Emirates Mission to the Asteroid Belt (MBR Explorer)
The UAE Space Agency's MBR Explorer is set to launch in March 2028 on Japan's H3 rocket to study asteroids beyond Mars (UAE Space Agency).
Image: JPL Solar System Dynamics/NASA (orbit of 269 Justitia, public domain).
Last reviewed: 3 sources cited
One spacecraft, seven asteroids and a 5-billion-kilometre trip.
The MBR Explorer will fly close to seven main-belt A rocky object that orbits the Sun, much smaller than a planet. Most are in a belt between Mars and Jupiter. Glossary on a 5-billion-kilometre journey (UAE Space Agency).
Source: UAE Space Agency, Emirates Mission to the Asteroid Belt
Explain Like I'm 10
- Between Mars and Jupiter is a belt of space rocks called asteroids.
- They are left over from when the planets formed.
- A UAE spacecraft will visit seven of them and land on the last one.
The Five W's of the MBR Explorer
Who
The UAE Space Agency, with 50% of the work given to UAE-based private companies.
Source: UAE Space Agency, Emirates Mission to the Asteroid Belt
What
The MBR Explorer spacecraft, which will make close flybys of seven main-belt asteroids.
Source: UAE Space Agency, Emirates Mission to the Asteroid Belt
When
Launch in March 2028, in a three-week window; first asteroid encounter February 2030.
Source: UAE Space Agency, Emirates Mission to the Asteroid Belt
Where
The main asteroid belt beyond Mars, reached with gravity assists at Venus, Earth and Mars.
Source: UAE Space Agency, Emirates Mission to the Asteroid Belt
Why
To learn how the solar system formed and where the building blocks of life came from.
Source: UAE Space Agency, Emirates Mission to the Asteroid Belt
Connected Solutions
- Hope Mars Mission The UAE's first mission to another planet.
- Lucy (NASA) Touring the Trojan asteroids near Jupiter.
Impact Statement
Agency solution · in development, launch March 2028
Seven asteroids, one spacecraft, 5 billion km. It will probe the origins of life's building blocks and pave the way for possible future resource extraction (UAE Space Agency).
Source: UAE Space Agency, Emirates Mission to the Asteroid Belt
For Further Information: UAE Space Agency, Emirates Mission to the Asteroid Belt
The UAE picked Mitsubishi Heavy Industries again to launch the mission on an H3 rocket (UAE Space Agency).
How This Saves People & the Planet
For People
Half the work goes to UAE-based companies, creating new jobs and Emirati space start-ups (UAE Space Agency).
Source: UAE Space Agency, Emirates Mission to the Asteroid Belt
For Nature
Studying asteroids helps us understand our solar system and the origins of the building blocks of life (UAE Space Agency).
Source: UAE Space Agency, Emirates Mission to the Asteroid Belt
Learn More About the MBR Explorer
Want to go deeper? The UAE Space Agency has the mission plan.
For Further InformationRelated Solutions
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