UAE Unveils Autonomous Lander for 2028 Asteroid Belt Mission
The UAE has completed development of a 10-kilogram autonomous lander for its second interplanetary mission, the Emirates Mission to the Asteroid Belt (EMA). Scheduled to launch from Japan in March 2028, the mission will travel 5 billion kilometers over eight years to study seven asteroids, culminating in a surface landing on 269 Justitia in 2036. The probe, built entirely in Abu Dhabi, will operate without ground commands to analyze the red asteroid's composition, offering insights into the early Solar System.