Israel’s defense minister says the IDF’s next goal is to achieve military superiority in space, including both defensive and offensive capabilities.

By World Israel News Staff

Defense Minister Israel Katz said Thursday that Israel’s next major defense goal is to develop offensive and defensive superiority in space, including the ability to disrupt enemy systems and eventually carry out kinetic attacks from orbit.

Katz said he and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had identified space as a central arena for Israel’s future military edge, arguing that space reduces some of the disadvantages Israel faces against larger enemies.

“One of the central goals the prime minister and I have marked is space,” Katz said at the opening of a conference hosted by the Defense Ministry.

“Space is the place where the territory you hold down below has no meaning, the size of your population has no meaning, and many other things have no meaning — and that is the target that has been set.”

Katz said Israel’s goal is not only to operate in space, protect Israeli assets there and neutralize hostile systems, but also to be able to act from space against targets on Earth.

“Not only to be in space, not only to be able to defend what we put there and thwart what others put there — but to operate from there downward: also in disruption, which will come fairly early, disruption of systems, and also in kinetic attack,” he said.

Katz said the Defense Ministry is now recruiting top talent for the effort.

“We are now recruiting the best minds,” he said. “Today no country has the capability of attack from space. We must be the leading country in the world in this capability, which, if we achieve it, will guarantee us an advantage in deterrence, in strike capability, destruction and all the other things against enemies with large resources.”

Israel has long operated military reconnaissance satellites, and its Ofek program has been a core part of the country’s intelligence-gathering capabilities.

In September 2025, Israel launched the Ofek 19 spy satellite, which defense officials said would improve Israel’s ability to monitor threats across the Middle East.

At the time, Katz called the launch “another building block in Israel’s power projection on the global stage,” saying it reflected the advanced capabilities of the Defense Ministry, the IDF and Israel Aerospace Industries.

Defense officials have said Israel’s recent wars highlighted the growing importance of space-based intelligence. The Defense Ministry said Ofek 19 joined Israel’s operational satellite constellation and would be transferred to Unit 9900, the IDF’s visual and geospatial intelligence unit.

Maj. Gen. Amir Baram, the Defense Ministry director general, said after the Ofek 19 launch that modern warfare increasingly extends into space and that Israel planned to invest billions in the coming decade to expand its satellite constellation.

“The Swords of Iron War, particularly Operation Rising Lion, demonstrated that modern warfare extends into space,” Baram said at the time. “Expanding and strengthening our foothold in space is a central objective in the ministry’s strategy.”

Israel Aerospace Industries said Ofek 19 is a synthetic aperture radar satellite, allowing intelligence collection during the day, at night and in poor weather conditions.

IAI CEO Boaz Levy said the capabilities were especially important after Operation Rising Lion, which “underscored that having advanced observation capabilities in our region is critical for achieving aerial and ground superiority.”

The statement comes as Israel is expanding its defense investments after years of multifront warfare against Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran and other regional adversaries. Israeli officials have repeatedly said the country must preserve technological superiority over enemies with larger populations, larger territories and greater strategic depth.

Katz said Israel should aim to be first in military capabilities in space.

“We must be the leading country in the world in this capability,” he said.

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Iranian technology expert Ardalan Alyasinfar floated the idea of firing missiles at low-orbiting satellites or space debris instead of targeting countries with air defenses, warning a “catastrophic crisis” could follow any successful hit.

Iranian Technology Expert Ardalan Alyasinfar: A Single Attack in Low Earth Orbit Could Cripple Global Satellite Infrastructure, Be Much More Effective than Direct Missile Attacks on the Ground pic.twitter.com/XJOjwtv2JQ

— MEMRI (@MEMRIReports) May 19, 2026

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As well as collecting research, the satellites will telemetrically transmit the names of all Israeli civilians and soldiers killed from October 7, 2023, to December 2024, meaning they will be displayed continuously on the Israel Space Agency website.

By Crystal Jones, TPS

The largest ever Israeli group satellite constellation – created in Israel by high school students – was launched into space today – and may help humans travel to nearby planet Mars in the future.

Nine intricate nanosatellites were launched from a base in the US after students in Israel spent three years building the equipment as part of a nationwide project.

