Sean Rossman

USA TODAY

Leaders in the United Arab Emirates aim to build a human settlement on Mars by 2117, a research project the government promises will bring benefits to generations of people.

UAE Vice President and Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum and Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan started the Mars 2117 Project on Tuesday. The goal of the century-long effort is not just to inhabit the Red Planet, but to further space science research.

"We expect future generations to reap the benefits, driven by its passion to learn to unveil a new knowledge," Sheikh Mohammed said. "The landing of people on other planets has been a longtime dream for humans. Our aim is that the UAE will spearhead international efforts to make this dream a reality."

Al Maktoum teased the world with futuristic renderings of the project.

The government said UAE scientists will start the project and build a coalition of international scientists to "speed" it up. One of the aims of the plan is to make the research available to institutions across the globe, an effort to make the research beneficial to those on Earth as it relates to transportation, energy and food.

The first step of the project is to, "achieve scientific breakthrough to facilitate the arrival of humans to the Red Planet in the next decades." Part of the government's goal also is to expedite travel to and from Mars as well as establish what the settlement will look like and how people will move and eat once they arrive.

Mars volcano erupted for 2 billion years

Also at the summit, a team of UAE engineers presented a concept for a Mars city built by robots along. The showcase also featured "the expected lifestyle on Mars in terms of transport, power production and providing food, as well as infrastructure works and materials used for the construction of the city."

The UAE isn't new to Mars exploration. The country announced in 2015 it would send a spacecraft to Mars, which would land in 2021. UAE stated the spacecraft would be the first from the Arab world to go to Mars.

"Human ambitions have no limits," Sheikh Mohammed said, "and whoever looks into the scientific breakthroughs in the current century believes that human abilities can realize the most important human dream."

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