UAE unveils asteroid probe designed for terminal impact

The Technology Innovation Institute (TII) has unveiled a specialized probe designed to crash into the asteroid 269 Justitia as part of the Emirates Mission to the Asteroid Belt (EMA). Developed in Abu Dhabi in partnership with the UAE Space Agency, Khalifa University, and UAE University, the gold-wrapped probe is the mission’s only deployable payload.

Due to strict mass limits that ruled out propulsion or soft-landing capabilities, engineers designed the probe to execute a terminal crash. The probe will be released by the main spacecraft, the MBR Explorer, which will orbit the 58-kilometer-wide asteroid for approximately seven months before the release in early 2036. If the probe survives the impact, it is expected to have enough battery life for 20 to 50 minutes on the surface to transmit final images.

The mission is scheduled to launch from Japan in March 2028. The MBR Explorer will travel approximately 5 billion kilometers over eight years, utilizing gravity assists from Venus, Earth, and Mars to reach its destination.