Each satellite measures 10×10×11.3 cm – a little bigger than the size of a golf ball – and was launched into the Earth’s orbit at 500 kilometers aboard a space rocket.

Once released, the objects will travel at a speed of five miles per second and collect vital information on cosmic radiation.

The scientifically advanced equipment will stay in orbit for three years, and will be useful in determining whether or not humans may one day be able to travel to Mars, as well as collect information on the effects of electronic radiation.

The pieces were all designed as well as made by the students, and overseen by scientists at the university.

Professor Meir Ariel, Head of the Space Engineering Center at Tel Aviv University’s Faculty of Engineering told TPS-IL: “We find this age [15-18 year olds] can be very good at writing software and have proven in the past that they are up to the job.

“The satellites will monitor cosmic radiation from the sun and from the supernova explosion, which is harmful to electronic devices and humans. If we want to travel to Mars, we need to understand that.”

Each miniature space capsule contains transmitters that will send information back to space bases on Earth for scientists to analyze.

The satellites mark the 20th made and released into orbit by Israeli high school students. Many more have been made by adult working Israeli scientists, but Israel often draw on it’s youth in scientific programs, in order to encourage scientific innovation.

Because the satellites needed to be released in an Eastward direction to maximize velocity, Israel paid a company to release them from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.

Israel is not able to do so from it’s own land, because of hostile neighboring countries.

As well as collecting research, the satellites will telemetrically transmit the names of all Israeli civilians and soldiers killed from October 7, 2023, to December 2024, meaning they will be displayed continuously on the Israel Space Agency website.

Gila Gamliel, Minister of Innovation, Science, and Technology commented: “What these talented students have accomplished is nothing short of amazing – they have built the largest Israeli satellite constellation ever launched…

“Our substantial investment in this initiative is not just an investment in technology — it is an investment in you, the next generation of Israeli space scientists and engineers.”

She also mentioned feeling ‘emotional’ at the achievement, and elation at seeing the first satellite created by a Druze community: “I am especially proud of the first-ever Druze satellite and the moving memorial mission of the Sha’ar HaNegev satellite.”

Brigadier General Uri Oron, Director General of the Israel Space Agency said: “The Tevel 2 project is a testament to the power of Israeli innovation.

“We see here a winning combination of scientific excellence, technological education, and societal integration. These satellites will not only provide crucial scientific data; they will also serve as an inspiration for the next generation of Israeli space scientists.”

The project cost 10.5 million shekels (approximately $2.88 million), was funded by Israel’s Ministry of Innovation, Science, and Technology, and was overseen by Tel Aviv University’s Space Engineering program.

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“Israel, despite being a small country, stands at the global forefront of the space field and serves as a significant factor in leading international space programs,” President Isaac Herzog said in a recorded video address from New York.

By Etgar Lefkovits, JNS

Israel has reached an agreement with NASA to send the first Israeli woman astronaut into space, Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology Gila Gamliel said on Monday.

The remarks come as Israel is expanding cooperation in space technology with longtime allies such as the U.S., Italy, and Azerbaijan, as well as with regional parties to the landmark 2020 Abraham Accords such as the United Arab Emirates.

“I received a confirmation from NASA to send the first Israeli woman astronaut into space,” Gamliel said at the 20th Ilan Ramon International Space Conference in Tel Aviv. “We in Israel have now begun the process of searching for our candidate among our brave women.”

The annual event—named after the first Israeli astronaut, Ilan Ramon, who died in the 2003 Columbia Space Shuttle disaster—promotes international collaboration and innovation in space exploration.

This year’s conference was attended by Omran Sharaf, the UAE assistant foreign minister for advanced science and technology; and the president of the Italian Space Agency, Professor Teodoro Valente.

Valente signed an accord with his Israeli counterpart, Uri Oron, to develop a payload for a mission to the moon.

“Our space cooperation is really improving,” the Italian Space Agency president told JNS. “Just a few days ago our vice prime minister was here to support cooperation between our two countries—and space is one part of [that].”

