Launched 19 July 2020 atop a Japanese H-2A rocket, the Hope probe braked into a highly elliptical orbit around Mars on 9 February 2021. The first such close encounter came in late January.
The Hope orbiter will arrive in February 2021 to begin a two-year survey of the weather on the red planet. For Emirati scientists the mission represents a new chapter in the history of scientific discovery.
