MBR Explorer explained
| Mission Type: | Asteroid multiple-flyby/orbiter/lander |
| Operator: | Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre |
| Mission Duration: | Flyby phase:
8.5 years
Orbiter phase:
7 months |
| Launch Date: | March 2028 |
| Launch Rocket: | H3 |
| Launch Site: | Tanegashima, LA-Y2 |
| Launch Contractor: | Mitsubishi Heavy Industries |
| Interplanetary: | | Type: | flyby | | Note: | gravity assist | | Arrival Date: | July 2028[1] |
| Type: | flyby | | Note: | gravity assist | | Arrival Date: | May 2029 |
| Type: | flyby | | Arrival Date: | February 2030 |
| Type: | flyby | | Arrival Date: | June 2030 |
| Type: | flyby | | Arrival Date: | January 2031 |
| Type: | flyby | | Note: | gravity assist | | Arrival Date: | September 2031 |
| Type: | flyby | | Arrival Date: | July 2032 |
| Type: | flyby | | Arrival Date: | December 2032 |
| Type: | flyby | | Arrival Date: | August 2033 |
| Type: | orbiter | | Arrival Date: | October 2034 |
| Type: | lander | | Arrival Date: | May 2035 |
|
The MBR Explorer is a planned UAESA space probe designed to journey to seven different main belt asteroids.[2] [3] Proposed under the Emirates Mission to the Asteroid Belt, it is named in recognition of the foundational role driving the creation and growth of the UAE Space Program played by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the vice president and the prime minister of the United Arab Emirates.
The mission to explore the asteroid belt was announced by the United Arab Emirates Space Agency in May 2023, and the launch is planned for March 2028.[4] [5] [6] Similarly to their previous Mars mission, the MBR Explorer will launch from Tanegashima Space Center, this time on an H3.[7]
The spacecraft will weigh around 2.8 tonnes and will travel at an average speed of 33,000 km/h.
The MBR Explorer will visit asteroids 10253 Westerwald, 623 Chimaera, 13294 Rockox, (88055) 2000 VA28, (23871) 1998 RC76, and (59980) 1999 SG6, in a 5-billion-kilometre total journey,[8] [9] and will attempt to land on its seventh and final asteroid, 269 Justitia in 2034.[10]
The spacecraft will also drop off a small lander to set down on Justitia's surface.
See also
- Lucy, an ongoing NASA mission that will similarly fly by various Jupiter trojans.
- DESTINY+, a planned JAXA mission that will fly past multiple asteroids.
Notes and References
- Web site: Foust . Jeff . 2023-06-03 . UAE outlines plans for asteroid mission . 2024-09-29 . SpaceNews . en-US.
- News: 29 May 2023 . UAE announces space mission to land MBR Explorer on asteroid 5 billion kilometres away . Arabian Business . 14 June 2023.
- News: 29 May 2023 . Touring Through the Asteroid Belt: United Arab Emirates Unveils Bold Mission . SpaceRef . 14 June 2023.
- Web site: Foust . Jeff . UAE outlines plans for asteroid mission . . 3 June 2023 . 17 September 2023.
- News: May 29, 2023. The United Arab Emirates Is Heading for the Asteroid Belt. Kenneth Chang. The New York Times.
- News: The National. Abu Dhabi. MBR Explorer: UAE unveils details of its mission to the main asteroid belt. Sarwat Nasir. May 29, 2023.
- Web site: Foust . Jeff . 2024-10-10 . Japan’s H3 to launch Emirati asteroid mission . 2024-10-11 . SpaceNews . en-US.
- News: 2023-05-30 . Arabian spacecraft to search asteroid belt for clues to life's origins . en-AU . ABC News . 2023-06-06.
- Web site: 2023-05-10 . Ambitious Emirati Mission Seeks to Visit 7 Asteroids and Land on the Big Red One . 2023-06-08 . Gizmodo . en.
- Web site: 2023-05-29 . MBR Explorer: All about UAE's new space mission to Asteroid Belt . 2023-06-06 . Gulf News . en.