Heads of the Israeli and Italian space agencies, Uri Oron and Prof. Teodoro Valente, sign an MOU on the sidelines of the Ilan Ramon Conference. Jan. 27, 2025. Credit: Oz Shechter/GPO

“Israel, despite being a small country, stands at the global forefront of the space field and serves as a significant factor in leading international space programs,” President Isaac Herzog said in a recorded video address from New York, where he is attending the U.N. General Assembly’s event marking the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz.

“We are already promoting cooperation with countries that have signed the Abraham Accords, and I am confident that in the near future we will see additional cooperation which will contribute to both Israel and the international space community,” Herzog said.

Gamliel, who visited NASA’s Space Center in Houston in September, noted that nine nano-satellites built by Israeli high school students, including from a school along the Gaza border, will soon be sent into space aboard SpaceX rockets.

The launch is slated to take place in March off the West Coast of the United States.

“We are building the future not just for ourselves, but for those who are no longer here,” said Or Ziner, a high school senior from southern Israel who headed the satellite project at her school, and who recounted growing up with rocket sirens warning of rockets from Gaza.

“My father’s mission was not just a historic one for Israel but for the entire Jewish community,” Ramon’s son Iftah said at the event. “The mission, a mix of different countries and cultures, became a symbol of pride, hope and possibility.”

“Twenty years ago, we began a journey that would transform how the world sees Israel’s place in space exploration,” Gamliel said. “By continuing to forge international partnerships and collaborations we aim to solidify Israel’s status as a global leader in the space industry while contributing to the advancement of global space exploration and innovation.”

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The study documented the effects of space travel on neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.

By Pesach Benson, TPS

Six former Israeli high school students are flying high after their research into the effects of space travel on neurodegenerative diseases was recently published in a leading peer-reviewed scientific journal.

The findings may have significant implications for long-term space missions and open new avenues of treatment for disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease.

The study — conducted both on Earth and aboard the International Space Station (ISS) — was led by the students of the Shehakim School in Nahariya in collaboration with researchers from the University of Haifa and Oranim College.

Research began four years ago, and was published in the June edition of Astrobiology.

“The fact that high school students, most of whom are now soldiers in the army, have contributed to a publication in a leading scientific journal is an extraordinary achievement. It is uncommon in the scientific community and sets a precedent for future research collaborations involving young scientists,” said Haifa University’s Dr. Amir Sapir.

The accomplishment is part of the Ramon SpaceLab program, an Israeli program that facilitates collaboration between students and researchers to explore scientific phenomena in space.

The journey began about four years ago when Ksina Onger, Yair Barak, Amit Yuval, Lia Stekolshik, Linoy Ego, and Yana Aydinov, then ninth graders, participated in a competition to launch a scientific experiment to the ISS.

Under the guidance of their teacher, Tatiana Itkin, they proposed using microscopic-sized worms called nematodes (C. elegans) to study the effects of space travel on neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.

Nematodes were chosen for their unique biological characteristics, such as their transparency and ability to survive for six months without food, making them ideal for space experiments.

Their proposal was selected by leading figures in the Israeli space industry, researchers, and NASA scientists from among 30 submissions.

Neurodegenerative diseases, caused by the deposition of protein bodies that lead to nerve cell death, are a growing concern as life expectancy increases.

The students and researchers genetically engineered nematodes to develop a condition similar to Huntington’s disease, a hereditary neurodegenerative disorder that affects the brain.

The students then monitored the development of protein bodies in nematodes on Earth and those sent to space.

A remote control system was used to synchronize real-time updates from astronauts on the ISS with tests conducted in Sapir’s laboratory.

The students found significant differences between the space-traveling nematodes and those that remained on Earth.

The researchers stressed that it is challenging to pinpoint whether the differences stemmed from changes in the nematodes’ development, or was related to the unique conditions of space.

“Due to the high cost of space experiments, this study was conducted once. Repeated trials are necessary to confirm or refute the hypothesis linking space living conditions with the development of neurodegenerative diseases,” said Prof. Yoram Gershman of both Oranim College and Haifa University.

A link between living in space with the incidence of neurodegenerative diseases would profoundly impact long-term space missions and also open new avenues for treatment.

“If space living prevents the onset of these diseases, we could see a future where space travel is part of medical treatment,” Itkin said.

