The UAE's Mars Hope Probe has been successfully transferred from the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Center in Dubai to the launch station in Japan's Tanegashima Island.
His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and the Ruler of Dubai, took to Twitter to highlight the milestone.
In a series of Tweets, he said it took a team of Emirati engineers around "83 hours of nonstop operations" to accomplish the feat despite the challenges thrown by the coronavirus pandemic.
His Highness said the Hope Probe is "an achievement that represents a turning point for the Arab world in the field of space" and extends as a message of hope and power for the next generation.
رغم ظروف توقف السفر عالميا، ورغم الاحترازات الصحية العالمية..ما زال مهندسونا يعملون وفق الجدول المعتمد لإنجاز أهم مشروع علمي فضائي في منطقتنا..تم تطوير المسبار في أقل من المدة المعتادة عالميا (ست سنوات فقط من عشرة ) .. وبنصف الكلفة .. والهدف إطلاقه في يوليو وفق الجدول المعتمد pic.twitter.com/BJFyyGokMK
— HH Sheikh Mohammed (@HHShkMohd) April 25, 2020
.@HHShkMohd announces the successful transfer of the #UAE’s Mars Hope Probe from @MBRSpaceCentre in #Dubai to the launch site on Tanegashima island in Japan, under the supervision of a team of Emirati engineers in a process that took 83 hours of nonstop operations. pic.twitter.com/sG7zakPHdp
— Dubai Media Office (@DXBMediaOffice) April 25, 2020
The Hope Probe is due to take off in July from Tanegashima Space Centre.