Amna Al Ketbi (Dubai)
A number of experts confirmed that the UAE has achieved a major development renaissance in the field of space, which placed it among the leading countries in this sector, as well as confirming the sustainability of its space program, explaining that in a few years it was able to achieve huge space achievements, making it the first Arab country in this field. .
And the experts indicated that the UAE will record a new space achievement through the mission of Sultan Al Neyadi, the Emirati astronaut, who will launch to the International Space Station next February 27, aboard the SpaceX Dragon Endeavor spacecraft, from Complex “A39” at Cape Canaveral Base in Florida. USA, for 6 months.
New knowledge horizons
Dr. Farouk El-Baz, a space scientist and geologist at NASA and head of the Remote Sensing Center at Boston University, confirmed that long-term space flights open new horizons of knowledge for humanity, pointing to the importance of scientific experiments that are applied at the International Space Station.
He said that the UAE has developed a future plan for space projects, of which we are all proud, pointing to the importance of Sultan Al Neyadi’s mission, which extends to 6 months, as the scientific community is looking forward to obtaining its results, indicating that the UAE has a distinguished experience in the space sector, and a developmental role in the Arab region and the world. This makes them able to participate in the exploration, and not be satisfied with the role of a spectator in the manufacture of scientific events.
He said: The UAE experience in the space sector is the best in the Arab world, and that economic and scientific successes await the UAE during the next fifty years due to the achievements of this sector, while pointing out that the most important gains achieved by the state is the establishment of a promising generation of young people with distinguished experiences, and that the results of project explorations Space patriotism will be the basis of development for the coming years.
He added: The UAE space project is distinguished by its great diversity, which included many projects with different objectives. There is the beginnings stage that was characterized by the development and construction of satellites for the purpose of imaging and remote sensing, which included “Naif 1, DubaiSat 1, DubaiSat 2, and KhalifaSat”, all the way to To “MbZsAt”, the most technical and advanced satellite, which is a stage that made the country a major and important player globally, with what it provided through the Mars Exploration Project “Probe of Hope”, which provides, and still is, new qualitative information to the scientific community about the Red Planet and its secrets. These efforts And the future vision did not stop, but continued to include qualitative new projects, such as the mission to explore the moon, and the UAE mission to explore Venus and the asteroid belt, and these huge projects in their objectives reflect the strength of will and future thinking enjoyed by the country and its leadership, which establishes a prosperous future for it during the coming years. In addition to enhancing its contributions and global role in this sector.
Dr. Mohammed Ibrahim Al-Asiri, CEO of the National Space Science Authority in the Kingdom of Bahrain, said: Since the UAE announced its ambitious program to qualify and send astronauts into space in 2017, it has taken clear, deliberate and successive steps to achieve the goals of this program, which was characterized by transparency and long-term commitment.
He added: It was the first specialized program to prepare and train astronauts at the level of the Arab world, and aimed to qualify young Emirati cadres of both sexes who possess the expertise and skills necessary to represent the UAE and the Arabs in general in various space missions, and to seriously contribute to the implementation of many scientific experiments that contribute to Enriching the scientific outcome of humanity.
He continued: This program has achieved great success, and has become a model for countries to follow in order to qualify their cadres for space leadership, and to achieve scientific achievements and historical glories.
He said: We hope that this mission will be crowned with complete success, and that the Emirati Gulf Arab astronaut Sultan Al Neyadi will succeed in carrying out his missions to add new glory to the Emirates and the Arabs, and to record, through this long space flight, the Arabs’ entry into the space age with force. We also felt proud and lived eight days full of science and knowledge with the astronaut Hazza Al Mansouri in 2019. We are sure that the astronaut Sultan Al Neyadi will make us live 6 months of passion and continuous follow-up of his scientific achievements aboard the International Space Station, and we will look forward to his safe return to convey to Arab youth many of his Knowledge and the success story of the UAE in writing a new history for the Arab world in space.
Long term trips
Regarding the importance of long-term trips to astronauts and the scientific community, Al-Asiri said: Long-term space missions have an essential and important role in increasing human understanding of space, enhancing its ability to explore it, and benefit from it in the future. The long-term trips of astronauts are always rich in conducting scientific experiments in all fields, in addition to observing the Earth.
He continued: These trips, which are currently taking place through a stay at the International Space Station (ISS) at an altitude of about 415 km above sea level, have greatly contributed to the service of the scientific community and humanity in general through the resulting innovations that improved the standard of living on Earth and what it provided. From solutions to many challenges, it also paves the way for humanity to travel in space, whether to the moon or beyond that, such as the planet Mars. He added that it is known that the International Space Station is equipped with a lot of advanced equipment to carry out various types of experiments and in many fields, such as agriculture, bacteriology, virology, the study of cells and the study of the effect of gravity on various living organisms, and many others. This vast universe.
Pride for all
Dr. Ramzan bin Abdullah Al Nuaimi, Minister of Information in the Kingdom of Bahrain, said: The mission of Sultan Al Neyadi, the Emirati astronaut, is a source of pride for all Arab countries, as he is the first Arab astronaut to launch to the International Space Station for a period of 6 months, explaining the extent of the success of the UAE Astronaut Project, which is keen to qualify the astronauts. for new space missions.
And he showed the extent of the UAE’s cooperation with the Kingdom of Bahrain in space projects, where “Dhaw 1” is the result of constructive cooperation between the Emirates Space Agency and the National Space Science Authority in Bahrain, explaining that the name of the satellite “Dawa 1” was inspired by the title of the first light book, which is Written by King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, King of the Kingdom of Bahrain, the book tells important aspects of the Kingdom’s history. And he continued: The “Douha 1” satellite was designed and built by Bahraini and Emirati hands and competencies from various engineering disciplines.
He said that this project is a model for scientific and technical cooperation to serve humanity through the peaceful exploitation of space.
New achievement
Dr. Alaa Al-Nahri, Vice President of the Regional Center for Space Science and Technology at the United Nations, confirmed that the 6-month mission of Sultan Al Neyadi, the Emirati astronaut, is a new achievement that the UAE adds to its list of space achievements, explaining the importance of long-term missions.
And he indicated that the United Arab Emirates reaffirms, through its space projects, its belief in modern science, which has no choice for the country’s renaissance in light of sustainable development, which is supported by the country’s political leadership, and strengthening its position among the leading countries in space science at the global level, and confirms its belief in science as a path to renaissance and development.
He stressed that the UAE sends a positive message from the Arab region to the entire world about the ability of the Arabs to actively engage in the march of modern science, and to compete in the field of global progress in one of its most delicate and complex fields, which is the field of deep space science, while sending a message to the world about the ability of the Arabs to Absorbing and innovating the most complex technologies to keep pace with modern technical sciences, and to compete with the oldest developed countries in its most accurate and complex fields, which is the field of space and astronomy.
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