<p> The first Arab space mission to Mars blasted off Monday aboard a rocket from Japan, after weather delays set back the launch of the probe dubbed "Hope."</p>.<p>A live feed of the launch showed the rocket carrying the unmanned probe, known as "Al-Amal" in Arabic, lifting off from the Tanegashima Space Centre in southern Japan.</p>.<p>"We have launched the H-IIA Launch Vehicle No. 42 (H-IIA F42) carrying aboard the Emirates Mars Mission's (EMM) HOPE spacecraft... at 6:58:14 (JST) (2158GMT)," rocket manufacturer Mitsubishi Heavy Industries said in a statement shortly after the launch.</p>.<p>Five minutes after launch, the rocket carrying the probe was on course, carrying out the first separation of its flight.</p>.<p>The Emirati project is one of three racing to Mars, including Tianwen-1 from China and Mars 2020 from the United States, taking advantage of a period when the Earth and Mars are nearest.</p>.<p>In October, Mars will be a comparatively short 38.6 million miles (62.07 million kilometers) from Earth, according to NASA.</p>.<p>"Hope" is expected to reach Mars's orbit by February 2021, marking the 50th anniversary of the unification of the UAE, an alliance of seven emirates.</p>.<p>Once there, it will loop the planet for a whole Martian year, or 687 days.</p>.<p>While the objective of the Mars mission is to provide a comprehensive image of the weather dynamics in the Red Planet's atmosphere, the probe is a foundation for a much bigger goal -- building a human settlement on Mars within the next 100 years.</p>.<p>The UAE also wants the project to serve as a source of inspiration for Arab youth, in a region too often wracked by sectarian conflicts and economic crises.</p>.<p>Several dozen probes -- most of them American -- have set off for the Red Planet since the 1960s. Many never made it that far, or failed to land.</p>
<p> The first Arab space mission to Mars blasted off Monday aboard a rocket from Japan, after weather delays set back the launch of the probe dubbed "Hope."</p>.<p>A live feed of the launch showed the rocket carrying the unmanned probe, known as "Al-Amal" in Arabic, lifting off from the Tanegashima Space Centre in southern Japan.</p>.<p>"We have launched the H-IIA Launch Vehicle No. 42 (H-IIA F42) carrying aboard the Emirates Mars Mission's (EMM) HOPE spacecraft... at 6:58:14 (JST) (2158GMT)," rocket manufacturer Mitsubishi Heavy Industries said in a statement shortly after the launch.</p>.<p>Five minutes after launch, the rocket carrying the probe was on course, carrying out the first separation of its flight.</p>.<p>The Emirati project is one of three racing to Mars, including Tianwen-1 from China and Mars 2020 from the United States, taking advantage of a period when the Earth and Mars are nearest.</p>.<p>In October, Mars will be a comparatively short 38.6 million miles (62.07 million kilometers) from Earth, according to NASA.</p>.<p>"Hope" is expected to reach Mars's orbit by February 2021, marking the 50th anniversary of the unification of the UAE, an alliance of seven emirates.</p>.<p>Once there, it will loop the planet for a whole Martian year, or 687 days.</p>.<p>While the objective of the Mars mission is to provide a comprehensive image of the weather dynamics in the Red Planet's atmosphere, the probe is a foundation for a much bigger goal -- building a human settlement on Mars within the next 100 years.</p>.<p>The UAE also wants the project to serve as a source of inspiration for Arab youth, in a region too often wracked by sectarian conflicts and economic crises.</p>.<p>Several dozen probes -- most of them American -- have set off for the Red Planet since the 1960s. Many never made it that far, or failed to land.</p>