UAE’s Rashid rover to land on Moon on April 25

The Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) has announced that the Rashid rover, onboard the HAKUTO-R Mission 1 Lunar Lander, is scheduled to land on the Moon on April 25, 2023 at 8:40pm (UAE time), state news agency WAM reported.

The landing date is subject to change depending on operational conditions.

The Rashid rover is currently orbiting the Moon at an altitude of about 100km at the perilune (periapsis) and about 2,300 km at the apolune (apoapsis).

The points in the orbit that is closest to the centre of the moon are called perilune, and the farthest is known as apolune.

At around 7:40pm on April 25, the lander carrying Rashid rover will perform multiple orbital control manoeuvrers to reach a 100km circular orbit around the Moon before initiating the landing sequence.

During the landing sequence, the lander will perform a braking burn, firing its main propulsion system to decelerate from orbit.

.@MBRSpaceCentre: The landing date of the HAKUTO-R lander,carrying aboard the Rashid Rover, on the surface of the Moon,is set for 25 April at 8:40 PM (UAE time).The date is subject to change depending on the mission’s operations. Alternative landing dates are 26 April,1 and 3 May pic.twitter.com/6OQWdTZaCU

— Dubai Media Office (@DXBMediaOffice) April 12, 2023

Utilising a series of pre-set commands, the lander will adjust its altitude and reduce velocity to make a soft landing on the confirmed site of Atlas Crater in the Mare Frigoris.

The ELM team will complete close to a total 370 minutes of communication with the world’s most compact rover before landing, along with 12 mission rehearsals for surface operations.

The mission rehearsal is crucial for the engineering team to be prepared and ready with their programmes for execution post the lunar landing and also enable the different teams on the subsystems to sync their operational work.

The next stage of navigation for HAKUTO-R Mission 1 lunar lander that holds the Rashid rover includes the completion of all planned lunar orbital control manoeuvrers before the landing sequence as well as confirm that the lander is ready to start the landing sequence.

In case of any changes in operational conditions, three alternative landing sites, with the next landing opportunities set for April 26, May 1 and 3 have also been scheduled.

The Emirates Lunar Mission is funded by the ICT Fund of the Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority (TDRA) which aims to support research and development in the ICT sector in the UAE.

Read: UAE’s Rashid rover enters moon’s orbit