellite launch later this year, which will take off from Cornwall.
“It will be the first time we have launched a spacecraft from UK soil,” Ms Jackson said.
“There are a number of space ports in the UK which are getting ready to do this. The UK has a thriving small satellite industry.
“And it will be of great benefit to them to be able to launch from the UK as well. So, we are excited by that launch coming up for Virgin Orbit and the others that will surely follow.”
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
'Midnights'
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The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
If you go
Flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh with a stop in Yangon from Dh3,075, and Etihad flies from Abu Dhabi to Phnom Penh with its partner Bangkok Airlines from Dh2,763. These trips take about nine hours each and both include taxes. From there, a road transfer takes at least four hours; airlines including KC Airlines (www.kcairlines.com) offer quick connecting flights from Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville from about $100 (Dh367) return including taxes. Air Asia, Malindo Air and Malaysian Airlines fly direct from Kuala Lumpur to Sihanoukville from $54 each way. Next year, direct flights are due to launch between Bangkok and Sihanoukville, which will cut the journey time by a third.
The stay
Rooms at Alila Villas Koh Russey (www.alilahotels.com/ kohrussey) cost from $385 per night including taxes.
Honeymoonish
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Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
The National in Davos
We are bringing you the inside story from the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting in Davos, a gathering of hundreds of world leaders, top executives and billionaires.
Players Selected for La Liga Trials
U18 Age Group
Name: Ahmed Salam (Malaga)
Position: Right Wing
Nationality: Jordanian
Name: Yahia Iraqi (Malaga)
Position: Left Wing
Nationality: Morocco
Name: Mohammed Bouherrafa (Almeria)
Position: Centre-Midfield
Nationality: French
Name: Mohammed Rajeh (Cadiz)
Position: Striker
Nationality: Jordanian
U16 Age Group
Name: Mehdi Elkhamlichi (Malaga)
Position: Lead Striker
Nationality: Morocco
LEAGUE CUP QUARTER-FINAL DRAW
Stoke City v Tottenham
Brentford v Newcastle United
Arsenal v Manchester City
Everton v Manchester United
All ties are to be played the week commencing December 21.
Avatar%20(2009)
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
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.
More coverage from the Future Forum
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
AUSTRALIA SQUAD
Aaron Finch (captain), Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Glenn Maxwell, Ben McDermott, Kane Richardson, Steve Smith, Billy Stanlake, Mitchell Starc, Ashton Turner, Andrew Tye, David Warner, Adam Zampa
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
RESULT
Bayer Leverkusen 2 Bayern Munich 4
Leverkusen: Alario (9'), Wirtz (89')
Bayern: Coman (27'), Goretzka (42'), Gnabry (45'), Lewandowski (66')
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
