Japan and the UAE have made a giant leap in their partnership by collaborating on space exploration.
The two countries have been working together on various scientific tests that will contribute to the development of science, communication technologies, and robotics.
This year, Japan’s ispace Inc.
collaborated with the UAE to land the country’s Rashid rover on the moon despite a failed landing.
Japan has also sent Emirati astronaut Sultan Al-Neyadi to train in Japan before his current mission.
The biggest achievement of Japan and the UAE in space dates back to July 2020, when the Mars Hope Probe lifted off from Tanegashima Space Center.
The probe was mounted on a Mitsubishi Heavy Industries’ H-IIA launch vehicle and was Japan’s flagship launch vehicle.
The launch was successful, marking the 45th consecutive successful H-IIA/H-IIB launch with an accumulative success rate of 98 percent.
The collaboration between the UAE and Japan on the Mars Hope Probe mission started six years prior to 2020, and the probe spent a year in Japan to collaborate on the operation.
The UAE’s Mars mission is seen as an important project that symbolizes the strong relationship between the two countries.
Japan’s former foreign minister, Toshimitsu Motegi, praised the launch of the UAE’s Hope Probe to Mars as a “very important project” that represents the strong relationship between the two countries.
Vice President of JAXA, Yasuo Ishii, said it was an “honor” for Japan to be part of the historical launch of the Hope mission from Tanegashima Space Centre.
The collaboration between the UAE and Japan has resulted in more opportunities for further bilateral cooperation.
Japan’s former ambassador to the UAE, Akihiko Nakajima, pointed out the “daunting task” the UAE took on but managed to complete with success.
Naohiko Abe, senior vice president and head of integrated defense and space systems at MHI, said that the successful completion of the Mars mission by the spacecraft will bring hope and delight to people all around the world in the midst of the global crisis due to
COVID-19.
In April this year, the Hope Pro