On 20th July 1969, the United States’ Apollo 11 became the first crewed mission to land on the Moon and here Neil Armstrong put his left foot on the lunar surface and famously declared, “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.“
Taking a cue from this famous quote, UAE stamps its numero uno position in the Middle East and Muslim World with their Hope, Mars Mission when it entered the Mars Orbit.
As a young man in my early twenties in the summer of May 2000, I landed in the Dubai, experienced the transformation of Dubai, under the leadership HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and the Ruler of Dubai the grandeur projects and their successful execution such as Burj Al Arab, Dubai Media City, Dubai Internet City, Palm Islands…the list goes endless…
But, I also learnt that the DNA of innovation and of the grand vision comes from the Founding Fathers of UAE late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, Ruler of Abu Dhabi and President, late HH Sheikh Rashid Bin Saeed Al Maktoum the Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, late HH Sheikh Khalid bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Ruler of Sharjah, late HH Sheikh Rashid Bin Humaid Al Nuaimi became Ruler of Ajman, late HH Sheikh Ahmed Bin Rashid Al Mualla, Ruler of Umm al Quwain, late HH Sheikh Saqr bin Moḥammed Al Qasimi, Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah and late HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Hamad Al Sharqi Fujairah.
Since, the formation of the U.A.E which was announced on December, 2nd 1971, it has emerged one of the fasted developed nation and one of the most famous also. Thanks to the pathbreaking projects, unbelievable architecture, high income diversified economy…
In-fact, we need superlatives to explain everything the UAE has achieved in the last 4 decades.
“In-fact, we need superlatives to explain everything the UAE has achieved in last 4 decades”
But the current leadership and the cabinet did something unheard and extraordinary, they wanted to take the vision of the Founding Fathers in the frontiers of space. The idea for a UAE mission to Mars came from a UAE cabinet retreat at the end of 2013. The mission was announced by HH Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the President of the United Arab Emirates, in July 2014, and is aimed at enriching the capabilities of Emirati engineers and increasing human knowledge about the Martian atmosphere.
To accomplish the objectives of the Emirates Mars Mission, an agreement was signed between the United Arab Emirates Space Agency (UAESA) and MBRSC, under a directive given by HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.
The rocket was launched during a brief launch window starting on 14 July 2020. The spacecraft was launched on 19 July from Tanegashima Space Center in Japan using a Mitsubishi Heavy Industries H-IIA launch vehicle
The big moment for the UAE, the Middle East, the Arab World and the Muslim world came when the Hope successfully entered the Mars orbit on 9 February 2021.
The leadership thanked everyone and the Almighty, which was humble emotional and inspiring, that anything can be achieved when vision, dedication and handwork backed by honest intentions.
But, this would propel UAE into the league of technological advanced nation triggering innovation, research, investments & startups.
“But, this would propel UAE into the league of technological advanced nation triggering innovation, research, investments & startups”
As always, the UAE leadership, the citizens and residents would not stop here and would continue to work hard to achieve the vision of the Founding Fathers.
This would be one the greatest tributes to the Founding Fathers and the current leadership has sealed their names in the golden letters in history.
While writing this article I discussed with my mother (Razia Malik), as she also lived in the GCC region, she said that the UAE leadership will not rest their laurels, they would embark on another journey and quoted the famous lines of the great philosopher and scholar Allama Iqbal “Sitaron Se Agay Jahan Aur Bhi Hain (Otherworlds lie beyond the stars)…”
“Sitaron Se Agay Jahan Aur Bhi Hain (Other worlds lie beyond the stars)…”
Hence, with these beautiful lines, my mother and I wish and congratulate UAE leadership, the citizens, and residents.
By
Dr Tausif Malik
M.Com, M.B.A & D.B.A