UAE orders airlock module for lunar spacewalks

The UAE’s Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre (MBRSC) has awarded Thales Alenia Space (TAS) a contract to develop an airlock module for the Gateway, the world’s first space station to orbit the moon.

TAS is a joint venture between France’s Thales and Italy’s Leonardo. The value of the contract was not disclosed.

The Emirates Airlock module will allow astronauts to perform spacewalks, transfer research to and from the lunar station, and serve as an additional docking port for spacecraft, TAS said in a statement.

“This new pressurised element is crucial for Lunar Gateway as it will be designed to enable extravehicular activities for astronauts,” said Thales Alenia Space CEO Hervé Derrey.

In January 2024, MBRSC and Nasa agreed to collaborate on the Gateway project.

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MBRSC will provide Gateway’s crew and science airlock module as part of the agreement. The US state space agency said it will fly a UAE astronaut to Gateway in a future Artemis mission.

In 2020, the US and UAE were among the original signers of the Artemis Accords, a set of principles to guide space exploration cooperation among nations participating in Nasa’s 21st century lunar exploration programme.

The Lunar Gateway is a global project involving Nasa, the European Space Agency, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, the Canadian Space Agency and MBRSC.