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Deputy Director of Naval Intelligence Scott Bray shows declassified footage during his opening remarks at a historic open House hearing on unidentified aerial phenomena.

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Tesla founder provides satellite-based internet for Ukraine, although connectivity hasn’t been interrupted by Russian invasion.

By World Israel News Staff

Billionaire tech entrepreneur Elon Musk formally acknowledged that he had sent devices that would facilitate internet access via his company’s Starlink satellite-based internet to Ukraine in a tweet on Monday.

Ukraine’s minister of digital transformation for Ukraine, Mykhailo Fedorov, posted an image on Twitter which appeared to show connective devices in the back of a military truck which would allow Ukranians to use Starlink.

“Starlink — here. Thanks, @elonmusk,” Fedorov wrote.

Starlink — here. Thanks, @elonmusk pic.twitter.com/dZbaYqWYCf

— Mykhailo Fedorov (@FedorovMykhailo) February 28, 2022

“You are most welcome,” Musk replied to Fedorov.

Musk has remained mum on details as to how the devices entered Ukraine but acknowledged his surprise that Starlink’s parent company, SpaceX, could make an impact during the crisis.

“I wish I could say more,” Musk told SpaceNews. “But, yeah, I was thinking the same thing. Strange that SpaceX can do this.”

Currently, internet access is still widely available throughout Ukraine, though Russia’s invasion of the eastern European nation has sparked fears that Moscow could destroy technological infrastructure and cut Ukraine off from the web if they chose to do so.

“We anticipated the disruption of our comms, but [it] didn’t happen,” Volodymyr Usov, former chairman of the Ukrainian State Space Agency and co-founder of Kyiv-based Kurs Orbita, told SpaceNews.

“Thanks to Elon for his support and good outreach,” he added. “Starlink can prove to be useful, especially outside big cities.”

Musk recently provided Starlink connectors to the South Pacific island of Tonga, which recently suffered a devastating volcanic explosion, triggering a tsunami that destroyed its internet infrastructure.

In May 2021, SpaceX launched two private passengers into space, becoming the first private company to do so. Until then, only the American, Chinese, and Russian governments had successfully launched human beings into space.

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NASA’s Parker Solar Probe has become the first spacecraft in history to travel through the sun’s upper atmosphere – the corona.

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NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) Mission was launched early Wednesday from California in an effort to determine whether humanity is prepared to protect itself against an asteroid impact.

Deployment confirmed, @NASA’s DART is on its way to redirect an asteroid pic.twitter.com/UTxkcJFcq0

— SpaceX (@SpaceX) November 24, 2021

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For the first time ever, green and red chiles grown in outer space were harvested and eaten.

By Lauren Marcus, World Israel News

Astronaut Buzz Aldrin’s statement before embarking on the first-ever human walk on the moon has become an iconic quote – “‘One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”

Now, Mexican food has taken its own giant leap forward, skyrocketing to new heights with the very 21st century distinction of being the star of a party at the International Space Station.

For the first time ever, green and red chiles grown in outer space were harvested, then eaten within tacos by astronauts as part of a scientific taste test and experiment.

NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei harvested the chiles last Friday, which took four months to grow aboard the International Space Station.

“Friday Feasting! After the harvest, we got to taste red and green chile,” wrote astronaut Megan McArthur on Twitter, alongside photos of the space-age culinary delight floating in zero gravity.

“Then we filled out surveys (got to have the data! ). Finally, I made my best space tacos yet: fajita beef, rehydrated tomatoes & artichokes, and HATCH CHILE!”

Friday Feasting! After the harvest, we got to taste red and green chile. Then we filled out surveys (got to have the data! ). Finally, I made my best space tacos yet: fajita beef, rehydrated tomatoes & artichokes, and HATCH CHILE! https://t.co/pzvS5A6z5u pic.twitter.com/fJ8yLZuhZS

— Megan McArthur (@Astro_Megan) October 29, 2021

The plant growing project is critical both for deepening understanding of horticulture in outer space, as well as protecting astronauts’ physical and mental health.

