The UAE in the Space: What it Means
Today the UAE officially joins the space club. But Hazza Al Mansouri’s ISS mission is just the beginning for the UAE — and the Arab world.
By Xische Editorial, September 25, 2019
Source: MJgraphics/Shutterstock
At four minutes to six in the evening on Wednesday September 25, a rocket will lift off from a remote Russian space facility in the interior of Kazakhstan. Unlike previous missions, this rocket and tiny space capsule will represent the hopes and dreams of a small country that didn’t even have a space programme two decades ago. Few other nations of similar size have been able to create a viable space programme in such a remarkably short time. Through a commitment to hard work and the desire to literally reach for the stars, the UAE will soon be a member of a select group of nations leading humanity’s exploration of the far reaches of space.
Hazza Al Mansouri, a decorated F-16 pilot, will carry the ambitions of the UAE as he becomes the first Emirati in space and the first Arab to visit the International Space Station (ISS). The mission is a part of the UAE’s Astronaut Programme under the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre. Al Mansoori will be joined on the mission by Russian cosmonaut Oleg Skripochka and NASA astronaut Jessica Meir.
Their Soyuz MS-15 spacecraft will be launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, which was also the site where Yuri Gagarin, the first man in space, was launched in 1969. Once in space, Al Mansouri will conduct various experiments with a focus on the effect of microgravity on the human body. He will even host a traditional Emirati night for his fellow astronauts complete with Emirati foods.
The UAE’s has a long history of space research and education. Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Investment Company owns satellite operator Yahsat, which is a regional leader in satellite technology. The success of Yahsat spurred further satellite development and the UAE operates at least seven other satellites for commercial and defence purposes, with Dubai Municipality’s environment monitoring satellite DMSAT scheduled for launch soon.
Efforts to send human missions to space came into sharp focus in 2014 when the UAE created the country’s first Space Agency. Over the last five years, the country has partnered with the leading space programmes in the world from the United States to Russia and today’s mission is a testament to the collaborative spirit with which the country approaches space travel and exploration.
Supporting the UAE Space Agency are a host of research initiatives across the country including the Khalifa University Space Lab in Abu Dhabi and the Space Research Centre in Al Ain. UAE companies have additionally invested more than $5.5bn in the space sector and that figure keeps growing.
Today’s mission to the ISS was one of the first targets of the UAE’s Astronaut Programme and is a mark of the country joining the exclusive club of other space-exploring nations. Indeed, the ISS itself is a physical representation of the unity of space travel among nations. What began with a presidential directive from Ronald Regan in 1984 took over a decade and 30 missions to complete. Its primary purpose is to conduct experiments in the space environment but it has grown into a symbol of space exploration and international unity.
Since the space environment is so different from Earth, it is virtually impossible to conduct true research about space without being there. Everything from weightlessness to cosmic radiation is studied at the ISS. As we are on the cusp of private space travel and possible human exploration of Mars, the research environment the ISS facilitates is arguably more important than ever. With the mission, the UAE will be a part of these transformations.
Beyond scientific advancement, the magic of space travel lies in how much excitement in creates on Earth. As astronauts race to discover the outer reaches of our solar system, their efforts kickstart research in wide and diverse fields. For a country building a sustainable knowledge-economy like the UAE, such a catalyst is beyond value. It is pure inspiration that fills the hearts and minds of the nation with pride and inspires a passion for knowledge.
While this mission has particular importance for the UAE, the Middle East as a whole benefit from Al Mansouri’s mission. He is showing a generation of Arabs that anything is possible and confirming that the UAE is putting knowledge, education, and research into practice. The term moon-shot, which was born out of the desire to put a man on the moon in the 1960s, comes to mind. The rapid transformation of the UAE into one of the world’s leading knowledge economies with a pioneering space programme is a modern-day moon shot. Through the vision of its leaders and the hard work of everyone in society, the UAE has turned a new page in its vibrant history. Nothing is impossible now.
