Saudi Arabia will ship its first ever female astronaut on a area challenge later this yr, kingdom media has reported, withinside the modern flow to redesign the kingdom`s ultra-conservative picture. Rayyana Barnawi will be part of fellow Saudi male astronaut Ali Al-Qarni on a challenge to the International Space Station (ISS) “throughout the second one region of 2023”, the legit Saudi Press Agency stated on Sunday. The astronauts “will be part of the team of the AX-2 area challenge” and the gap flight will “release from the USA”, the enterprise stated.
The oil-wealthy us of a might be following withinside the footsteps of the neighbouring United Arab Emirates which in 2019 have become the primary Arab us of a to ship certainly considered one among its residents into area. At the time, astronaut Hazzaa al-Mansoori spent 8 days at the ISS. Another fellow Emirati, Sultan al-Neyadi, may also make a voyage later this month.
Nicknamed the “Sultan of Space”, 41-yr-antique Neyadi becomes the primary Arab astronaut to spend six months in area whilst he blasts off for the ISS aboard a SpaceX Falcon nine rocket. Gulf monarchies were searching for to diversify their energy-reliant economies thru a plethora of projects.
Saudi de facto chief Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has additionally been seeking to shake off the kingdom’s austere picture thru a push for reforms. Since his upward push to electricity in 2017, girls were allowed to force and to journey overseas with out a male guardian, and their share withinside the staff has extra than doubled due to the fact that 2016, from 17 percentage to 37 percentage.
Saudi Arabia’s foray into area isn’t the primary, however. In 1985, Saudi royal Prince Sultan bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, an airforce pilot, took element in a US-organised area challenge, turning into the primary Arab Muslim to journey into area.
In 2018, Saudi Arabia installation a area programme and closing yr released any other to ship astronauts into area, all a part of Prince Salman’s Vision 2030 schedule for monetary diversification.