UAE Mars mission lift-off on Japan rocket now scheduled for July 20

The liftoff of a United Arab Emirates' Mars orbiter, postponed due to bad weather at the launch site in southern Japan, is now scheduled for Monday.

The orbiter named Amal, or Hope, is the Arab world's first interplanetary mission.

The launch was initially scheduled for Wednesday from the Tanegashima Space Centre, but was delayed twice.

There is a slight chance of further postponement depending on the weather. The company has set a launch window through August 13.

Hope is to reach Mars in February 2021, the year the UAE celebrates 50 years since its formation.

Hope carries three instruments to study the upper atmosphere and monitor climate change and is scheduled to circle the red planet for at least two years.