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From Emirates Mars Mission to UN committee: How Omran Sharaf took the UAE to space and beyond

The project director oversaw the entry of the Hope Probe into the Red Planet’s orbit

Published: Wed 1 Jun 2022, 5:07 PM

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File photo

File photo

The man who led the UAE’s mission to Mars, Omran Sharaf, has been elected as the Director of the UN Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space and will be serving the tenure from 2022 to 2023.

The UAE President and Vice-President have tweeted about their pride in the official’s achievement.


The President, His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, tweeted:

“Congratulations to Omran Sharaf, Project Director of the Emirates Mars Mission, on his election as Director of the UN Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space. The UAE continues to make notable contributions to the space sector, and we wish Omran every success in his new role.”

The Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS) was established by the UN General Assembly in 1959. It was set up to review and foster international cooperation in the peaceful uses of outer space. Additionally, it considers any legal issues arising from the exploration of outer space.

Sharaf instrumental in spearheading EMM’s success story

One of 2021’s most transformative events in this region saw the entry of the Hope Probe into the Red Planet’s orbit on February 9.

The 38-year-old Emirati engineer known for his composed demeanour had been heading a team of young engineers since 2014 to make the UAE’s first interplanetary mission a success.

On Sharaf's recent UN appointment, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, said the country’s youth has taken the UAE to space and beyond.

Last year, he was also named among the world’s top 50 future leaders by the Project Management Institute (non-profit professionals association). He has also represented the UAE at COPUOS and the International Committee on Global Navigation Satellite Systems.

Moment of triumph and his early years

Sharaf, who has been instrumental in building the UAE’s history and its achievements on Mars, has constantly been on his toes relentlessly working, overseeing the mission’s upcoming phase.

Over the past year, his team’s focus has been on gathering as much data as possible from the probe to share with the local and international scientific community.

In a candid conversation with Khaleej Times earlier, Sharaf recalled the success of the mission. He had pointed out that he felt “lucky” and “honoured” and appreciated the fact that he experienced a momentous occasion in his stellar career.

“Truth be told, I felt a sense of relief and was in shock at the same time. The past seven years went by very fast. This journey was filled with challenges … but because of the ownership that the team took and the support of the leadership of this country we were able to reach this point. I still feel the weight of the mission, but the stress has receded considerably. Besides, the way the public reacted to the mission was a huge reflection of how important it was for everyone.”

Sharaf, earned his bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Virginia, USA in 2005 and his post-graduate in science and technology policy from the Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon, South Korea, in 2013.

He started working with the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) in 2006, formerly called the Emirates Institute for Advanced Science and Technology.

He had highlighted that he always dreamt in his formative years to work on a project or a mission that was related to space. However, he wasn’t certain if his dream would come true someday.

“I wasn’t sure when I was young if that would be possible because at that time the UAE as a country was not developed in space technology. We were users and operators of space technologies, but not developers.

“Usually, nations have their science and technology capabilities established before going into space. But the UAE’s story is different. We used space to build our science and technology capabilities. I never imagined then that one day I’ll be working on a Mars Mission,” he said.

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