HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE, joined Twitter 11 years ago, and for the first time since joining the social media platform the Ruler of Dubai has changed his profile photo and it’s for a very important reason.
Leading the charge ahead of the launch of the Hope Probe on Wednesday, July 15, Sheikh Mohammed changed his profile photo, along with many other senior officials and government entities, to promote what will be a history-making moment for the region.
The profile photo which His Highness’ 10.3 million followers will now see is of the Hope Probe 2020 logo, along with the tagline ‘Arabs to Mars’.
Following suit from Sheikh Mohammed, HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Crown Prince of Dubai and HH Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and the Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, also changed their profile photos.
#NewProfilePic pic.twitter.com/5glJSk8Q1y
— Hope Mars Mission (@HopeMarsMission) July 11, 2020
Other government entities also followed suit in changing their photos to support the promotion of the Hope Probe including the Dubai Media Office, Dubai Police, Ministry of Education, General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs-Dubai, the Dubai Road and Transport Authority and more.
The Hope Probe is being spearheaded by the UAE in order to gain a full picture on what the atmosphere of Mars is like. Once the probe reaches the planet some time in 2021, data will be collected over a two-year period, but this could be extended by another two years meaning the Hope Probe has the potential to be in space until 2025.
Speaking ahead of the launch of the probe yesterday, Emirati engineer Hamad Al Hazmi explained to the Mars Mission has opened a “new horizon” for the United Arab Emirates.
“No one would have thought that an Arab or Islamic country would reach this level,” he said. “The UAE has opened a new horizon and we are proud of this achievement.”
