International Cooperation Will Provide Greater Insights into Martian Atmosphere

NASA's MAVEN probe and the United Arab Emirates' Hope Probe have agreed to a data sharing project that will enhance the over all quality of information gleaned from both. 

The announcement signifies a greater level of prestige for the relatively unknown Emeriti space program, signifying that among the big names in space science and exploration, the Hope Program has earned its dues. The probe was announced in 2014 as the opener for the UAE's 50th birthday in December 2021, requiring the country to go "zero to hero" in around half a decade. The program was quickly jump started with a cadre of young professionals, eager to cut their teeth and prove that a first-time deep space mission was possible out the gate. Surprisingly to many, they did, developing and launching their probe without major malfunction. The Emirates Mars Mission made waves as the first of its kind from an Arab nation, making its way to Martian orbit in February 2021 to begin studying the relationship between the upper and lower atmosphere. In another change of pace, the program announced that all data would be released to the scientific community without embargo. 

Now, the information found through Hope will be joined with a complementary stream from NASA's MAVEN probe. The duo will provide a much more comprehensive picture of the red planet, integrating two disparate sources, each with their own complement of sensors and equipment, with perfect accuracy. 

“Since the inception of EMM, the project has been defined by strong international collaborations and partnerships. The opportunity to work alongside other Mars missions and derive greater insights by sharing our observations and working together to fit together the pieces of the puzzle is one we are delighted to take. The complementarity of EMM and MAVEN means we can truly gain a bigger picture together.” said Omran Sharaf, Project Director of the Emirates Mars Mission. 

"Its science complements MAVEN and the Hope probe was designed to answer scientific objectives aligned directly with MEPAG goals. Its observations were always designed to provide new insights that weren’t possible from past Mars missions. Now, by combining the two datasets from the EMM and MAVEN missions and analyzing the results together, we can build a powerful response to many fundamental questions we have about Mars and the evolution and dynamics of its atmosphere," said Sharaf. 

FMI: www.emiratesmarsmission.ae