UAE's MBR Explorer Probe Reaches Final Testing Phase Ahead of 2028 Asteroid Belt Mission

A UAE-built probe for the Emirates Mission to the Asteroid Belt has completed vibration testing and is undergoing thermal tests as preparations intensify for the mission’s launch in March 2028.

Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence, viewed a flight-identical model of the probe, developed by Abu Dhabi’s Technology Innovation Institute, at a press conference on Thursday. Faisal Al Bannai, Adviser to the UAE President for Strategic Research and Advanced Technology, stated that the mission would build local expertise and advance scientific understanding.

“Having a product does not mean you have sovereignty. Having sovereignty means you know the tech. You’re able to evolve it. You’re able to change it. You’re able to use that knowledge in other missions and other programmes that you want to develop,” said Mr Al Bannai, who is also Secretary General of the Advanced Technology Research Council.

The Technology Innovation Institute's Propulsion and Space Research Centre led the design, construction, and testing of the probe in the UAE, incorporating core hardware, on-board processing, software, and systems.

The MBR Explorer is scheduled to launch during a three-week window in March 2028 on an eight-year, five-billion-kilometre journey, reaching the 269 Justitia asteroid in 2036 by utilizing gravity assists around Venus, Earth, and Mars.

Dr Ahmad Al Falasi, Minister of Sports and chairman of the UAE Space Agency, emphasized that deep-space missions leave behind critical technology development, trained personnel, and broader public interest in space.

TII executive director Anton Ivanov noted that the flight model finished vibration testing and is undergoing thermal cycles inside a vacuum chamber at a university in Al Ain, ahead of a flight-readiness review and shipment to Colorado later this month.

Mission director Mohsen Al Awadhi confirmed that the team has no backup plan if the March 2028 window is missed, as the trajectory relies entirely on that specific launch schedule.

The probe will separate from the MBR Explorer at Justitia to operate independently during its final descent, striking the asteroid at speeds between 15 and 27 metres per second to capture imagery and help scientists examine subsurface material.