The Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) successfully concluded its participation in the World Government Summit that was held on March 29-30, 2022 at the Expo 2020 Dubai.
Among the highlights of MBRSC’s participation was the presentation of a model of the Rashid lunar rover which attracted great interest from the international audience who attended the summit.
Speaking about the event, Salem Humaid, AlMarri, Director-General, MBRSC, said: “This is an exciting time for us at the MBRSC as we enter the critical stages of the development of our lunar rover and the Emirates Lunar Mission. The rover is built entirely by Emiratis and will land on the Moon aboard ispace’s Hakuto-R lander as part of a collaborative effort with our international partners to ensure the mission’s success.”
AlMarri added: “Rashid lunar rover was presented at the World Government Summit because it is truly the first and largest platform in the world for the future industry, and the incubator that stimulates the innovation of the model of future governments. We believe that the development of our various projects at the Centre is the result of the visions of our wise leadership, which undertakes to develop forward-looking strategies to ensure a better future for the coming generations.”
The MBRSC team was also significantly involved in the summit’s “Exploring the Frontier” section, where it interacted with visitors and provided the latest updates on its pioneering project to explore the moon at a workshop held during the second day of the summit. Led by its Director-General Salem Humaid AlMarri, other MBRSC executives who participated in the discussions included Adnan AlRais, Senior Director, Remote Sensing Department and Programme Manager, Mars 2117; Dr Hamad Al Marzooqi, ELM Project Manager; and Dr Mohammed Al Zaabi, Ground system and Rover operations lead.
During the same workshop, a video was shown from MBRSC’s ELM partners that included messages from Takeshi Hakamada, Founder and CEO, ispace, Inc; and Philippe Baptiste, Chairman & CEO, CNES (French space agency) that highlighted the importance of fostering international cooperation to advance space exploration missions – an important aspect of the MBRSC’s work as it pushes to achieve further milestones in the space industry.
The rover is designed to study the Moon’s plasma and will attempt to determine why lunar dust is sticky. In addition to studying the moon’s surface, the Rashid rover will also help scientists gain a better understanding of mobility on Earth’s closest neighbour as well as how different surfaces interact with lunar particles. It is expected that Rashid will be the smallest rover to land on the Moon, weighing approximately 10 kg including its payload.
AlMarri concluded: “Our participation was in line with the concept that the summit was launched from, as we work at the centre to overcome the challenges of the space sector by building a spirit of cooperation among all countries. We hope to succeed with our local and international partners working collaboratively to support space exploration efforts, for the benefit of all humanity.”
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