NASA and the United Arab Emirates have signed a collaboration agreement on aeronautics research and space discovery with a focus on one of agency’s key pursuits -- the exploration of Mars.

“NASA is leading an ambitious journey to Mars that includes partnerships with the private sector and many international partners,” said NASA Administrator Charles Bolden in a statement released on Monday.

The US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) plans to send the first manned mission to Mars in the 2030s, and is currently trying to upgrade its space launch systems and Orion Spacecraft in a manner that they will be capable of transporting passengers to the red planet.


[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="555"] NASA Administrator Charles Bolden and UAE Space Agency Chairman Khalifa Mohammed Thani al-Romaithi signing an agreement during a meeting in Abu Dhabi on June 13, 2016. (NASA)[/caption]


“I am confident this new framework agreement with the UAE Space Agency will help advance this journey, as well as other endeavors in the peaceful exploration of outer space. Already, technical experts from our two countries are engaged in discussions on several areas of mutual interest, and I believe our two agencies will collaborate for years to come through a common interest in aeronautics, exploration and discovery,” Bolden added.


[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="555"] The United Launch Alliance Delta 4 rocket carrying NASA's first Orion deep space exploration craft takes off from the launch pad on December 5, 2014 in Cape Canaveral, Florida. The heavy-lift rocket will boost the unmanned Orion capsule to an altitude of 3,600 miles, and return for a splashdown west of Baja California after a four and half hour flight.[/caption]


The UAE has recently announced plans to send an unmanned probe to Mars, without giving specifications of its program. It has also entered cooperation agreements with China, Russia, and the UK aimed at expanding its space exploration programs.
The statement added that NASA and the UAE also plan to “facilitate the exchange of scientific data, scientists and engineers.”


[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="555"] This image released by NASA on February 7, 2013, taken by Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) onboard NASA's Mars rover Curiosity, shows a self-portrait of NASA's Mars rover Curiosity that combines dozens of exposures taken by the rover's Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) during the 177th Martian day, or sol, of Curiosity's work on Mars (February 3, 2013). (AFP)[/caption]


UAE Space Agency Chairman Khalifa Mohammed Thani Al-Romaithi welcomed the new deal, and noted, “The space sector serves as a catalyst for economic development and diversification.”
“We at the UAE Space Agency genuinely welcome the opportunity to collaborate and work with the USA and NASA in the fields of aeronautics, space science, and the peaceful exploration of outer space toward the common goal of fostering the well-being of humankind,” he added.

By Press TV