UAE’s Hope Probe captures first images of Mars discrete aurora 

  • Date: 01-Jul-2021
  • Source: Al Arabiya
  • Sector:Technology
  • Country:UAE
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UAE’s Hope Probe captures first images of Mars discrete aurora 

The United Arab Emirates' Mars mission has captured the first images of the discrete aurora phenomenon in the red planet's nightside atmosphere.

The images, taken by the Hope Probe, show a ghostly glow known as the discrete aurora. The pictures were released five months after the UAE became just the fifth nation to enter the Red Planet's orbit.

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"The implications for our understanding of Mars' atmospheric and magnetospheric science are tremendous and provide new support to the theory that solar storms are not necessary to drive Mars' aurora, said the mission's Science Lead, Hessa al-Matroushi.

Space Technology is a key part of the Gulf state's plans to reduce its dependence on oil.

The country entered the space race last year when it launched the first Arab mission to Mars. It established a space agency in 2014, sent its first astronaut to the International Space Station five years later, and plans to send an unmanned spaceship to the moon in 2024.

The latest observations have "opened a new realm for this mission and actually increased the potential outcome when it comes to research, Sarah al-Amiri, UAE minister of state for advanced technology, said