Country dossier · ARE

United Arab Emirates

Advanced space-faring nation

A sourced snapshot of United Arab Emirates's posture in space — capability, institutions, orbital assets, law and people. Every figure carries its primary source; gaps are shown honestly, never filled with invented data.

Open United Arab Emirates in the interactive workspace →

Capability tier

Advanced space-faring nation

Launches to orbit from its own territory: noLaunch sites on record: 0Nationals who have flown: 4

Source: ALL IN SPACE capability ladder · see methodology

Space agency

UAE Space Agency (UAESA) / Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre

National space agency · established 2014 · two-source verified

Source: UNOOSA · Worldwide Space Agencies directory

Satellites (owner state)

22

Counted from the GCAT May 2026 snapshot. The interactive workspace shows a live CelesTrak figure, which uses different owner-attribution rules and will differ.

Source: GCAT · General Catalog of Artificial Space Objects (J. McDowell) · May 2026 snapshot

Ground stations

12

Source: ALL IN SPACE curated ground-station dataset (operator-sourced)

Space budget

$550M

Developing spender · 2026 · UAE Space Agency

Source: UAE Space Agency

National strategy

National Space Strategy 2030 (2019)

Cabinet-approved strategy with six goals delivered through 20+ programmes and 80 initiatives, complemented by the National Space Investment Plan

Source: Published national space strategies and policies

International space law

InstrumentStatus
Outer Space Treaty 1967Ratified
Rescue Agreement 1968Ratified
Liability Convention 1972Ratified
Registration Convention 1975Ratified
Moon Agreement 1979Not a party
Artemis Accords 2020Signatory (2020-10-13)

Source: Status of international agreements relating to activities in outer space (1 January 2026)

Launch sites

The United Arab Emirates has no domestic orbital launch capability; UAE missions launch from foreign sites including Tanegashima, Cape Canaveral and Baikonur on partner vehicles. Its space infrastructure is concentrated in ground operations and mission control.

Source: National launch site roster · ALL IN SPACE compilation

Astronauts

  • Hazza Al MansouriUAE Space Agency / MBRSC · first flight 2019 · First Emirati and first Arab on the ISS
  • Sultan Al NeyadiUAE Space Agency / MBRSC · first flight 2023 · First Arab on a long-duration ISS mission and first Arab spacewalk
  • Nora Al MatrooshiUAE Space Agency / MBRSC · first flight 2021 · First female Arab astronaut candidate (selected 2021); not yet flown
  • Mohammad Al MullaUAE Space Agency / MBRSC · first flight 2021 · Selected 2021; not yet flown

Source: Astronaut biographies

Milestones

  • 2014UAE Space Agency (UAESA) / Mohammed bin Rashid Space Centre established
  • 2019First national in space

Notable missions and contributions

  • Hope Probe — UAE Mars Mission (orbit insertion Feb 2021)
  • KhalifaSat — Earth observation satellite (2018)
  • Hazza Al Mansouri — ISS (2019, first Gulf Arab in space)
  • Sultan Al Neyadi — ISS 6-month mission (2023)
  • Emirates Lunar Mission (Rashid Rover, 2022)
  • Emirates Mission to Asteroid Belt (planned 2028)