• Home
• /
• Opinion

Let there be more missions and more moments of glory

The moment of the Hope Probe launch at 1.58am on July 20, 2020, was one such example.

There are moments in life when language loses its ability to express, and silence speaks louder than words.

The moment of the Hope Probe launch at 1.58am on July 20, 2020, was one such example. The Mitsubishi H2A rocket blasted over the ocean from the Japanese Tanegashima Space Centre.

The anxious team, deprived of sleep for days, breathed a sigh of relief and praised God for the success of this part of the Emirates Mars Mission.

However, it was too early to rest, as we had 300 million miles more to cover. And, the path was going to be full of tasks and challenges.

The first phase was successful, as the solid fuel engines operated, and the rocket penetrated the atmosphere and discarded its upper cover, moving to the second phase, where some engines were eliminated and others operated. We breathed a sigh of relief again, but anxiety continued as did the challenges.

Communication with the probe and adjusting its course to align it with Mars at a speed of 11km per second was not a normal mission.

The team members worked hard as they followed up the probe’s journey in the operation room at Mohammed bin Rashid Space Center. Every day was a challenge and every evening, the team members breathed a sigh of relief and praised God for another day had passed and things were fine.

This was the case for all the tasks: operating the probe, activating the central computer, operating thermal control systems to prevent fuel freezing, opening the solar panels, using positioning sensors, probe positioning manoeuvres, reorienting the panels towards the sun, charging the batteries, and many other detailed tasks that the Emirati team performed efficiently.

Every evening, anxiety was replaced with gratitude and satisfaction. I recalled those moments as I watched millions of hearts waiting for the probe to reach its final destination. We had high hopes, but fear was evident through the expressions on everyone’s faces and anxious eyes.

The moment we learned from the project manager that the mission had been completed successfully, and we saw the overwhelming joy on the faces of our wise leadership, countrymen, their sons and daughters, we breathed a sigh of relief again, and thanked God for His blessings.

We recall those moments, when the landmarks of the UAE glowed in red, in harmony with the mission and the UAE Government Communication Office supported us with their distinguished media support and coverage.

We contemplate the glory of the moment when our upcoming missions will bring more success to the UAE, our leaders and our people, and that fills us with determination to outperform ourselves.

Hamad Obaid Al Mansoori is the Head of Digital Government and Director General, TRA