UAE Sends First Astronaut Into Space
The United Arab Emirates sent its first astronaut into space on September 25, as seen in this footage of the launch.
Hazzaa al Mansoori and two other astronauts – US astronaut Jessica Meir and Russian cosmonaut Oleg Skripochka – took off from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan en route to the International Space Station shortly before 10 am Eastern Time.
“I proudly watched as Hazza al Mansoori lifted off into space,” tweeted Crown Prince Mohamed Bin Zayed of Abu Dhabi, de facto leader of the UAE. “This event strengthens our confidence in our youth who will take our nation to new heights and reinforces our ambitions for the future.”
Al Mansoori, a former F-16 pilot in the UAE military, will conduct experiments onboard the ISS, and give an Arabic-language tour of the facility.
In a press conference, he predicted his first words in space would be: “We rely on the name of the almighty Allah.”
The three astronauts will bring the number of crew on the ISS to nine. Al Mansoori is scheduled to stay at the ISS for a little over a week, returning on October 3. Credit: NASA via Storyful
