
The UAE moon mission which was also Arab's world first mission to the Moon has been postponed due to technical reasons. It was scheduled to launch today Wednesday, 30 November, at 12:39 pm GST with the launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the Rashid rover.
The Emirates Lunar Mission (ELM) of the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) has not got a new launch date on Thursday, 1 December at 12:37 pm UAE time.Earlier too, the mission was postponed many times that was set to launch on 22 November and then on 28 November.
The delays in the launch have apparently been due to some technical issues and also due to weather conditions that make the launch less favourbale.
Rashid Rover's landing site, which will be Atlas crater, located at 47.5°N, 44.4°E, on the southeastern outer edge of Mare Frigoris (Sea of Cold) has beenchosen to maintain flexibility during operations. Mare Frigoris lies in the far lunar north.
If the mission is successful, UAE will become the fourth country in the world to land on the moon, after the US, Russia, China, and India.