With most foods on space missions being freeze-dried and bland, and the view outside the window sometimes bleak, looking after a living, green plant and enjoying the fruits of their labors can boost astronauts’ emotional wellbeing, as well as provide them with additional vitamins and nutrients.

“Growing colorful vegetables in space can have long-term benefits for physical and psychological health,” said Matt Romeyn, a principal investigator for the experiment, in a statement.

“We are discovering that growing plants and vegetables with colors and smells helps to improve astronauts’ well-being.”

LaShelle Spencer, a plant scientist and leader in the experiment said that the experiment could influence nutritional plans for astronauts on future years-long missions to other planets.

“The food astronauts eat needs to be as good as the rest of their equipment,” she said in a statement.

“To successfully send people to Mars and bring them back to Earth, we will not only require the most nutritious foods, but the best tasting ones as well.”

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Millions remain unconnected to the internet in Africa, and cannot access crucial services such as telemedicine, remote work, and remote learning.

By Yafit Ovadia, CTech 

With Israel’s Nimbus project underway, as well as Google’s plans to build a server farm and expand connectivity across the Jewish State, the country will have increased options to improve connectivity locally. Gilat Telecom is an Israeli company aiming to bring some of that connectivity around the world with its satellite, fiber, and cloud offerings. In June, the company, which is part of the Satcom Systems Group, won a tender from the Israel Broadcasting Corporation to transmit the Kan News Channel’s television and radio broadcasts via satellite.

Currently, the corporation distributes two channels using software-defined network technology and eight radio channels via Spacecom’s Amos 17 satellite for space communications. Gilat Telecom has been operating for the past 25 years in the telecommunications sector, offering satellite and fiber-based connectivity solutions, delivering high-quality broadband communication to mobile-network operators (MNOs) and internet service providers (ISPs). The core of its operations are in Africa, particularly the sub-Saharan countries, where it yields 75% of its revenues, and connects some of the most remote locations to the internet; while its remaining revenues come from its operations in Israel.

“We’re a one-stop-shop for all telecom connectivity services, and provide 4G communications to over 30 million consumers in Africa. In Israel, we provide telecom solutions and hardware integration for several branches of the defense sector, such as the Israeli military and the Israel Police, as well as government bureaus,” Gilat Telecom CEO Asaf Rosenheck told CTech in an interview.

Over the past few years, the company has shifted from satellite and fiber services to incorporating cloud computing options too. In Africa, Rosenheck explained, most of the consumer telecom market is dominated by MNOs that use SIM cards on phones or personal WiFi hotspots, as that is how people in Africa consume the internet since crucial infrastructure is often lacking in many locations, particularly in underdeveloped countries. Gilat operates marine subsea fiber cables, satellites in various positions above the Earth, and local-in-country cloud infrastructure via server farms.

Internet service in the Sub-Saharan desert

Currently, Gilat works with communication companies in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ghana, Nigeria, Cameroon, Kenya, the Central Africa Republic, Uganda, Chad, Niger, South Sudan, Liberia, and Guinea.

Millions remain unconnected to the internet in Africa, and cannot access crucial services such as telemedicine, remote work, and remote learning, Rosenheck noted, so Gilat works with local parties that are responsible for country-wide distribution. It also strives to provide them at a reduced cost. Currently, the company has Points of Presence (POPs) in several countries, in locations as diverse as Petach Tikva, London, Germany, Ghana, Uganda, and Congo.

Gilat is no stranger to the defense sector as well, and enables sensitive communications for several vendors in that industry. “Our solutions provide maritime, air, and land services with mission-critical voice, video, and high-speed data communications anywhere in the world for enterprises and governments,” said Ami Schneider, who serves as the VP Defense & HLS Division, although the company declined to further elaborate on the matter for security reasons.

Poised above planet Earth

While traditional satellites for telecommunications are located in geostationary orbits (GEO) and do not rotate often, Gilat utilizes them but also employs those located at medium-Earth orbit (MEO) positions, which are most effective in providing services to remote locations. Customers need only install a satellite dish to get service, browse their email, stream Netflix, and more. They also do not require any expensive infrastructure – aside from electricity – which can be obtained from solar panels, a modem, and dish.

