Created by ministerial decree in 2014, the United Arab Emirates Space Agency became the first of its kind in the Middle East and highlights the Gulf Arab country’s ambition to become a leader in space exploration. The UAE expects to be the region’s first country to explore Mars via the Al Amal Mars Probe and is one of only nine countries worldwide and two in the Middle East to send an astronaut into space.
The country sent its first astronaut, former Emirati F-16 pilot Hazza Al Mansouri, to space in 2019. This year, the Emiratis are determined to send a robotic spacecraft to Mars, and the leadership in Abu Dhabi has spoken about the UAE establishing a settlement on the planet by 2117.
The UAE’s space program is part of the ongoing 20by2020 initiative launched in December 2019 and outlined in the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. This program has the necessary financial capacity, more than $6 billion thus far. It seeks to compete with countries like Iran and Israel; both are actively involved in space exploration. According to a report published in 2019 by the U.N. Institute for Disarmament Research, “the number of objects launched per year (into space) quadrupled in less than 10 years, while the ratio of commercial to noncommercial objects went up six-fold.”
International Cooperation
In the Emirates, the narrative is partly about this initiative factoring into the broader context of international partnerships and cooperation. The UAE seeks to bring together other Arab countries with the UAE taking the lead via the Arab Space Cooperation Group, focusing on environmental and weather-related projects.
The UAE’s official goals in space range from commercial exploration to space tourism. Activities such as mining metal-rich asteroids are considered commercially viable and will likely address the limited sources of certain rare-earth minerals. The application of satellite imagery from oil exploration to weather forecasting speaks to scientific and technological functions that are valuable to future UAE objectives. The UAE has also launched its satellites via the Al Yah Satellite Communications Company and the Thuraya Telecommunications Company for telecommunication and the broadcasting of news channels and live sporting events.
Per the UAE Space Agency, the Al Amal Mars Probe will consist of three scientific instruments. First, the Emirates eXploration Imager will measure the properties of water ice and dust aerosols and the abundance of ozone in Mars’ atmosphere using a visible imager. Second, the Emirates Mars Ultraviolet Spectrometer will measure the global characteristics of hydrogen and oxygen coronae. Third, the Emirates Mars InfraRed Spectrometer will measure the global thermal structure and abundance of water ice and water vapor in Mars’ atmosphere. The probe is scheduled to launch in mid-2020 for arrival on Mars in early 2021.
Since 2006, the Emiratis have created a space sector community based on academic programs and research institutes to inspire, raise awareness, “broaden the thinking,” and encourage youth to become interested and engaged in this endeavor. In 2015, the UAE’s ambassador to the United States, Yousef Al Otaiba, spoke about the Al Amal Mars Probe at the embassy’s National Day celebration. He said, “For the UAE, this is the Arab world’s version of President John F. Kennedy’s moon shot – a galvanizing vision for the future that can engage and excite a new generation of Emirati and Arab youth.”
Military Dimensions
The national space program’s importance for national security should not be underestimated. Several states have invested heavily in military space capabilities to project their national interests more effectively. There have been technologies that are considered dual-use but are part of the process of the increased militarization of space.
For example, there are coorbital drones that are equipped with cameras, grappling arms, and repair tools that have become essential for all kinds of satellites and debris removal. However, coorbital drones are also capable of intercepting communications and can conduct the on-orbit jamming of space objects. Space is becoming more important for security and will ultimately create more pressure to create a viable space law, which is lacking at present. Also, there is not a set of principles regarding outer space beyond outlawing placement of nuclear weapons in orbit and the understanding that countries cannot make sovereign claims of space entities such as the moon and asteroids.
An Ambitious Vision
During the 1970s, the first decade in which the UAE was an independent nation, the late Zayed bin Sultan al-Nahyan, the UAE’s founding father, frequently shared his vision of his country becoming a pioneer in outer space. Today, the UAE continues to capitalize on its wealth generated from hydrocarbon resources to push itself further ahead in space exploration.
