UAE's TII Unveils Asteroid Belt Mission Probe, Launch Set for March 2028

en.Wedoany.com Reported - The UAE's Technology Innovation Institute (TII) has announced the completion of the design, manufacturing, and testing of an asteroid landing probe. The probe will be carried by the "MBR Explorer" spacecraft for the UAE Asteroid Belt Mission (EMA) and will soon be shipped to Colorado, USA, for final integration with the main spacecraft, with a planned launch in March 2028.

The probe was developed by TII's Propulsion and Space Research Center in Abu Dhabi and is the only deployable payload in the EMA mission. The probe will separate from the MBR Explorer in the later phase of the mission and autonomously descend to the surface of asteroid 269 Justitia, continuously imaging during descent and contact while conducting surface material detection. After departing from the main spacecraft, the system requires no real-time commands from the ground or the mothership and can autonomously determine imaging timing, the number of images, and the scope of data retention.

The probe is equipped with both wide-angle and narrow-angle cameras, as well as a digital processing unit independently designed by TII, responsible for image processing, data screening, and power management. The probe will also conduct imaging during the cruise phase and transmit data back approximately every 6 months via the main spacecraft.

The MBR Explorer is planned to undertake a deep space flight mission of approximately 5 billion kilometers over about 8 years, using Venus, Earth, and Mars for gravity assists, sequentially flying by 6 main-belt asteroids at close range before finally reaching 269 Justitia. The main spacecraft will operate near the target for about 7 months, gradually lowering its orbit from approximately 250 kilometers.

According to the current mission plan, the landing probe will be released during the low-orbit flyby phase in early 2036 and will attempt to contact the surface of 269 Justitia. The EMA main spacecraft completed its critical design review in 2025 and is currently in the assembly, integration, and testing phase, with a planned launch in the first quarter of 2028.