UAE sets sights on the moon

 The United Arab Emirates announced on Tuesday it'll launch an unmanned rover to the moon by 2024 because it seeks to expand its space sector.

The UAE — a set of seven emirates better known for its skyscrapers, palm-shaped islands and opulent mega attractions — may be a newcomer to the planet of space exploration but quickly making its mark.

In September 2019, the oil-rich country sent the primary Emirati into space as a part of a three-member crew that blasted off on a Soyuz rocket from Kazakhstan for an eight-day mission.

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Then in July, it launched an unmanned spacecraft from Japan's Tanegashima Space Centre bearing the “Hope” probe destined for Mars, within the Arab world's first interplanetary mission.

The Emiratis now have their sights on the moon, consistent with the UAE's vice chairman , Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum.

“We have launched a replacement Emirati project to explore the moon,” he said on Twitter on Tuesday. “It are going to be an Emirati-made lunar rover which will land on the surface of the moon by 2024.”

Sheikh Mohammed also said that the rover — named “Rashid” after his father who is credited with modernising Dubai — will cover “areas not yet reached in previous exploration missions”.

The project marks another first for the UAE, making it the primary trip to the moon by an Arab country.

Sheikh Mohammed said the lunar mission was a part of the country's space strategy to create new knowledge-based and scientific capabilities.

The Dubai Media Office said that the 10-kilogramme (22 pound) rover are going to be an integral a part of efforts to create the primary settlement on Mars in 2117— one among the UAE's most ambitious plans.