Alternately, its GEO satellites are able to power livestream services on moving vehicles, such as news vans, since they remain in one static location in space. “Using low latency satellites provides more stable services, because there are less possible points of failure compared to fiber,” Rosenheck explained, “it’s especially useful in places like in Chad, Niger, and Congo where installing terrestrial connectivity or building cell towers is very expensive since the country is quite large, and we can reach more areas via satellite.”

Cloud computing across the continent

Beginning in 2019, Gilat began offering cloud services to African countries too. Cloud computing has become a necessity, and companies like AWS and Microsoft Azure are taking over the sector. Gilat sells virtual private servers with storage and backup options to MNOs, and its cloud solutions contain disaster recovery as well.

“We offer cloud infrastructure in certain countries, so customers won’t experience delays when connecting to the internet via fiber or satellites,” he explained. The group recently constructed a server farm in Uganda. As to the next countries in the works, Gilat has Congo, Nigeria, South Sudan, and Niger in its sights.

“We’re investing locally in those countries by building server farms, so that hospitals, banks, and other companies can connect right away. Cloud connectivity is more stable, and doesn’t consume expensive resources like fiber and satellites do,” he added.

Financial flexibility

The company first began its path in the 1990s, and went public in 2004 on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. Originally, Gilat Satellite – which designs satellite networks – was part of Gilat Telecom, but split off into an offshoot company and is strictly a hardware manufacturer that creates modems and satellite hubs, while Telecom remains a service provider.

In the past, Gilat was owned by the Eurocom Group, whose shareholders held full control. However, since February 2021, the company has remained without a single controlling shareholder and is able to operate more freely.

As to Gilat’s and other Israeli satellites companies’ success, Rosenheck relayed that Israel’s closer geographic location to Africa helps it easily build better infrastructure as well as understand local needs. “We’re agile and flexible and can adjust ourselves to the rapid changes in the market. We market better to African countries, because we can intuit what they need.”

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Israeli astro-photographer David ‘Deddy’ Dayag released time-lapse images of the surface of the sun.

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Technically, there’s no sound in space, but Israeli researchers have discovered what could be described as the ghostly cry of a dead star.

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The Dubai International Financial Center is boldly going where no court has gone before, creating a tribunal tailored to the space sector and commercial disputes that could arise.

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After hurtling hundreds of millions of miles through space since last summer, three robotic explorers are ready to hit the brakes at Mars.

By Associated Press

The stakes — and anxiety — are sky high, as the United Arab Emirates’ orbiter reaches Mars on Tuesday, followed less than 24 hours later by China’s orbiter-rover combo.

NASA’s rover, the cosmic caboose, will arrive on the scene a week later, on Feb. 18, to collect rocks for return to Earth — a key step in determining whether life ever existed at Mars.

Both the UAE and China are newcomers at Mars, where more than half of Earth’s emissaries have failed. China’s first Mars mission, a joint effort with Russia in 2011, never made it past Earth’s orbit.

“We are quite excited as engineers and scientists, at the same time quite stressed and happy, worried, scared,” said Omran Sharaf, project manager for the UAE.

All three spacecraft rocketed away within days of one another last July, during an Earth-to-Mars launch window that occurs only every two years. That’s why their arrivals are also close together.

UAE craft to watch weather

Called Amal, or Hope in Arabic, the Gulf nation’s spacecraft is seeking an especially high orbit — 13,500 by 27,000 miles high (22,000 kilometers by 44,000 kilometers) — all the better to monitor the Martian weather.

China’s duo — called Tianwen-1, or “Quest for Heavenly Truth” — will remain paired in orbit until May, when the rover separates to descend to the dusty, ruddy surface. If all goes well, it will be only the second country to land successfully on the red planet.

The U.S. rover Perseverance, by contrast, will dive in straight away for a harrowing sky-crane touchdown similar to the Curiosity rover’s grand Martian entrance in 2012. The odds are in NASA’s favor: It’s nailed eight of its nine attempted Mars landings.

Despite their differences — the 1-ton Perseverance is larger and more elaborate than the Tianwen-1 rover — both will prowl for signs of ancient microscopic life.

Perseverance’s $3 billion mission is the first leg in a U.S.-European effort to bring Mars samples to Earth in the next decade.

