What Are The 3 Missions To Mars Launching This Month?

Three different missions to explore Mars are scheduled to launch from Earth this month. Aside from the U.S., two other countries will also launch missions to study the Red Planet.

The first mission to Mars that will launch in July will serve as the United Arab Emirates’ (UAE) first interplanetary project. Dubbed as the Hope Mars mission or Emirates Mars mission, the project aims to use three different scientific instruments to study the Red Planet’s weather, climate and atmospheric conditions from orbit, Space.com reported.

The mission is scheduled to launch on July 14. It is expected to reach Mars’ orbit in early 2021. According to Ahmad Belhoul Al Falasi, the chairperson of the United Arab Emirates Space Agency, the historical mission will secure the UAE’s status in space exploration.

“This monumental endeavor is the culmination of the efforts of a skilled and experienced team of young Emiratis, who, with the support of the nation and its visionary leadership, will secure the UAE's position at the forefront of space exploration and the international space sector,” he said in a previous statement obtained by Space.com.

After the UAE’s launch, China will embark on its first Mars mission known as Tianwen-1. The mission, which will be launched via the Long March 5 rocket on July 23, consists of an orbiter, a lander and a rover.

Although officials of China’s space program have been very secretive regarding the details of the project, the mission’s equipment indicates that China is planning to conduct an in-depth exploration of Mars.

The third and final mission to Mars this month is from NASA. Called Mars 2020, the mission will deliver a new rover known as Perseverance to the Red Planet. As explained by NASA, Perseverance’s main objective is to collect samples from its target site, the Jezero crater. These samples will then be stored and brought back to Earth by a future mission for analysis.

If everything goes well for NASA, the Mars 2020 mission will launch on July 30 from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. It is expected to reach its landing site on Mars on Feb. 18, 2021.