MBRSC and Airbus to collaborate on Emirates Lunar Mission

The Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Airbus Defence and Space to collaborate on the Emirates Lunar Mission in the field of material testing in-situ on the surface of the Moon by means of the material adhesive demonstration (MAD) experiment.

The MoU was signed by Salem AlMarri, Deputy Director-General, MBRSC, and Andreas Lindenthal, Head of Business Operations & Products, Airbus Space Systems on the sidelines of the International Astronautical Congress, the global space event, being held at the World Trade Centre in Dubai.

The MoU further details other scopes of work including exploring the realisation of an end-to-end In-Situ Resource Utilisation (ISRU) demonstration, building on key capabilities from each other for lunar surface operations, including mobility, robotics and regolith processing, among others.

Yousuf Hamad AlShaibani, Director General, MBRSC said: “We are pleased to collaborate with Airbus Defence and Space for the Emirates Lunar Mission. The agreement today underlines the common will of both MBRSC and Airbus to advance our cooperation and join forces in our effort to learn more about the lunar surface. We look forward to continued collaboration on projects in space, and space resources utilisation in the future.”

Jean-Marc Nasr, Head of Space Systems at Airbus added: “The UAE has made great strides in the field of space with a successful mission to Mars through the Hope Probe, as well as sending the first Emirati astronaut to the International Space Station. The UAE is setting a global example and has become the source of inspiration for youth not just here but across the world. As the country is embarking on its next ambitious space projects, we’re honoured to be signing this MoU with MBRSC, which is a strategic step to expand our contribution to supporting the government achieve its goal of becoming a well-recognised and leading country in the field of space exploration.”