“To say we’re pumped about it, well that would be a huge understatement,” said Lori Glaze, NASA’s planetary science director.

Perseverance is aiming for an ancient river delta that seems a logical spot for once harboring life. This landing zone in Jezero Crater is so treacherous that NASA nixed it for Curiosity, but so tantalizing that scientists are keen to get hold of its rocks.

“When the scientists take a look at a site like Jezero Crater, they see the promise, right?” said Al Chen, who’s in charge of the entry, descent and landing team at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California.

“When I look at Jezero, I see danger. There’s danger everywhere.”

Steep cliffs, deep pits and fields of rocks could cripple or doom Perseverance, following its seven-minute atmospheric plunge. With an 11 1/2-minute communication lag each way, the rover will be on its own, unable to rely on flight controllers. Amal and Tianwen-1 will also need to operate autonomously while maneuvering into orbit.

Until Perseverance, NASA sought out flat, boring terrain on which to land — “one giant parking lot,” Chen said. That’s what China’s Tianwen-1 rover will be shooting for in Mars’ Utopia Planitia.

NASA is upping its game thanks to new navigation technology designed to guide the rover to a safe spot. The spacecraft also has a slew of cameras and microphones to capture the sights and sounds of descent and landing, a Martian first.

Faster than previous Mars vehicles but still moving at a glacial pace, the six-wheeled Perseverance will drive across Jezero, collecting core samples of the most enticing rocks and gravel. The rover will set the samples aside for retrieval by a fetch rover launching in 2026.

Under an elaborate plan still being worked out by NASA and the European Space Agency, the geologic treasure would arrive on Earth in the early 2030s. Scientists contend it’s the only way to ascertain whether life flourished on a wet, watery Mars 3 billion to 4 billion years ago.

Another Giant Step

NASA’s science mission chief, Thomas Zurbuchen, considers it “one of the hardest things ever done by humanity and certainly in space science.”

The U.S. is still the only country to successfully land on Mars, beginning with the 1976 Vikings. Two spacecraft are still active on the surface: Curiosity and InSight.

Smashed Russian and European spacecraft litter the Martian landscape, meanwhile, along with NASA’s failed Mars Polar Lander from 1999.

Getting into orbit around Mars is less complicated, but still no easy matter, with about a dozen spacecraft falling short. Mars fly-bys were the rage in the 1960s and most failed; NASA’s Mariner 4 was the first to succeed in 1965.

Six spacecraft currently are operating around Mars: three from the U.S., two from Europe and one from India. The UAE hopes to make it seven with its $200-plus million mission.

The UAE is especially proud that Amal was designed and built by its own citizens, who partnered with the University of Colorado at Boulder and other U.S. institutions, not simply purchased from abroad. Its arrival at Mars coincides with this year’s 50th anniversary of the country’s founding.

“Starting off the year with this milestone is something very important for the people” of the UAE, said Sharaf.

China, hasn’t divulged much in advance. Even the spacecraft’s exact arrival time on Wednesday has yet to be announced.

The China Academy of Space Technology’s Ye Peijian noted that Tianwen-1 has three objectives: orbiting the planet, landing and releasing the rover. If successful, he said in a statement “it will become the world’s first Mars expedition accomplishing all three goals with one probe.”

The coronavirus pandemic has complicated each step of each spacecraft’s 300 million-mile (480 million-kilometer) journey to Mars. It even kept the European and Russian space agencies’ joint Mars mission grounded until the next launch window in 2022.

The flight control rooms will contain fewer people on the big day, with staff spread over a wider area and working from home. Desks have dividers and partitions. Masks and social distancing are mandatory.

Perseverance’s deputy project manager Matt Wallace, who’s working his fifth Mars rover mission, said the pandemic won’t dampen the mood come landing day.

“I don’t think COVID’s going to be able to stop us from jumping up and down, and fist-bumping,” he said. “You’re going to see a lot of happy people no matter what, once we get this thing on the surface safely.”

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“We had another great flight. We’ve just got to work on that landing,” said a SpaceX official after the Starship spacecraft crashed and burned at the end of a test flight on Tuesday.

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